“Do not the words of the Sermon on the Mount: ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy,’ constitute, in a certain sense, a synthesis of the whole of the Good News, of the whole of the ‘wonderful exchange’ (admirable commercium) contained therein? This exchange is a law of the very plan of salvation, a law which is simple, strong and at the same time ‘easy’. Demonstrating from the very start what the ‘human heart’ is capable of (‘to be merciful’), do not these words from the Sermon on the Mount reveal in the same perspective the deep mystery of God: that inscrutable unity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, in which love, containing justice, sets in motion mercy, which in its turn reveals the perfection of justice?” (Dives in Misericordia, 8).
God is the origin of all that exists, of all that is good and beautiful. He is our beginning. Out of love, He conceived each of us in the depths of His mercy and sent us into the world – just like His Son – so that we may carry His mercy wherever we are. He created us out of mercy and for mercy. He shaped us so that our hearts would be capable of mercy, and He blessed every effort we make to open our hearts to His mercy and allow Him, through us, to show mercy to our sisters and brothers.
How do you take care of your heart?
What are you doing to become more and more merciful?
Where is God sending you so that you may bring His mercy there today? (It would be good to ask yourself this question everyday …)
“…I require you to make acts of mercy, which are to come from your love for Me. You are always and everywhere to show mercy unto your neighbours; you may not withdraw, excuse or absolve yourself from this. I am giving you three ways of performing mercy to your neighbours: first, by deed; second, by word; and third, by prayer; these three levels cover the full scope of mercy, and it is unshakeable evidence that a soul loves Me…” (D 742).
