In early 2016, I had the opportunity to preach about Mercy over a number of Sundays.
This post combines those reflections, with the intent of exploring how Mercy can be a powerful theme as we enter Lent in this Extraordinary Year of Mercy, But, before we can start to look at Mercy as a Lenten Theme, it would be good to explore the word …..
Let’s start with Old Testament Hebrew … we find two words that can be understood as Mercy.
חסד hesed – is often translated as steadfast love, love that is dependable, righteous, being true to oneself and to one’s promises. action oriented.
רַחֲמִים rachamim – describes a love that is tender, responsive, compassionate, like a parent responding in love to the sufferings of their child. It comes from a root word rechem, which means a mother’s womb. Thus, there is a special intimacy and responsiveness about this kind of love, and a special concern for the sufferings of others. Indeed, in a number of languages with Arabic roots, this linguistic connection of Mercy to womb is present.
In the New Testament, the Greek word that is usually translated as “mercy” is the word ἔλεος (eleos) which can also be translated as loving kindness or tender compassion.
The Greek word comes from a root word meaning oil that is poured out. Thus, when the Church sings in her liturgy the Greek words Kyrie Eleison and Christe Eleison, she is praying that the
merciful love of God, the tender compassion of God will be poured out upon her children, like holy oil from above.
Mercy the way we are meant to understand it, is a term used to describe the compassion shown by one person to another,
Saint Thomas Aquinas defined mercy in general as “the compassion in our hearts for another person’s misery, a compassion which drives us to do what we can to help him” . Pope John Paul II said “The Bible, Tradition, and the whole faith life of the People of God provide unique proof … that mercy is the greatest of the attributes and perfections of God”. And more recently, Pope Francis has said “We need constantly to contemplate the mystery of mercy: the wellspring of joy, serenity, and peace, the bridge that connects God and humanity”.
However, for you and I, our typical day to day understanding of “mercy” is misleading. It is a word that brings to mind a person in power taking it easy on a potential victim. We think of a judge “having mercy” by giving a relatively easy sentence to an offender, or a person in a position of power “having mercy” on those who have no power, or are weak.
Indeed, most dictionary definitions will echo this theme, defining mercy as forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm
But that’s not the concept of mercy in the Bible; The meaning of mercy in scripture and our Catholic tradition is much broader and richer.
Mercy includes things like care, tender compassion, making someone else’s problem your concern, and being ready to help those in need. And it’s not like we don’t have some help with understanding this “Mercy” thing. Our Catholic heritage lists 14 traditional ways to become a merciful person. And that’s the theme we will explore later in this post.
It is hard enough for us to move away from our understanding of Mercy as related to earthly “justice”, and move toward our understanding of Mercy as Tender Compassion.
But here’s the challenge. Before we can DO mercy, we need to BE mercy.
Let me say that again … before we can DO mercy, we need to BE mercy.
to BE mercy is to let Mercy be a driving force within our BEing.
to let Mercy, to let Tender Compassion be our central and most important Characteristic. Our Central and most important Virtue.
And for that to happen, we have to practice compassion , to practice Mercy.
And here’s another challenge – inasmuch as we fail to let go of the hurts others have caused us, we are unable to be merciful and compassionate with others, and we block God’s mercy and compassion from being effective in our lives. It doesn’t matter how many chaplets of Divine Mercy we pray if we have not been compassionate to those we have hurt, and forgiving of those who have hurt us.
The two go hand in hand. It’s what Jesus said – Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
So, BEing Mercy is about a personal transformation. A change in the way that we relate to others. A change in the way we look at ourselves. And perhaps even a change in the way we look at God.
Being mercy is about our own personal spiritual and human growth, and the very first steps are letting go of the hurts others have caused us, and maybe more importantly, we need to be merciful and compassionate with ourselves, and let God’s mercy and compassion be effective in our lives.
So we start off this jubilee of Mercy, not by getting a list of things we can DO to show we are merciful. Rather, we start off with something much more difficult. We start off by taking an inner journey.
We look at how we understand mercy, and how we personally experience Mercy.
And I guess that is the take-away from the first part of this reflection , our ‘homework’ as it were.
We need to begin each day by asking God to help us to show tender compassion in our relations with others.
And to end each day by looking back over that day to see where we both showed that tender compassion and where we received tender compassion from another.
Before we can DO this mercy thing, we need to BE mercy, to adjust our understanding of what Mercy is and to become aware of it in our very BEing, in the minutes, hours and days of our life.
So that our mercy can be like God’s Mercy … so that our mercy can be ἔλεος – a tender compassion poured out upon all those who we encounter, like a holy oil from above.
So now we move from BEing mercy to DOing mercy.
If Mercy is part of who we are, part of our being, then this same tender compassion will show itself in the actions, or ‘works’, that we do.
There are traditionally 14 works of Mercy. Seven relate to our physical (or “Corporal”) service of others. The remaining seven relate to our Spiritual disposition. The list adapts to the needs of the time in which Christians live – when they were originally written, no one envisioned universal education, 24/7 social media, and the rise of a whole theology of lay mission and formation.
While the wording changes to reflect the tremendous changes in our culture, the central themes remain.
The Corporal Works of Mercy are to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, to Shelter the Homeless, to visit the sick, to visit the imprisoned, and to bury the dead.
Just as the seven Corporal Works of Mercy are directed towards relieving corporeal (bodily) suffering, the even more important aim of the seven Spiritual Works of Mercy is to relieve spiritual suffering.
