Dives in Misericordia: “He Who Sees Me Sees the Father” (3, continued)

Chapter 3 of “Dives in Misericordia” (“Rich in Mercy”) is entitled “When Christ Began To Do and To Teach.” It continues as follows:

“3. . . . When one speaks of preaching, one encounters a problem of major importance with reference to the meaning of terms and the content of concepts, especially the content of the concept of ‘mercy’ (in relationship to the concept of ‘love’). A grasp of the content of these concepts is the key to understanding the very reality of mercy. And this is what is most important for us. However, before devoting a further part of our considerations to this subject, that is to say, to establishing the meaning of the vocabulary and the content proper to the concept of ‘mercy,’ we must note that Christ, in revealing the love – mercy of God, at the same time demanded from people that they also should be guided in their lives by love and mercy. This requirement forms part of the very essence of the messianic message, and constitutes the heart of the Gospel ethos. The Teacher expresses this both through the medium of the commandment which He describes as ‘the greatest,’²⁹ and also in the form of a blessing, when in the Sermon on the Mount He proclaims: ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.’³⁰”

29. Matthew 22:38.
30. Matthew 5:7.

 

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Pope John Paul II: “Dives in Misericordia”