Sep
15
The Father's Mercy—24th Sunday for Ordinary Time (Cycle C)
Exodus 32:7–11, 13–14; 1 Timothy 1:12–17; Luke 15:1–32
Mercy and justice seem to be the twin horns upon which we Catholics gore ourselves, the two mysteries about God with which most of us struggle in some way. On one side, we want mercy for our own failings and those of whom we love, but we demand justice for those others out there—those wrong doers and blasphemers. How do we balance mercy and justice? More importantly, what does it mean that God is both merciful and just? Isn’t that a contradiction? That is the error of our time—the disconnect of these two pivotal qualities of God from each other. Our readings illustrate the tension between these two qualities that we in our imperfection struggle with so frequently, but which ultimately find no conflict in our loving Father.
Mercy and justice seem to be the twin horns upon which we Catholics gore ourselves, the two mysteries about God with which most of us struggle in some way. On one side, we want mercy for our own failings and those of whom we love, but we demand justice for those others out there—those wrong doers and blasphemers. How do we balance mercy and justice? More importantly, what does it mean that God is both merciful and just? Isn’t that a contradiction? That is the error of our time—the disconnect of these two pivotal qualities of God from each other. Our readings illustrate the tension between these two qualities that we in our imperfection struggle with so frequently, but which ultimately find no conflict in our loving Father.
