March 15, 2023 
Excerpt from Prayer Warrior Summit Formation by our Mother Foundress

“Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD: Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; Though they be crimson red, they may become white as wool.” (Is 1:18)

We have to ask the Holy Spirit to flash His flashlight in our heart to show us where anger is in our lives. Anger can grow inside of us if we don’t get it rooted out. Angry thoughts or speech can lead to angry conduct. I once had a superior who used to say to the community, “I can’t hear a word you’re saying because your actions are shouting.”

So as we ascend Mount Tabor, we hear the Father saying, “This is My Beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him” (Mt 17:5). When we listen to Jesus, we turn as prayer warriors to Mount Calvary, to the Cross, because this is where He preached His greatest sermon of all. We listen very carefully to His seven last words, which are the ways God has given us to totally uproot the seven capital sins. The first word on the Cross is, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34).

One of the reasons we have so much trouble forgiving is rooted in fear. Our anger is rooted in fear. If we can stay angry, it’s safe, but if I let my anger go, the fear is, “Am I going to be hurt again? Do I have to have another encounter again with this person? Who’s going to step on my heart this time?” There’s a fear that will keep us from forgiving, and so the power of Calvary in our lives is extremely important because it’s the summit of Love. Only perfect love can drive out fear (cf. 1 Jn 4:18). And so with Jesus, we can nail anger to the Cross; we can totally uproot it when we can say, “Father, forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing.” Anger is put to death right when we forgive. To lay the ax to the root, we take it right to the Cross.

“Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” (Lk 23:34)