Thursday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Christ offers the divine antidote to bitterness. In all likelihood, there is at least one person that we cannot stand. Maybe this person has done us a bad turn. If we throw more oil on this fire, it will blow up in our faces. We may even do worse things than those who have wronged us. Instead, Jesus says to “do good to” and “pray for” them. His admonition to “love your enemies” shows us the way to reverse the vicious cycles of our life, those brought about through grudges and retaliation. As the Holy Father has recently reminded us, “violence and war are never the way to peace!”
In order to live as “God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,” St. Paul tells us that we must share the mercy that has been shown us by God. We all have acted as our own worst enemies at time, even sabotaging ourselves to the point of endangering our salvation. Yet Christ has reached out and redeemed us! For whom must we implore the Divine Mercy this day? In addition to our personal enemies, let us pray for enemies of humanity. I ask for your special prayers for a doctor that has been performing abortions for twenty years, whom a pro-life friend of mine is helping to reconsider his actions. May the sweetness of Christ conquer the bitterness of all our hearts.