Jesus said: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” (Luke 6:36ff.)
The Church calendar states today’s theme briefly and forcefully: “Be merciful!” This short phrase, ending with an exclamation mark, is both a command and an invitation. It comes directly from the mouth of the Lord Jesus in today’s Gospel: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36). This is the heart of Christian life. It is not merely a suggestion to be a little kinder or more tolerant, but a call to reflect God’s own nature in our lives.
St John writes: “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). In the same way, we may say: we show mercy because God first showed mercy to us. Reflecting on today’s theme, the Church handbook puts it aptly: “We belong to the Church of sinful people, which lives by God’s forgiveness.” This is our shared identity. We are not judges, but fellow defendants, all of whom have received grace. As St Paul writes to the Romans, we will all stand before the judgement seat of God (Romans 14:10).
