We hear a very well-know psalm today in our readings, a psalm that looks at our person sins with a sense of repentance and sorrow. There are several phrases that are very famous in this psalm, such as the plea: Create a clean heart in me, O Lord; renew in me a steadfast resolute spirit. We recognize that that our human heart needs to be recreated with all the suffering, sorrow, and failings that we go through in life. We need God to recreate our hearts, to have our hearts molded by our faith and the values of the Gospel. The psalmist knows that he was born guilty, that he has been tainted by original sin. He recognizes that he needs the Lord to purify him, to was him clean from his iniquities and his faults. He knows that most of all, his sins hurt God. When St Ignatius of Loyola looked at the sins of his life, he saw a very serious matter. He saw himself as a sinner in all its raw reality. He saw himself bound, helpless, and alienated - those were the words he used. As he looked at his sins, St Ignatius wanted to see the with a growing intensity of sorrow, to the point of even being brought to tears. Ignatius felt the weight of his sins throughout his whole being. Yes, indeed, on our journey of faith, we are to look to God for help with our sins. God is to lead us out of sin. Indeed, there is no other way.
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