This morning we will welcome seven women and men as new members of our congregation.  We’ll also explore the virtue of forgiveness.

After Senator John McCain died back in August, he was remembered, in part, for his famous lack of patience. But even more he was remembered as one who possessed the virtue of forgiveness.

Alain de Botton, the philosopher who suggested the ten contemporary virtues that we have been considering this fall, says that forgiveness means a long memory of all the times when we wouldn’t have gotten through life without someone cutting us some slack. It’s recognizing that living with others isn’t possible without excusing errors.

This is true, as far as it goes.

I worry, however, about defining forgiveness down. By describing forgiveness as simply cutting some slack and excusing errors, he misses both the great difficulty and the redeeming possibility of true forgiveness. As people of faith, we might start to develop the virtue of human forgiveness by opening ourselves to the forgiving love of God.

SCRIPTURE LESSONS:       Nehemiah 9:9-21; Romans 3:21-26

SERMON:      “Virtues for Vicissitudes: Forgiveness”

The Rev. William Lovin preaching

ANTHEM:      “If Ye Love Me”         Thomas Tallis