The Sunday Sermon Archive

Dear Friend,

In today's epistle St. Paul exhorts us to be forgiving and compassionate to those who may have fallen. "Brethren, and if a man be overtaken in any fault, you, who are spiritual, instruct such a one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted." We often hear this same thought paraphrased today in the words: "There but for the grace of God go I."

When we consider ourselves we will find that we have no room to judge another. Another popular phrase has been: "sweep the dirt from in front of your own door first." We are best off not comparing ourselves with our neighbors. When we do attempt to compare ourselves with one another we are too prone to pride and vain-glory. We blind ourselves to our own faults and failings, while we become keen observers of those of others.

Superiors of course must observe and watch over their subjects, but only from a motive of charity. History and experience has taught that superiors that are harsh with their subjects over their faults often succumb to the same faults themselves. God allows this to teach them to be more compassionate in their dealings with their subjects.

St. Paul is offering us a most profound instruction today by telling us to instruct in the spirit of meekness _ always reflecting that we also may be tempted. What sin has any man committed that we ourselves are immune to? If we were tempted as they were tempted, would we ourselves have resisted? Or perhaps we would have been even weaker than they and have fallen even farther than they have.

Thus St. Paul admonishes us to: "let every one prove his own work, and so he shall have glory in himself only, and not in another". Let us look in the mirror of our soul and see who we truly are. Who are we? What are we? What have we done? What have we not done? Who and what should we be? What should we have done and what should we have not done?

It is best for us not to compare ourselves with our neighbor lest we fall into the temptations of pride and vanity. But, if we must make a comparison of ourselves with others let us compare ourselves with the saints. How humbled we will become as we see what the saints have done and what they have suffered, and how little we have done and how unwilling we are to suffer!

When we see the faults and failings of someone, let us recall these thoughts of St. Paul and be merciful. Let us not seek to condemn and destroy, but seek like Christ to forgive and build up. Let us have the mercy of Christ that is so wonderfully illustrated in today's Gospel as Christ raises the widow's only son back to life.

Shakespeare offers us a description of true mercy which we might find useful to imitate as we strive to develop this virtue in our lives: "The quality of mercy is not strained, It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed _ It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes."

The gentle rains are readily absorbed into the parched earth, while the hard downpours penetrate very little and mainly just run off the earth leaving it hard and dry as ever. Likewise, a meek and gentle reproof has a better chance of affecting its purpose rather than a harsh or angry reproof.

Sometimes it seems that nothing we say or do will bring about the change we seek for in those we love. In this case we lose nothing, for God will see our intentions and efforts and we will be rewarded accordingly.

We must also remind ourselves that to forgive and be compassionate towards someone who may have fallen is not to condone or approve of their evil. We must likewise avoid this situation of giving any appearance that we approve of the evil. The mercy that we show must always be given in the spirit and with the mercy that Christ showed towards sinners.

The faults of others are an opportunity for us to do good, and in this light we should be grateful to God. Our enemies and even our insubordinate subordinates do us a grate service in offering us the opportunity to perfect ourselves in these virtues that St Paul admonishes us to follow. If we truly realize this we see that our enemies offer us a service for which we should be grateful. But, in this gratitude we are also humbled by the realization that the opportunity for us to grow in virtue has cost them dearly. We have benefited from their fall and so we have become their debtor. We owe them. So let us not only instruct such a one as St. Paul admonishes us to do with meekness, but let us also pray for them and offer them all the help we possibly can.

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