I’m counting the days. Why? Because this Extraordinary Jubilee Year is exactly what I need when I need it. Of course, mercy is pretty much what everyone needs every day. We’re all miserable sinners, after all. And if we’re not miserable about sinning, it’s because we’re too miserable from sinning to know that we ought to be!
If mercy isn’t exactly your cup of tea, it’s going to be a long year. And people who relish it like I do will make it even longer. I have to admit that official Church announcements and proclamations bring out the activities director in me. I start researching and planning before the papal seal is dry. I hope it’s because I want to make sure that I’m ready to receive every grace the occasion might bring my way.
While not the whole story by any stretch, forgiveness is a key part of what it means to be merciful. So I searched the Gospels for instances in which Jesus forgave sins or taught others something about how to do so. Five moments of mercy stood out.
1. Luke 5: 17-26 First is the paralyzed man on the mat who was lucky enough to have four friends carry him to Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus tells the man that his sins are forgiven. This audacity offends the Pharisees and teachers. But Jesus ups the ante by asking them, “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or, ‘Rise and walk’ ?”Jesus then proceeds to heal the man and tells everyone that he’s doing it in order to affirm his authority to forgive sins.
2. John 8:1-10 Second is the woman caught in the very act of adultery. Jesus’ words are powerful in the drama that unfolds. To the angry crowd he says, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” When they are shamed into leaving, he asks the woman, “Where are your accusers?” Seeing that they are gone, he reassures her saying, “Neither do I condemn you.”
3. Matt 18:21-22 Third, Peter approaches Jesus with a question about boundaries and limits. “If my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus’ answer is jarring. “Not seven times,” he replies, “but seventy-seven times.”
4. Luke 7:36-50 Fourth, is the woman who barges into Simon the Pharisee’s house where Jesus is reclining at table. She weeps at Jesus’ feet, washing them with her tears, drying them with her hair, kissing them, and annointing them with costly perfume. Knowing that his host is scandalized by such behavior, Jesus tells a story. Two creditors are forgiven their respective debts, one large and one small. He asks the Pharisee which one of the two would be more grateful. Jesus affirms Simon’s answer, then adds, “See this woman?…Her many sins have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.” To the woman, Jesus openly states, “Your sins are forgiven.”
5. Luke 23:33-34 Fifth, Jesus arrives at Calvary and is crucified between two criminals. As he is being nailed to cross, Jesus prays, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”25
I’ve been praying these passages as the Five Mercies on my rosary beads. I start with the Apostles’ Creed in order to remember that I do at least claim to believe in the “forgiveness of sins.” Then I pray the I confess on the first bead, followed by the Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy on the next three. With the Hail, Holy Queen I ask the Mother of Mercy to pray with me. Then I offer each decade with an Our Father followed by ten Jesus Prayers. The final Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner brings me to the words of the “Good Thief”: Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. I conclude with the Lamb of God.
What I’ve noticed is that when I pray this “Five Mercies” chaplet in the morning, I don’t so easily lose sight of the fact that no one I meet during the course of the day needs God’s mercy more than I do. I’m learning to trust more in God’s desire to forgive and heal, and in the people in my life who will carry me to him when I can’t get there myself. I’m putting down the stones I’m tempted to throw at someone else and beginning to believe that God isn’t looking for a reason to condemn me, even when I’m caught in the act. I’m not keeping quite so exact a count of how many times I need to forgive, and I’m realizing just how much debt God has chosen to pay on my behalf. I’m more willing to love in proportion to my sins. And, I finally understand that forgiveness can be granted to someone who doesn’t even know he ought to be asking for it. I recognize that sometimes that person is me.
The Holy Doors of the Year of Mercy will open on December 8. May the Holy Doors of this Jubilee open in all our hearts, and may each one of us be fully immersed in the ocean of God’s merciful love.
Copyright 2015, Jaymie Stuart Wolfe
Jaymie Stuart Wolfe
Author of Adoption: Room for One More? (2015), Jaymie Stuart Wolfe is a Catholic convert, wife, and mother of eight mostly-grown children. She has written and edited numerous books for both adults and kids, and works for Our Sunday Visitor as an Acquisitions Editor. Under Loaves and Fishes Ministry, Jaymie reaches out through word and song as an author, columnist, speaker, and musician. She is a co-founder of Live + Jesus, a group embracing the spirituality of Saint Francis de Sales and promoting the Works of Mercy in daily life. A graduate of Harvard University, Jaymie also holds a Master of Arts in Ministry degree from St. John's Seminary in Boston. Jaymie lives in Massachusetts with her husband and family (and a continually evolving menagerie of exotic and ordinary animals). Follow Jaymie @YouFeedThem or connect on FB, Amazon, Goodreads.
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This is beautiful, thank you.