The Gaze of Mercy: A Commentary on Divine and Human Mercy, by Raniero Cantalamessa. The Word Among Us, 2015.
Ever since Pope Francis began to speak and write about mercy, that word has become a keyword for many authors. “The beauty of
Christ is his mercy. And that is what will save the world — not the love of beauty, but the beauty of love.” These are the words of Father Raniero. Here we are asked to take a plunge into the pool of mercy. Those are strong words as the author speaks of Zacchaeus, of Peter the Rock, and the Church in general.
The mercy of God made flesh is the goal of the
sacraments, the liturgy, and the Gospel passages. This author sees Jesus as the mercy of God made flesh and ourselves as the comforter of others.
A gaze of mercy also fills one with an abundance of joy. Joy is another word that Pope Francis uses in every chapter title of his “The Joy of Love”. In the jubilee prayer for the year of mercy, Frances uses these
phrases: If you knew the gift of God; let the church be your visible face in the world; feel compassion for those in ignorance and error; …that the Year of Jubilee be a year of grace from God.
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Saint of the Week
St. John Kanty: (1390-1473): December 23.
John was a country lad who made good in the big city and the big university of Kraków, Poland. After brilliant studies he was ordained a priest and became a professor of theology. The inevitable opposition which saints encounter led to his being ousted by rivals and sent to be a parish priest at Olkusz. An extremely humble man, he did his best, but his best
was not to the liking of his parishioners. Besides, he was afraid of the responsibilities of his position. But in the end he won his people’s hearts. After some time he returned to Kraków and taught Scripture for the remainder of his life.
He was a serious man, and humble, but known to all the poor of Kraków for his kindness. His goods and his money were always at their
disposal, and time and again they took advantage of him. He kept only the money and clothes absolutely needed to support himself. He slept little, ate sparingly, and took no meat. He made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, hoping to be martyred by the Turks. He made four pilgrimages to Rome, carrying his luggage on his back. When he was warned to look after his health, he was quick to point out that, for all their austerity, the fathers of the desert lived remarkably long
lives.
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A type of angel usually involved in sacred work before God. They are generally
described as winged creatures with feet and hands. The word(s) occurs over 90 times in the Hebrew Bible and once in the New Testament at Heb. 9:5, "And above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat; but of these things we cannot now speak in detail." Apparently, there are different kinds of Cherubim. Two golden Cherubim are on the Mercy Seat (Exodus 25:18). They were put in Eden "to guard the way of the tree of life," (Gen. 3:24). An interested
description of them is given in Ezek. 1:5-11,13,14.
When my three-year-old son opened the birthday gift from his
grandmother, he discovered a water pistol. He squealed with delight and headed for the nearest sink. I was not so pleased.
I turned to Mom and said, "I'm surprised at you. Don't you remember how we used to drive you crazy with water guns?"
