Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
We are all familiar with the story of the prodigal son. The wastrel son leaves home, runs up the credit card, lives a life of decadence and then comes home. Certainly, this would be the time for a good dressing down and the elaboration of the consequences of a dissolute life. Instead, the father shows mercy, not justice, although he certainly would be within his rights giving his son a piece of his mind. Perhaps this is the hardest task of Christianity, the desire to promote mercy. This decision is a difficult one since sometimes a few words of reproach may be in order. Today’s reading in which Jesus reminds us that we are called to administer mercy not justice reminds us of the well-known prayer requesting wisdom on when and how to act:
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.
Knowing the difference of course is the whole project of discernment. When and how we administer mercy is one of the great challenges we all face.