Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate

 

Welcome to my blog. Peace be with you.

To be a Christian is to be a disciple of Jesus. We are to learn to think and act like Jesus. In the readings of Luke prescribed by the Church today, we learn how we are to deal with others, particularly those who are hostile to us.

Thursday 10 September 2020

Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate

Prayer

Father in heaven grant us the grace to look on Jesus as he lived in this world and to trat others with them same patient love and mercy. We make our prayer through the same Christ Jesus, your Son our Lord.

 

Gospel

Luke 6:27-38

Love your enemies

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I say this to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat you badly. To the man who slaps you on one cheek, present the other cheek too; to the man who takes your cloak from you, do not refuse your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and do not ask for your property back from the man who robs you. Treat others as you would like them to treat you. If you love those who love you, what thanks can you expect? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what thanks can you expect? For even sinners do that much. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what thanks can you expect? Even sinners lend to sinners to get back the same amount. Instead, love your enemies and do good, and lend without any hope of return. You will have a great reward, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.

‘Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given back.’

 

Prayerful reflection

Being a disciple of Jesus is to have a way of thinking and acting in total opposition to the thinking of this world. We are to love those who hate us, do good to those who harm us. We are to bless those who call curses on us. We are not to react violently to those who are violent towards us. We are to be generous to others with only one question asked; is this person in need? Let him be foe or friend, relative or stranger we are to reach out in love, and help, if we can. If we can’t help because we ourselves have nothing, we are still to share our love with them by sharing their suffering. “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” This is the guide for our daily living. ‘Put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself, ‘what would I desire them to do for me?’ Then do that.

In a word we are to be merciful. We are to love in thought word and deed even those who do not deserve our love. Is it easy? No, it is not. But this is take up our cross and follow Jesus.

And why? Because the Holy Spirit has given us birth as children of God. We imitate God and especially as he has shown himself in his Son, Jesus. God in all three Persons is extravagantly merciful to saint and sinner alike. Heaven is a place where like God we all love each other with this same extravagantly merciful love. In faith, we are to begin our life of heaven here.

Are you a disciple or one of the crowd?

 

Prayer

Father in heaven we can do all things with the help you give us. Grant us the grace to treat others as we would like to be treated if we were in their circumstances. We make our prayer through your Son, Christ our Lord.