In today's readings we hear of both mercy and justice. Isaiah has God saying: "I will feed my sheep with justice" (Is 34: 16) while Jesus assures us: "Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents..." (Lk 15: 7) The key to understanding this is the superfluous and gratuitous nature of God's love which finds its symbol in the Sacred Heart of Jesus. St Paul points out: "But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us." (Rm 5: 8) God did not wait for us to repent as a condition for the Passion. He sought out a broken humanity and rescued it from its own malice and the predicament of everlasting alienation from eternal life. Jesus, who wept at the tomb of Lazarus, had human feelings and a human heart. He was capable of being hurt by the betrayal of Judas and Peter. Yet, his compassion, love and generosity still flow from the heart that has been hurt. He gives us all an example of what it truly means to forgive and to love while knowing sin and evil for what it is.
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