Mercy Response

M. Joanna Regan (biographer of Catherine McAuley) on reflection of Mercy:

"Mercy responds always to the cutting edge of human misery."

This week is Respect Life week here in the U.S. Many of our parishes and schools celebrate it by looking at life issues. For many this stops at considering the unborn. Yet, the Church promotes respect for the life and dignity of all persons. The person who lives in a shack, the person who is dying, who is trying to feed a family by migrating, the person who is starving n the Sahara and the the person being detained in our penal system are all children of God and we should be looking at them as such. What a long reach that is for so many of us! Yet, Catherine did just that. She visited the sick poor in their homes, visited the hospitals and the jails. She bettered the lives of so many and the Sisters of Mercy are still doing the same.

For me, this week helps me to focus on some priorities. Today is a day of fast for peace. So many people live in areas where peace is a fragile word. What am I doing about it?

Our Sister Martha is in Palestine and she wrote a moving e-mail of the conditions of the Palestinians who live in that area. Their lot is less than second class citizen. Animals are treated better. Their homes are bulldozed, they move, more homes bulldozed, all on their own land!

What can we do about it? If we have the attitude that one voice can't make a difference, then we are wrong. One voice is all it takes. One voice added to one more voice, added to another does make a difference. I can make a difference and so can you. So this week, let's both DO SOMETHING!