“Love means never having to say you’re sorry” is a famous line from Erich Segal’s 1970 novel, “Love Story.” Bishop Robert Morneau writes that this statement is not only lousy psychology but also denies what love is all about. “The cousins of love are mercy and forgiveness. Every relationship will have its hurts and bruises. These must be tended to as much as a knife wound. If not, an infection will set in, threatening our spiritual and community life. A humble spirit and contrite heart allow us to live authentically with God and others.” In the Book of Daniel, at the point where Daniel’s three friends refuse to bow down to the golden image of Nebuchadnezzar and are thrown into the fiery furnace, the three friends, commonly known as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego – the names they were given in Babylon which in the original Hebrew were Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, we have Azariah (Abednego) praying loudly to the Lord: “But with contrite heart and humble spirit let us be received.” Bishop Morneau makes a crucial point: “As we come before the Lord in personal or communal prayer, our disposition and our moral behavior play a significant part in the effectiveness of our dialogue with the Lord. Humility grounds us in the truth of things; contrition opens our hearts to receive the mercy of God. The Gospel parable about the servant who received God’s forgiveness but refused to forgive in return is deeply disturbing. Of course, we are that servant being offered God’s forgiveness. Hopefully, we are not that servant in withholding forgiveness from those who have hurt us in any way.” Jesus teaches that forgiveness of others must be “from the heart,” for that is what God looks at in every request we make of Him. That is the depth and breadth of his desire for intimacy and truth.