Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, priest

I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief.
Indeed, the grace of our Lord has been abundant,
along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

 Several times in the scriptures we hear that God overlooks sins which are due to ignorance. The most amazing incident – and all the more reassuring for its unexpectedness – is Jesus’ dying gasp, “Father, forgive them. They do not know what they are doing.”

Saint Stephen echoed Jesus’ prayer as he died, Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he died. (Acts 7:60)

Saint Peter will also plead the ignorance of Jesus tormentors: And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. (Acts 3: 17)

Saint Paul explains this to his Corinthian disciples:

But we speak God’s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (I Cor 2: 7-8)

In Biblical theology nothing happens by accident; all is by God’s plan. The divine plan of salvation included the death and resurrection of Jesus.

As we celebrate the feast of Saint Peter Claver, who called himself the slave of the slaves, we remember the appalling sin of slavery. This “crime against humanity” flourished with the discovery of the Americas and the cultivation of sugar cane. When native South Americans fled home or died under the lash, African slaves were imported. Their life-span under slavery might be ten years but they were easily replaced by further imports. Their sugar went to Europe; goods and money went to Africa; and slaves to America. People invested in the slave trade who never saw a black man or a slave ship. It was a safe, profitable investment; and considered no more immoral than investing in abortion, tobacco or firearms today.

If we are appalled by their casual indifference to the plight of the black man and woman, they might be appalled at the dimensions of our consumption, environmental pollution, adultery and trade in weapons. We can expect that our descendents, at the beginning of the next century, will wonder, “What were Americans thinking about waste in 2011? Why were they driving those huge, dangerous, gas guzzling automobiles? Didn't they know that commuter trains are cleaner, safer, less stressful and far less expensive?"

Every age has its own blindness to sin. We simply cannot see it, nor can we imagine how the past or future generations live with themselves.

But God is merciful. He overlooks our guilt -- even the murder of Jesus -- as he reveals our sins to us. Gratefully we repent, turn away from evil, and walk in his way.