text: It seems to me that the Gospels present us example after example of a Jesus who not only forgave, but who could get past what people had done in their pasts, and focus on the now and the future.  His consistent message was to forgive, and to exhort the sinner to sin no more.  
  
  How this has somehow escaped the church still boggles my mind.  This is a man who calls us to be better, even as he understands that life can get messy.  
  
  Yes, the canon  lawyer wants rules.  Alas, Jesus didn't provide lengthy sets of rules and checklists: rather, he provided principles, and exhorted us to use our common sense.  Francis seems to understand this.  Alas, all too many who seem to need report cards and check lists to know how they are doing, seem to miss this point.