PRESENCE OF GOD: Teach me, 0 Lord, the secrets of Your mercy that I may fully profit by them.
MEDITATION 1. God's love for us assumes a very special claim, one that is adapted to our nature as frail, weak creatures: the character of mercy. Mercy is love bending over to relieve it, to redeem it, to raise it up to itself. It almost seems that God, in loving us, is attracted by our weakness, not because it is lovable, but because, being infinite goodness, His compassion stoops to compensate for it by His mercy.
He wants to heal our imperfection by His infinite perfection, our impurity by His purity, our ignorance by His Wisdom, our selfishness by His goodness, our weakness by His strength: God, the supreme, eternal good, wants to be the remedy for all our ills, “for He knoweth our frame, He remembereth that we are dust" (Ps. 102:14).
Since our greatest evil-rather, the only real evil-is sin, infinite mercy would be the remedy. Assuredly, God hates sin, but, although He is forced to withdraw His friendship that is, His grace, from the soul of the sinner because of the offense, His mercy still finds a way of continuing to love. If He can no longer love him as a friend, He loves him as a creature, as the work of His hands; He loves him for the that is still in him and which gives hope of his conversion. God's mercy is so immense that no misery, however great can exhaust it; not even the most infamous sin, providing it be repented of, can halt it. This sad power is reserved to one thing only; the proud will of man by which he disdainfully shuts himself up in his wickedness, not wishing to admit how great is his need of God's infinite mercy. In such a case, in spite of the immensity of divine mercy, the solemn words of the Gospel are fulfilled : “God hath scattered the proud the conceit of their heart, He hath put down the mighty from their seats … the rich He hath sent empty away" (Lk.1: 51-53).
2. There is no limit to God's mercy. He never rejects us because of our sins, He never grows weary of our infidelities, never refuses to forgive us. He is always ready to forgive our offenses and to repay our ingratitude with graces. He never reproaches us for our offenses, even when we fall again immediately after being forgiven. He is never angered by our repeated failures or weakness in the practice of virtue, but always stretches out His hand to us, wanting to help us. When men condemn us, God shows mercy to us; He absolves us and sends us away justified, as Jesus did with the woman taken in adultery. "Go, and now sin no more"(Jn.8:11). By His words and example, Jesus has shown us the inexhaustible depths of God's mercy. Let us think of the prodigal son, the lost sheep, Magdalene, and the good thief. But He has also said to us: "Be ye therefore merciful, as Your Father also is merciful" (Lk.6:36).
How far does our mercy go? How much compassion do we have for the faults of others? The measure of our mercy toward our neighbor will be the measure of God's mercy toward us, for Jesus said, "With what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you again" (Mt. 7:2) God does not require us to be sinless but that He may shower upon us the fullness of His mercy, but He does require us to be merciful to our neighbor, and moreover, to be humble.
In fact to be sinners is not enough to attract divine mercy; we must also humbly acknowledge our sins and turn to God with complete confidence. “What pleases God," said St. Therese of Lisieux, " is to see me love my littleness and poverty; it is the blind hope I have in His mercy. This is my sole treasure.” This is the treasure which supplies for all our miseries, weaknesses, relapses and infidelities, because by means of this humility and confidence we shall obtain the divine Mercy. And with this at our disposal, how can our wretchedness discourage us?
Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene (Divine Intimacy)
PRAYER TO SAINT MARY MAGDALENE
Saint Mary Magdalene, woman of many sins, who by conversion became the beloved of Jesus, thank you for your witness that Jesus forgives through the miracle of love. You, who already possess eternal happiness in His glorious presence, please intercede for me, so that some day I may share in the same everlasting joy. Amen.
Says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."
"Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much.
But he who has been forgiven little loves little."
We find the very same message echoing like a refrain throughout the
Diary of St. Faustina:
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Jesus said to her: I am Love and Mercy itself (1074).
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My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners ;
it is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from my Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy (367).
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Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet (699).
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My mercy is greater than your sins, and those of the entire world (1485).
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I let my Sacred Heart be pierced with a lance, thus opening wide the source of mercy for you. Come then with trust to draw graces from this fountain (1485).
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Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me. To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask. I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion (1146).
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I never reject a contrite heart (1485).
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Sooner would heaven and earth turn into nothingness than would My mercy not embrace a trusting soul (1777).
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Proclaim to the whole world My unfathomable mercy (1142).
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Proclaim that mercy is the greatest attribute of God.
All the works of My hand are crowned with mercy (301).
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