Mercy, Mercy, Mercy…
We are women and men of the Word. We do not just imitate Jesus, the Incarnate Word in our
flesh. No, we identify with the
Incarnate Word. So how are we to enter this Jubilee Year of Mercy? We find a
clue in Francis’ letter opening the Jubilee year, a celebration which is
corresponding with the 800th Anniversary Celebration of the
Dominican Order. In Misericordiae Vultus (The
Face of Mercy), Francis opens his letter with “Jesus is the face of Mercy.”
This means more than meets the eye. Mercy is compassion when it goes out to one
who in no way deserves it. So, if Jesus is the face of mercy, this means he is
the most accurate revelation of the true nature of God. Jesus is the revelation
of the Father. Now each of us has our own images of God from childhood. The God
keeping black marks…the judging God… But then we look at Jesus and we see a God
bouncing children on his lap, a God hanging on a tree with arms outstretched to
welcome us home when we have put him there. Perhaps our first resolve in this
new year of Mercy can be to sit down and check on our long-held image of God.
Perhaps we need to climb into the lap of God and rest against his heart. Then
comes the hard work: How do we become
a people of mercy?
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