Tag: The Work of Mercy

One can always get all navel-gazey about this sort of thing, and sometimes motives are worth a look. After prayer for Hitchens went out, it was followed by lots of

One of the sillier jokes told about Catholics is the one about the guy who gets ushered inside the pearly gates by St. Peter. As Pete shows him around the

Of course, there are many kinds of affliction, and all the corporal works of mercy, from feeding the hungry to burying the dead, aim to relieve them. But this begs

As I was writing this book, I got an earache. I don’t mean a little twingy pain, like a headache or a sore toe. I mean the Most Excruciating Pain

The command to forgive sins willingly must be seen in light of this incredible and crazy generosity. The operative word here is willingly. It’s a word with no upper limit.

The forgiveness of sins, said the Fathers of the Church, is a greater miracle than the creation of the universe. That seems exaggerated, when considered from our perspective. A Catholic

That’s why bearing wrongs patiently is hard. The command to bear wrongs patiently is, quite simply, the command to die, to kill your old self and live to God. It’s

For me to assume the task of writing about “bearing wrongs patiently” is like asking the Incredible Hulk for anger-management counseling. I don’t bear wrongs patiently. Why should I? Those

The reason it is important to distinguish team-building propaganda from admonishment is simply this: One is often tempted to excuse one’s own evil by comparing oneself with Those Bad People

Of all the works of mercy, probably the most thankless and despised is admonishing the sinner. Nobody wants to do it (except human toothaches), and people never want it done