Lk 6: 36-38
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
A Deeper Experience of Mercy
“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Stop Judging, . . . Stop condemning . . . Forgive and you will be forgiven.” These words can sometimes feel like a quid pro quo – if you will forgive, then I will forgive you. I don’t hear it that way. As I was praying with these verses, I asked myself “Are we really able to receive God’s mercy if we are not first merciful?” God can offer us mercy but does it really “sink in” if we do not practice mercy towards others and even towards ourselves first? If we haven’t experienced forgiving another, how do we know how to receive fully the forgiveness being offered to us? God’s mercy is not a reward for us being merciful, it is a gift of love. To open the gift fully, we must act in kind.
How is the Lord inviting you into a deeper experience of mercy, love and forgiveness?
—Amy Hoover is a spiritual director and the Director of Adult Ministry at the Jesuit Spiritual Center at Milford.
Prayer
A Prayer of Reconciliation
Lord Christ, help us to see what it is
that joins us together, not what separates us.
For when we see only what it is that makes us different,
we too often become aware of what is wrong with others.
We see only their faults and weaknesses,
interpreting their actions as flowing from
malice or hatred rather than fear.
Even when confronted with evil, Lord,
you forgave and sacrificed yourself
rather than sought revenge.
Teach us to do the same by the power of your Spirit.
Amen.
—William Breault, SJ