Homily for April 23, 2017.
On this second Sunday of Easter, our entire liturgy from opening prayers to the readings are centred on Mercy. Today is the Sunday of Mercy, the day our Lord Jesus Christ revealed to St. Faustina as the day the world should mark the feast of Divine Mercy.
What is mercy?
It is the opposite of selfishness; it is looking out for others, putting the needs and concerns of others before yours. To be merciful is to practice what we read in today’s first reading which says:
“And all who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need.” Acts 2:44-45. Mercy is compassion, it is feeling sorry for others and being able to put yourself in other people’s shoes.
Every now and then, we read about how our economic and financial crimes commission are discovering millions here and there in houses, in graveyards, in airports and even in busy markets.
Whether or not these monies are actually stolen, the fact is that for such monies to even exist in a country where the average person can barely feed three times a day shows the height of mercilessness. If we all decide to look out for each other as the Apostles did, no one would be poor. Mercy is the answer to our problems in this country.
Why should we be merciful?
Because the God who we serve is Merciful. And this Easter, we commemorate how God in his mercy looked with pity on humanity and decided to send His Only Son, Jesus Christ to redeem us from sin and death even while we were still sinners.
This is what St. Peter explains in the second reading. “By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and to an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4.
If God was not merciful, he would have left us to perish in our sins and die since that was what we deserved. If not for God’s mercy, Jesus would not gone to the Cross of Calvary. And even right there on the cross, Jesus not only practiced mercy, he taught us how to be merciful by saying: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34
Forgiving others the wrongs they do to us is an essential part of mercy. This is because no one deserves forgiveness. To forgive others is always a gift, there is always going to be a painful giving involved, hence the very word “forgive” has a “give” within it. Each time we forgive, we are giving, we are letting something go, we are sacrificing!
Practicing mercy is not easy, giving things away is not funny, forgiving others is painful and difficult, yet this is essentially what we are called to do as Christians. St. Peter acknowledges this difficulty and pain as part of the trials we face often but he encourages us not to give up because there is reward waiting for us.
“In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:6-7.
Do we also need Mercy?
When we talk about forgiveness and mercy, it is easy for us to harden our hearts to others but then, the moment we try to turn things around, we discover that we ourselves are not only poor but grievous sinners constantly in need of God’s mercy.
Each time we get down on our knees to pray, we are beggars just like those who beg from us. And each time we sin, we need God’s forgiveness otherwise we suffer punishment for it. In our Gospel passage this morning, we saw how Jesus made God’s forgiveness so easy and so affordable to obtain.
“As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” John 20:21-23.
In this way, Jesus instituted the Sacrament of Confession giving his disciples (priests), the power to act in his person in absolving people of their sins. In other words, as long as we can see a priest to confess to, we can obtain forgiveness. So easy, so cheap! We don’t have to kill a goat or put money down, we don’t even have to come out publicly to narrate ourselves before the community. And even our penance is never ever proportionate to our sins.
If God has made his mercy so easy to obtain, why then do we withhold forgiveness from others? Why do we need people to come and apologize first or pay us back first before we forgive? If we are always begging from God, why do we turn deaf ears to those who beg from us? Doesn’t the Bible say do to others what you want to be done to you?
Finally, Jesus himself practically displayed how we should practice mercy by asking Thomas to come and touch his hands and his feet. Of course, Thomas deserved some strokes of the cane for doubting but Jesus does not even show any anger towards him, he simply condescends to his level by asking him to touch his hands and feet so as to believe.
In conclusion therefore, let us be merciful. Without mercy, we cannot say we are children of God because God is merciful and every child has to resemble his father. What we are asking from God, let us never deny it from others.
Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, deepen my trust in your mercy and make me more merciful. Amen.
Happy Sunday. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Divine Mercy Sunday. Bible Study: Acts 2:42-47, 1 Peter 1:3-9 and John 20:19-31)
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