Forgiveness and some very mean words

“Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

Our Sunday school lesson on Sept. 14 was from the Gospel of Matthew 18: 21- 35.  In this passage Peter asks Jesus, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

Jesus replies that we should forgive not seven times, but seventy-seven times.  Jesus then goes on to share the parable of the unforgiving servant. 

Jesus makes forgiveness sounds pretty simple and that we should keep doing it over and over. But we all know that forgiveness is hard, messy, and most times accompanied by fear and frustration.

Here is a great book for kids on the topic of forgiveness written by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Douglas Carlton Abrams.  "Desmond and the Very Mean Word" is the story of a Bishop Tutu as a young boy who has a new bicycle  he is very proud of that he rides around his neighborhood.  Desmond encounters a group of boys who shout at him (some very mean words) and he responds by shouting back at them.  Desmond is guided by Father Trevor who helps him explore his feelings of hurt and anger and who helps him realize that yelling back at the boys didn't make him feel any better.

What I really like about this book is that it helps introduce the idea of having compassion- even for the mean people.  Desmond learns through Father Trevor that all people deserve compassion - even when they don't say that they are sorry.

“When you forgive someone, you free yourself from what they have said or done. It’s like magic.”  Father Trevor

This is a great book to read with your kids to start a conversation about dealing with angry feelings and how to respond to bullies. Father Trevor helps Desmond stop and think about seeing the good in everyone - which is a great lesson for all of us!

I have a copy if you would like to borrow it! You can also purchase it online here and it is also available at the Squirrel Hill library and other locations of the Carnegie Library.

Also here is link to an educator's blog with some lesson plan ideas if you want to explore further.

The illustrations in this book are by A. G. Ford and it was published in 2012 by Candlewick Press.