Transcript

Mercy and Christian Morality

This presentation is on the central role of mercy in Christian morality

 Mercy is at the heart of our morality as Christians.

 Mercy is what makes Christian morality distinctive from any other type of morality.
 We are called to live out the mercy of God in our dealings with others.
 The parable of the Good Samaritan tells us the story of our salvation, which is a story of mercy.
This parable tells us what every Christian must do to be a disciple of Christ.

Parable of the Good Samaritan

 In the parable of the good Samaritan, the injured man on the side of the road represents
humanity, wounded by sin, helpless and weak. We are that man trapped in patterns of
sinfulness.
 The priest and Levite who pass him by represent the Law and the Prophets. They were not
enough to help humanity out of its sinful situation. Even if God gave us the ten commandments,
even if he sent prophets to remind his people to do good and avoid evil, they were not enough
to lift us out of our patterns of sinfulness.

 The Samaritan who comes along is Christ, the one who showed mercy. He sees fallen humanity
and feels mercy and compassion in his heart. He desires to help.
 He helped wounded humanity, cared for the wounds caused by sin, and carried humanity to
safety. It is Christ, the Good Samaritan, who saves us.

 The Samaritan takes the wounded man to an inn and entrusts his care to theinnkeeper.
 He pays a price so that the wounded man may be attended to.
 He promises to return to pay what is lacking and to make sure that the man was properly cared
for.

 The inn represents the Church to whom Christ entrusted the care of humanity wounded by sin.
 We are the innkeepers who are called to bring Christ’s forgiveness and healing to his people.
 As members of the Church, we are to be bearers of Christ’s mercy to the world. This is our
mission; this is our task. Like Christ, we are not called to condemn or judge the world. We are
called to bring God’s mercy to all those beloved by God, all those who are struggling with
sinfulness.

 The price that Christ pays for the healing of humanity is his life, sacrificed on the cross.
 Through his sacrifice, Christ bestows on his followers His Spirit.
 Through His Spirit, Christ empowers the Church to care for his wounded and suffering people.
Just as the Samaritan pays money to the innkeeper so that he can take care of the wounded
man, Christ bestows on the Church his Spirit, the fullness of his life, so that we can share His life
to the world.

 When Christ returns, he will complete the work that he entrusted to the Church.
 He will also ask us how we have been merciful to his people according to his example.
 Just as Christ had been merciful to us, we should also be merciful to our fellow sinners.
  Our moral life as a Church must, therefore, be an imitation of the mercy of Christ.

Let us turn to other parables of mercy in the Gospels These other parables emphasize the importance of
rendering mercy over simply avoiding sin.

Parable of the Sheep and the Goats

 In the parable, a king talks to a great crowd, and he divides them into two groups, the way a
farmer would separate sheep from goats. What the king asks them is not, “Did you follow the
commandments? Did you avoid stealing or killing or committing adultery? Did you do any of
these sins” That was not what the king wanted to know. What the king wanted to know was,
“Were you merciful to those who are in need?” The basis for his evaluation of the two groups
was whether they have rendered mercy to the least of their brothers and sisters. He tells them,
“Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
The basis of the king’s judgment was not sinfulness but about being merciful.

The Rich Man and Lazarus

 We turn to the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.
o In this parable, the poor man Lazarus was at the doorstep of the rich man. The rich man
lived a very lavish life, and he enjoyed himself. He was aware that Lazarus was in front
of his house, and yet he did not do anything. When they died, they found themselves in
different places. Lazarus was at the bosom of Abraham while the rich man was suffering
the fires of Gehenna. The rich man was condemned not because he directly caused evil
to Lazarus but because he did not show mercy to Lazarus, who was in need. He did not
do the good that he was supposed to do.

 The focus of these other parables of mercy is about the mercy and goodness that we are
supposed to give to others.
 The more important question for Christian morality is “What good things did you do for your
brothers and sisters?” not “What sins did you commit?
 In the past, Christian morality was all about avoiding sins.
 The focus on sins made people forget about goodness and mercy.
 Christian morality must always have two sides, doing good and avoiding sins.
 If we focus on doing good and being merciful, we will be careful about committing sin. But if we
just focus on avoiding sin, we may never think of doing good.

Love One Another

 Let us remember Jesus’ commandment to his apostles at the Last Supper : “A new command I
give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”
 He wanted his apostles to focus on loving others, not on sinfulness and punishment.

Father, Forgive them

 At the cross, Jesus prayed to his Father: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they
are doing.”
 His prayer at the cross are words of mercy for all of humanity. Even after all his suffering, there
is no anger or condemnation. There is only mercy.
 We should let mercy and love shape our Christian morality and our pastoral ministry.
 As we come to the end of this presentation, I would like you to reflect on how the Church treats
those who have fallen into sin. What is our pastoral response? Too often, we have responded
with condemnation, with judgment, with punishment. If we are truly imitators of Christ, the first
and primary response should be mercy.
 Like the Good Samaritan caring for the wounded man, we are called to care for humanity
struggling with sin. It is mercy that Christ asks of us.