The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames)
Episode: Day 14 – As We Forgive
Date: January 14, 2026

Overview

In Day 14, “As We Forgive,” Fr. Mark-Mary Ames focuses on the theme of forgiveness as central to the Christian life, rooted in the Lord’s Prayer: “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” The episode explores the depth of God’s mercy, our call to extend forgiveness to others, the biblical roots of this teaching, and practical ways to receive and share mercy daily.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Call to Mercy

• Height of Christian Calling: Forgiveness is not just a nice sentiment but is, according to Fr. Mark-Mary, “the height of the gift and the height of the call to be merciful, as our Heavenly Father is merciful.” (01:30)
• God’s Mercy is Limitless: God never tires of forgiving us, and “his mercy is new every morning … [It] never ceases to flow freely from the heart of God” (01:50).
• No Need for Fear: Because God’s mercy is always available, “we need not fear our sin, we need not fear our weakness … he will receive us again and again and again as if it were the first time.” (02:13)
• Imitating God’s Mercy: Christians are called to let “mercy never cease to flow freely” from their own hearts, reflecting what they themselves have received from God (02:35).

Scriptural Foundation: The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant

• Matthew 18:23–35 Paraphrased: Fr. Mark-Mary recounts the parable of the king who forgives a servant an enormous debt, but that servant refuses to forgive a smaller debt owed to him. The king is justly angry at this lack of mercy (03:00–05:10).
  • Core Lesson: “Should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant as I had mercy on you?” (Fr. Mark-Mary paraphrasing Jesus, 04:45)
  • Unforgiveness is depicted as shocking and inappropriate precisely because of the great mercy already received.

Forgiveness as a Shared Gift

• Practical Illustration – The Nachos Story:

  • Fr. Mark-Mary humorously recounts an incident involving a shared plate of nachos to illustrate how sharing what we’ve received is simply right (05:45–08:30).
  • Quote: “It was at that moment that I realized these were not my nachos, but our nachos.” (08:07)
  • Interpretation: Just as it would be absurd not to share food freely given to us, so it is with the mercy we’ve received—“You have been forgiven so much and yet you're not willing to forgive … that is just not right.” (09:15)

• Connection to the Lord’s Prayer:

  • Forgiveness is woven into the very fabric of the Christian life: “The Lord created us, he gave us life. We rebelled, we sinned against him, and yet he comes in pursuit of us, to forgive us by ultimately dying for us.” (09:35)
  • Challenge: “We who have been freely given mercy … are asked to forgive as we have been forgiven.” (10:03)

Supernatural Forgiveness

• Human vs. Divine Forgiveness:

  • Forgiveness “is more than just a human thing. It's a supernatural thing. It's a God thing.” (10:30)
  • True forgiveness is God living and forgiving through us; we need his grace to do it, not just willpower.

• Ritual & Daily Practice:

  • Fr. Mark-Mary encourages a daily meditation on the crucifix as a concrete reminder of God’s forgiveness (11:25).
  • “Just remembering again how God has forgiven us, and then asking for him the grace to forgive as we have been forgiven, and mercy.” (11:35)

• Forgiveness as a Journey:

  • “It's often going to have the characteristics of a journey … but each and every day we come to the Lord asking more and more for the grace so that we can forgive those who have trespassed against us.” (12:07)
  • Forgiveness isn’t an “on/off switch,” but a daily, repeated act of grace.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Divine Mercy:
  • “His mercy is new every morning. And that mercy … never ceases to flow freely from the heart of God.” (01:50)
• On Emotional Honesty:
  • “We need not fear our sin, we need not fear our weakness … he will receive us again and again and again as if it were the first time.” (02:13)
• On Parable Response:
  • “All the other people around are like, that's crazy. Like, that is just not right. You have been forgiven so much and yet you're not willing to forgive.” (09:15)
• On the Nachos Parable:
  • “These were not my nachos, but our nachos.” (08:07)
• On the Source of Mercy:
  • “If mercy is going to flow through our hearts, our hearts need to be connected to his heart.” (10:25)
  • “Forgiveness … it's a supernatural thing. It's a God thing. To be able to forgive as God has forgives is to allow God to forgive through us.” (10:30)
• On Practice:
  • “A beautiful way to do this is to have the daily practice of meditating upon a crucifix … just remembering again how God has forgiven us, and then asking for him the grace to forgive as we have been forgiven.” (11:25)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:30 – The Christian call to mercy and God's limitless forgiveness
• 03:00–05:10 – Retelling and unpacking the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Matthew 18:23–35)
• 05:45–08:30 – The Nachos story: a personal parable about sharing freely what we’ve received
• 09:15 – The connection between the parable and our response to mercy
• 10:25 – How forgiveness is only possible with God’s help
• 11:25 – Suggestion to meditate on the crucifix daily as a path to receiving and giving mercy
• 12:07 – Acknowledging forgiveness as a journey, not an event

Conclusion & Prayer

• Fr. Mark-Mary invites everyone to bring their hearts before the Lord, seek his continued mercy, and boldly request healing and the grace to forgive.
• He prays the Our Father, three Hail Marys, and the Glory Be, centering the episode in prayer, and concludes with an encouragement to continue seeking God’s mercy and sharing it with others.

Tone and Language

Fr. Mark-Mary’s style is warm, earnest, slightly self-deprecating, and deeply pastoral. His use of relatable, humorous stories (like the nachos) balances thoughtful scriptural teaching. The tone is both inspirational and realistic about the challenge and process of forgiveness.

For Further Practice:
Listeners are invited to build a habit of meditating on the crucifix and to remember daily God’s mercy as fuel for forgiving others.

For the full prayer plan and episode resources, visit Ascension Press: Rosary in a Year.