Here is a quote from the Bible that may be the focus of the scriptural lessons for today:
“Peter came and said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.’” (Matthew 18:21–22)
The Gospel lesson is sometimes hard to understand and, in my way of expressing it, to fully “accept” or “digest.” As an ordinary human being, I feel that our patience and tolerance are often too limited for us to be perfect Christians. But it is precisely because of our physical and spiritual limitations that we need to ask the Lord for help. May God’s unfailing love and gracious mercy forgive our sins and teach us to renew our lives day after day. Amen.
A by-the-way note:
The ministers serving in today’s service included the Rev. Dr. Charles Chen (celebrant), the Rev. Dr. Annie Y. Tsai (preacher), Viola Mu (LEM), Ellie Mu (acolyte), Paloma Hsu and Kris Tong (musicians), Kris Tong and Shujane Lee (first and second readers), Joy Zeng (greeter), and Terry Lee (altar guild).
Today, our rector, the Rev. Lily Chang, helped celebrate Holy Eucharist at a new church, The Gabriel’s Episcopal Church, in Beitun, Taichung City. She therefore invited the Rev. Dr. Charles Chen to serve as celebrant this morning. It was also Shujane Lee’s first time serving as a reader from the lectern, so I took a couple of photos of her as she read the epistle (see photos below).
