Mercy is the face of Christ

Second Sunday of Easter

It’s true that “seeing is believing.” But it depends on what you’re looking for. Before he would believe, Thomas needed to see concrete evidence of what the other disciples attested, “We have seen the Lord.” Seeing the nail marks and the wounded side would be proof enough for him.

Now before we get all over “doubting” Thomas, I think he has an excellent point. How would anyone know that what we profess is true? If anyone saw us going about our daily routines, would they know we were Christians? If they heard us talking about our faith in Christ, would they see enough proof to believe what we said?

As important as they are, good thoughts, faithful attitudes, and interior dispositions aren’t enough. No one can see that. What they can see are the things people witnessed in the first community of Christians: devotion to one another, giving praise to God, sharing their possessions, helping all in need. 

On this Divine Mercy Sunday, let us remember what Pope Francis has constantly taught. Mercy is not an abstract idea. It is a way of life, a verb, a physical response to the specific wounds of another. Mercy is the face of Christ, who is visibly seen in the concrete actions of the community that bears his name.

This post was first published in “GIA Quarterly: A Liturgical Music Journal.”

Image credit: Priscilla Du Preez, Unsplash, CC0.