Human Mercy and Divine Mercy

Human Mercy and Divine Mercy
A Reflection for the St. Vincent de Paul meeting on Monday, July 27, 2015
By Dcn Bob Bonomi

Today’s (Monday) second reading from the Liturgy of the Hours, Office of Readings was taken from a sermon by the late 5th/early 6th century bishop, Saint Caesarius of Arles.  It addresses the relationship between divine mercy and human mercy, and how important it is for us to show mercy to others if we, in turn, would receive mercy. 

Let us listen to what St. Caesarius has to say:

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. My brothers and sisters, sweet is the thought of mercy, but even more so is mercy itself. It is what all men hope for, but unfortunately, not what all men deserve. For while all men wish to receive it, only a few are willing to give it.

How can a man ask for himself what he refuses to give to another? If he expects to receive any mercy in heaven, he should give mercy on earth. Do we all desire to receive mercy? Let us make mercy our patroness now, and she will free us in the world to come. Yes, there is mercy in heaven, but the road to it is paved by our merciful acts on earth. As Scripture says: Lord, your mercy is in heaven.

There is, therefore, an earthly as well as heavenly mercy, that is to say, a human and a divine mercy. Human mercy has compassion on the miseries of the poor. Divine mercy grants forgiveness of sins. Whatever human mercy bestows her on earth, divine mercy will return to us in our homeland. In this life God feels cold and hunger in all who are stricken with poverty; for, remember, he once said: What you have done to the least of my brothers you have done to me. Yes, God who sees fit to give his mercy in heaven wishes it to be a reality here on earth.

What kind of people are we? When God gives, we wish to receive, but when He begs, we refuse to give. Remember, it was Christ who said: I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat. When the poor are starving, Christ too hungers. Do not neglect to improve the unhappy conditions of the poor, if you wish to ensure that your own sins be forgiven you. Christ hungers now, my brethren; it is He who deigns to hunger and thirst in the persons of the poor. And what He will return in heaven tomorrow is what he receives here on earth today.

Do we sometimes forget that it is really Jesus who comes to ask for assistance? We’ve heard the story of the sheep and the goats so often that we may forget that it is truly Jesus who we are encountering.  That is our challenge; that is our blessing.  We come face to face with Jesus in our encounters.  As we pray at the close of each meeting, “We thank You, Lord, for the many blessings which we receive from those whom we visit.”  May we always recognize the blessings that our clients are to us.  They aren’t just people in need; they aren’t just children of God.  They are Christ.