The Merciful

'Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy'.

mercy is compassion for those in distress; it comes from love, and in love returns to the giver.

Mercy shown to others in spiritual distress is of a deeper quality. It longs to alleviate the unhappiness of those who have missed their way: those who have lost hope, and their vision of the Lord. It wants to excuse faults, and patiently trys to understand and find a way for the sufferer to return to a life of happiness.

Bur though mercy is gentle and tireless in its compassion, it can only actually help by means of the Lord's commandments. Mercy seeks to remove, not only the suffering but also its cause: and the only effective medicine is truth. Over and over again we read in the Word of mercy and truth. It is mercy and truth that meet together, and righteousness and peace that kiss each other. There can be no true mercy without truth: each depends on the other.

The commandments are truth, and they are merciful because by keeping them we are released from the evils of self-love. It is self-love that lies behind all our miseries.

How can we become merciful ? First of all we must practice the teachings of Jesus ourselves. The first of the commandments must be our constant guide: before anything else our love must seek Jesus, and then our neighbour. As we hunger and thirst for the righteousness of these principles our conduct to our neighbour will become increasingly merciful.

We shall find ourselves longing to ease and help sufferers. We shall remember how wonderfully and mercifully we ourselves have been led all along the way: and patiently cared for in our trials.

If we sincerely and lovingly try to be merciful in our dealings with others, we will find mercy to be our own reward.

PRAYER

'God be merciful to me a sinner' (Luke 18, 13).

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