RBWords - Volume 29 - Number 3: March 2016
Something to Think About
R. B. WORDS - VOLUME 29 - NUMBER 3 - MARCH 2016
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SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT -
My Lenten preaching journey took me to North and South Louisiana and South Texas. In all these places I am encountering the JUBILEE YEAR OF MERCY proclaimed by Pope Francis, which began in Advent 2015 and will end on the feast of Christ the King in late November 2016. That doesn't mean, of course, that we can stop being merciful when it's over. One might ask, however, if we have noticed the event enough to take stock of how merciful we are? Pope Francis has challenged the whole church in this regard. His message has not been welcomed by folks of a grimmer and stricter vision of the church who would exclude many of those whom Pope Francis is trying to welcome. An aesthetic and transcendent Church does not seem to be open to the wounded and sick sinners who are being welcomed by the Pope to a vision of the Church as a "field hospital."
I hope my readers will find time to ponder this vision which seems to have captivated much of the world. If you have time, you might read Fr. Henri Nouwen's little classic, THE RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL SON, an extended meditation on the great painting by Rembrandt, or on JESUS AND THE PRODIGAL SON - GOD'S RADICAL MERCY by Fr. Brian Pierce, O.P.. Both will give you a strong perspective. In many of the parishes that I visit, I witness the devotion called DIVINE MERCY. It seems to have caught on since St. John Paul II recommended it and often precedes or follows the recitation of the rosary in parishes. My hope is that the devotion does not focus entirely on an abstract mercy or a purely personal one, but on our baptismal commitment to be merciful as our heavenly Father is merciful.
Small acts of mercy can go a long way. We can do a lot by forgiving one another. Another example is found in this wonderful story. A little girl is not at her accustomed place to be picked up by Mom at the end of school. Mom is, of course, very concerned and gets out of the car and goes in search of her daughter. She finds her little girl a short ways away sitting next to another little girl who is holding a broken doll in her arms and crying. Mom rushes up and says, "Where have you been? I've been looking for you!" Her daughter replies, "I've been here with my friend. Her dolly is broken!" Mom replies, "That's very sad, but you can't fix her dolly, can you?" The little daughter responds, "No, Mama, but I can help her cry!" Perhaps attention to the Jubilee Year of Mercy can open our eyes and hearts to those who are broken. IT'S SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
It Has Been Said
"What is it that pushes many religious people toward a harsh, fearful legalism that blinds them so that they do not recognize the liberating power of God's mercy in the Eucharist We NEED God's mercy; we hunger for it. God alone is perfect; the rest of us are just a rag-tag bunch of hikers trying to find the trail that we have strayed from."
from JESUS AND THE PRODIGAL SON - GOD'S RADICAL MERCY, by Fr. Brian Pierce, O.P.
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