Penitens is a smart man...

From Penitens' blog... http://penitens.blogspot.com/
"It is I who have sinned;
it is I, the shepherd, who have done wrong.
But these are sheep; what have they done?
Punish me...

This is not an easy thing to do. Too often we are tempted to shift responsibility or even shift the consequences of our failures onto others. Even David did this: choosing a punishment that impacted the people (pestilence) rather than one that would have threatened him personally (three months of flight from his enemies).

As children and servants of God,
it is important for us
to accept the limits of our control
and to take responsibility,
placing ourselves always in the hands of God:
whose power and mercy are infinite."