communities of forgiveness

i remember some good times in college. i feel like one of those almost old guys who talks about his college experience and roomates more than anyone wants to hear. but i can't help it. i had a great time and even better roomates. as good a guys as they all were, sometimes 5 guys in a 3 bedroom apartment got to be a little much. there were a few disagreements, and a few of those turned into heated discussions... and a rare few turned into near brawls. i think in 2 years there was only one physical fight (me and kirk).

one things that always made me thankful was the forgiveness given to each other in the apartment. my roomates weren't like the typical guys who would scream at each other and then never talk about the arguement again. they actually asked for each others' forgiveness. we would sit down over wings and hash it out. and that forgiveness was contagious.

when we would hear two guys fixing problems they had with each other, it would loosen the tension in the house. it would put everyone at ease. but it would also set a standard for how to do community.

maybe when we forgive it rubs off on others. my friend kirk wonders if Paul telling the church "whoever you forgive i forgive" tells a bit of the story of community forgiveness. maybe forgiveness is contagious. kirk asked the question, "are we creating a culture of forgiveness? maybe another question might be, is my ability to forgive expanding others' ability to forgive?" and i think its a question worth asking. how does your forgiveness, or the lack there of, affect those around you?