Forgiveness has in the past been very much a religious matter, perhaps even a specifically Christian concept, since it was part of Jesus' teaching and enters into the Our Father, that prayer which is the model of all Christian prayer and which in many ways highlights the necessary elements of a good Christian life.

In recent times professional psychologists have become interested in the psychological and social and even the psychosomatic aspects of forgiveness. One of the interesting ideas stressed in these psychological studies is that reconciliation and forgiveness are different, for whereas forgiveness or its refusal is more usually a personal matter, reconciliation requires a certain interaction between two persons.

These thoughts can help us to penetrate today's Gospel passage, which nowadays we commonly refer to as the reconciling of Peter. Jesus does not say that he has forgiven Peter. Rather, through his gentle questioning he engages him in the act of reconciliation. In questioning Peter three times, Jesus is not reminding him of his threefold denial, for that would be cruel, almost revengeful. Jesus is engaged in his Messianic ministry of healing: he is healing Peter's heart and mind.