Sisters and Brothers in Christ, today’s Scripture readings take us on journey into the transformative power of Divine Mercy. In his letter to Timothy, St Paul shows us what mercy can do with the heart of a sinner. In the Gospel, Jesus reminds His followers of their essential mission: to bear good fruit and build their lives on a solid foundation of faith. It is providential that we reflect on these texts on the feast of St. John Chrysostom, the great fifth-Century, preacher whose words burned with the fire of the Gospel, earning him the name “Golden Mouth. He lived what he preached, even when it led him to suffer persecution and exile.
Mercy Finds Us at Our Worst
Paul begins his message with these words: “This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and I am the foremost of them. It is quite striking to observe here that Paul does not say “I was the foremost.” He says, “I am the foremost of them.” He calls himself prōtos, the chief of sinners.
And yet he says that Christ showed him that long-suffering patience that does not give up on us. Paul acknowledges that his life is a living proof that no one is beyond God’s mercy.
Healing Wounds and Restoring Lives
St John Chrysostom once preached: “The Church is not a museum for saints but a hospital for sinners.” This was his way of echoing Paul. Mercy is an experience that saves the sickest of hearts and turns them into signs of hope. Pope Francis once described the Church in striking words: “I see the Church as a field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask a seriously injured person if he has high cholesterol…You have to heal the wounds. Then we can talk about everything else. Heal the wounds…And you have to start from the ground up.”
In 1972, Henry Nouwen wrote a book titled “A Wounded Healer.” He reminds us that healing does not come from pretending we have it all together. He argues that Nobody escapes being wounded… The main question is not how we can hide our wounds, but how we can put them at the service of others.[1] This means that each of us is called to minister out of our own brokenness. As priests, religious, parents, friends, and Christian neighbors, we are not doctors above the wounded, but fellow patients who have found medicine in Christ. Our scars, touched by Christ’s mercy, become the very places from which we can console and accompany others.
Medicine in Christ
Our world is full of people hurt by society, injustice, family wounds, and even by their own choices. They do not need perfect Christians who talk down to them. Rather, they need companions, wounded healers, who can say: I too have been carried by the patience of Christ. Let me walk with you, because “by His stripes we have been healed” (Isaiah 53:5).
Paul was a living testimony of God’s mercy. Out of the abundance of his heart his mouth spoke: “To the King of the ages…be honor and glory.” A heart that has experienced God’s mercy is filled with gratitude. Mercy naturally tunes the heart to Worship.
Transformative Power of Mercy
In the Gospel, Jesus offers us two images that reveal whether “Mercy” has truly transformed our heart. First, He teaches that whatever fills the heart will inevitably spill out of the mouth. If my heart is full of resentment, it will leak out sooner or later. But if it is filled with mercy, it will also overflow. Second, Jesus reminds us that laying a strong foundation means allowing the Word of God to model our lives, guide our thoughts, choices, and emotions.
May divine mercy change our hearts, transform our words, and help lay a strong foundation of faith that will withstand the storms of life. Amen.
[1] H.J. M. NOUWEN, The Wounded Healer: Ministry in Contemporary Society, New York, Image Books, 1979, Chapter VI.
