Becoming Ministers of Mercy
Susan McCarthy, RDC
If you have had the opportunity to observe those lining up to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday, I hope you have witnessed, as I have, the great hunger and thirst in their eyes for the touch of God in their lives. Might we dare say the mercy of God in their lives?
It is mercy that Pope Francis wishes us to commit to during this Jubilee Year of Mercy which began on December 8 and continues until November 20, 2016.
In issuing the papal bull, Misericordiae Vultus, he spoke of it in these words, “How much I desire that the year to come will be steeped in mercy, so that we can go out to every man and woman, bringing the goodness and tenderness of God.” He wrote, “May the balm of mercy reach everyone, both believers and those far away, as a sign that the kingdom of God is already present in our midst.”
Mercy or compassion is what we offer to someone who has offended or harmed us. But it goes deeper than that. We are called to recognize that there is a need for understanding and forgiveness even if the other party may be unaware of this need. Mercy implies a turning away from punishment even when justice allows for it. Mercy is what was prescribed to us by the prophet Micah,
“You have been told, O mortal, what is good;
and what the LORD requires of you:
Only to do justice, and to love goodness,
and to walk humbly with your God. (Mic 6:8)
The season of Lent that begins this month offers us the opportunity to practice mercy in our daily lives. We might begin by first identifying some of the people hurting in our world, our towns and cities, even in our homes. Who are those most in need of our mercy? We know about the refugees, the unemployed and those who are down in their luck. What about those with terminal illness and those who are growing fragile? What about those who feel alienated and estranged from our Church communities?
To help us in our practice we are guided by the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. The corporal works consist of feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, visiting the imprisoned, giving drink to the thirsty and burying the dead. The spiritual works are: converting sinners, instructing the ignorant, advising the doubtful, comforting the sorrowful, bearing wrongs patiently, forgiving injuries and praying for the living and dead.
How wonderful if we might emerge from the forty days of Lent as true ministers of mercy.
In his weekly audience (November 18, 2015) Pope Francis suggested that we might “… learn from concierges, porters and doormen around the world, who always smile and make people feel welcome and at home.”
If we can do this we will be living out the prophetic anointing experienced by Jesus:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to
captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed
go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” (Luke 4:18)
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