The first three (to instruct the ignorant, to counsel the doubtful, to admonish sinners) we often shy away from, as they can be seen to require a certain level of knowledge or an extraordinary amount of tact. However, as Christians, we can always SHARE our faith through witnessing to how important God is in our lives. That sharing of our beliefs by the sharing of our personal experience is a gentle but powerful way of achieving these three works.
The remaining works (to bear wrongs patiently, to forgive offences willingly, to comfort the afflicted, to pray for the living and the dead) are really part of our everyday faith life as Christians.
Perhaps this Lent, you could take one theme from each of those lists (Corporal and Spiritual) and let that be your personal Lenten mission. Like we suggested at the beginning, to begin each day in Lent with a prayer to God that you will be an instrument of tender compassion – of Mercy – and to reflect and give thanks at the end of each day for the times you were able to fulfil your mission.
If you would like a few ideas to get you started, here is a list compiled by Joe Paprocki, Loyola Press ….. (some of the suggestions need to be adapted for young children and should not be practiced without the supervision or accompaniment of an adult.)
Corporal Works of Mercy
The Corporal Works of Mercy are kind acts by which we help our neighbours with their everyday material and physical needs.
Feed the Hungry
- see to the proper nutrition of your loved ones,
- support and volunteer for food pantries, soup kitchens, and agencies that feed the hungry;
- make a few sandwiches to hand out as you walk through areas where you might encounter people in need;
- educate yourself about world hunger;
- avoid wasting food;
- share your meals with others.
Shelter the Homeless
- help neighbours care for their homes and do repairs;
- support and/or volunteer at a homeless shelter;
- support and/or volunteer for charitable agencies who care for the homeless, build homes, and provide support in the wake of natural disasters;
- advocate for public policies and legislation that provide housing for low-income people;
- consider becoming a foster parent.
Clothe the Naked
- go through your drawers and closets and find good-condition clothes and shoes to donate to agencies that provide assistance for those in need;
- participate in programs that provide towels and linens for hospitals in distressed areas.
- Volunteer to work at a clothing drive or at a shelter where clothing is distributed to those in need
- Support the work of the St. Vincent de Paul Society
Visit the Sick
- spend quality time with those who are sick or homebound;
- take the time to call, send a card or an e-mail to someone who is sick;
- volunteer to drive patients to medical appointments and treatment facilities;
- volunteer at a hospital;
- assist those who are full-time caregivers for family members;
- cook and delivers meals to the sick and homebound.
Visit the Imprisoned
- support and/or participate in ministries to those who are incarcerated;
- support programs sponsored by agencies that advocate on behalf of those who are unjustly imprisoned;
- support job-training and educational programs designed to rehabilitate prisoners;
- pray for the families of inmates;
- support programs that provide holiday gifts for prisoners and their families;
Give to the Poor
- take some small bills or loose change (or coupon books if you prefer not to carry cash) with you to hand out to people you encounter who are in need;
- throw your coin change into a jar and periodically donate it to a charity;
- if possible make a regular monetary donation to a charity that tends to the needs of the poor.
Bury the Dead
- be faithful about attending wakes/visitation;
- support or volunteer at a hospice;
- participate in a bereavement ministry;
- spend time with widows and widowers;
- take friends and relatives to visit the cemetery;
- support ministries that offer free Christian burials to those unable to afford one;
- offer daily prayers for those with terminal illnesses and for those who have died;
- send Mass cards to families of those who have died.
Spiritual Works of Mercy
The Spiritual Works of Mercy are kind acts by which we help our neighbours with their everyday spiritual and emotional needs.
Instructing
- commit yourself to learning about the Catholic faith and share your understanding of the faith with others and with those who welcome it;
- share your insights, knowledge, and skills with others, especially friends, fellow students, coworkers;
- take time to “tutor” those who are just beginning tasks;
- read good literature and encourage others to do the same.
Advising
- be courageous yet compassionate in calling people and institutions to be faithful to Gospel values;
- intervene in situations in which people are clearly doing harm to themselves or others;
- respond to negative and prejudicial comments with positive statements;
- put an end to gossip by walking away; set a good example for others.
Consoling
- work at being optimistic and avoiding cynicism;
- respond to cynicism, skepticism, and doubt with hope;
- be articulate about your own hopes;
- ask people about their hopes and support them in trying to attain them.
Comforting
- walk with others through their pain;
- offer words of encouragement to those who seem discouraged;
- offer positive words to fellow students or coworkers who are having a difficult time with their tasks;
- be present to those who are struggling or in emotional pain or despair;
- offer sympathy to those who are grieving.
Forgiving
- pray for those who have wronged you and pray for the courage to forgive;
- ask forgiveness from others;
- let go of grudges; go out of your way to be positive with someone you are having a difficult time with.
Bearing wrongs patiently
- work at being less critical of others;
- overlook minor flaws and mistakes;
- give people the benefit of the doubt;
- assume that people who may have hurt you did so because they are enduring pain of their own;
- pray for those who have wronged you.
Pope Francis wrote “For all of us, then, the season of Lent in this Jubilee Year is a favourable time to overcome our existential alienation by listening to God’s word and by practising the works of mercy. In the corporal works of mercy we touch the flesh of Christ in our brothers and sisters who need to be fed, clothed, sheltered, visited; in the spiritual works of mercy – counsel, instruction, forgiveness, admonishment and prayer – we touch more directly our own sinfulness.” The complete text of Pope Francis’ message for Lent can be found here.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/lent/documents/papa-francesco_20151004_messaggio-quaresima2016.html