Be Not Indifferent, but Different

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Christian, communion, compassion, Fr. Michael Crosby, Good Samaritan, justice, kindness, Luke, merciful, mercy, Peace, Pope Francis, Sisters of St. Joseph, spirituality, Year of Mercy

Yesterday I spent the day with the majority of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the Albany Province listening to and interacting with Fr. Michael Crosby, a Capuchin Franciscan friar, who has become over the past several decades a strong voice for justice and spirituality not only in our Church but for the world. As we move toward the conclusion of the “Year of Mercy” we could not have a better companion and beacon of light to help us understand the nuances in the Scriptures and in our lives for the practice of mercy. Steeped in the gospels, Father Mike used especially the example of the Good Samaritan and broke it open in ways that were new and challenging. In addition, he presented us with the text of last week’s general audience of Pope Francis (10/12/16) which focused hearers on the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. For those of us who are sometimes overwhelmed by conditions in the world that seem beyond our power to change, the following words of Pope Francis gave a challenge but also the possibility of a way forward.

[Jesus] taught his disciples: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”  (Luke 6:36) It is a commitment that challenges the conscience and action of every Christian. In fact, it is not enough to experience God’s mercy in one’s life; it is necessary that whoever receives it becomes also a sign and instrument of it for others. Moreover, mercy is not reserved only for particular moments, but it embraces the whole of our daily existence.

How then can we be witnesses of mercy? We do not think that it has to do with making great efforts or superhuman gestures. No, it is not like this. The Lord indicates to us a much simpler way, made up of little gestures, which, however, in His eyes, have great value… (emphasis mine)

The point is, is seems, to become ever more conscious of others and their needs, never allowing indifference to be our mode of operating but practicing kindness that will fund the well of compassion building in the world. In this hope, in this communion, is our peace.

 

 

A Better Question

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Good Samaritan, Joan Chittister, Martin Luther King Jr., mercy, Pope Francis, The Audacity of Mercy, The Monastic Way, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Year of Mercy

I just came across an old issue of The Monastic Way, a monthly thought-for-the-day offering by Joan Chittister whose theme was “The Audacity of Mercy.” Since we are still (hopefully) observing the Year of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis last December, I thought it would be a good read on a foggy morning. All the selections were thought-provoking but one toward the end of the month caught my eye as familiar and worthy of more reflection. I offer it here in the hopes that at least some will not see it as just a clever juxtaposition of phrase but rather an invitation to deeper contemplation.

Mercy takes us out of ourselves. It makes us one with the rest of the world. Or as Martin Luther King, Jr. reminds us, “The first question which the priest and the Levite asked was, “If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?” But the Good Samaritan reversed the question. He said: “If I don’t stop to help this man, what will happen to him?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neighbors

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good, Good Samaritan, Jesus, Luke, mercy, scholar, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Toah

Luke is always concerned in his gospel about the outcast and the poor. This morning as Jesus is preaching, a scholar of the law stands up to test him, asking what is necessary to inherit eternal life. Jesus, who often responds to a question with a question, asks him what he reads in the law (Torah) about the matter. The man answers with the two-fold tenet of love of God and love of neighbor and Jesus allows that he is correct. Fine. But the man doesn’t stop there. He comes back with the question, “And who is my neighbor?” which causes Jesus to launch into the parable of the Good Samaritan, the most familiar and one of the best examples in Scripture of the rule about loving one’s neighbor – especially if that neighbor is your country’s sworn enemy. And again, at the end of the telling, Jesus has the scholar answer his own question by asking his assessment of which character in the story was the real neighbor. The only possible answer gives the best exchange of the gospel text – and perhaps one of the best opportunities in Luke’s entire gospel for Jesus to make his point about the crux of life. When the scholar says the neighbor was obviously the one who treated him with mercy, Jesus wins the day by saying, “Go and do likewise.” (LK 10:25-37)

This seems a perfect beginning to the work week (whether or not our “work” is of a traditional nature). We ought, perhaps, to be alert today (and every day, really) to whatever comes our way that requires a response of mercy, that fiercely loving outpouring of ourselves for the good of the world.