Father Hurlbert said something very insightful at Mass on Sunday at Ascension: Often, when we think of sin and forgiveness, it's a matter of having committed a crime, and then making it up. He offered a different idea: the image of a person once being lost who has been found. It's important for the person who is lost because of sin, and has drifted from the Father, to come to his/her senses and return, as the son does in the story in the Gospel of the Prodigal. It's also what Paul speaks of so fervently from his own life's experience.
God by His nature is merciful, showering it upon us, Whom He has made His people, as Moses reminds God when He, in His anger, is about to smite the Hebrews Whom He delivered from Egypt.
God rejoices in showering His mercy on us when we turn back to Him. Let us live rejoicing in the gift of mercy that God gives us, and that we share with others as we make His presence known. On a sorrowful occasion of the tragedy of September 11, 2001, it is this mercy that truly heals us and makes our world whole, which is truly reason to feel joyful.
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