Neither Do I
John told us today how Father Gonzalez described Divine Mercy, the new covenant.
When God confronted Eve about eating the apple, she accused the serpent. When Adam was confronted, he blamed Eve. And from there blaming, accusing, anger, and violence took root ending with full-on wars that continue today.
When the woman was caught in adultery, there wasn’t great anger or retribution to stone her; it was simply what the law of Moses required. When Jesus said one without sin could cast the first stone, men left one by one until there was no one left. Jesus asked the woman, ‘Does no one condemn you?’ and she replied ‘No sir.’
‘Neither do I condemn you,’ he told her.
And that one line changed everything.
Jesus didn’t come to destroy the law or prophets but to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17). He fulfilled the ceremonial law by dying on the cross (sacrifice), and he built on the moral law (love) by rising again. He ended the old covenant (sacrifice required) to establish a new one (love required). Violence is seeing partially and prophesying partially but when the perfect comes, (Neither do I; Father forgive them,) the partial will fall away. (1 Cor 13:9-10). The mosaic law is partially and the law of Jesus Christ is perfectly. If you kept only two commandments you will have fulfilled all the others. Jesus came to fulfill the law and prophets. Requiring sacrifice fell away because it was no longer required, the New Covenant came into effect.
Mercy overturned the previous mosaic law for atonement. From then on God did not require sacrifice to atone for sin. When Jesus said ‘Father forgive them’ from the cross, he started it. And when he rose from the dead, he finished it: mercy overruled law. Mercy trumped anger, hatred, violence. Yet two thousand years later we’re still not getting it. And won’t until we have Christ guiding us because some injustices we are not able to forgive without his grace. Our humanness will continue to command retribution. And blaming, accusing and wars will continue.
We human beings are impressionable. We mimic others’ good and bad around us, often to the point of not being able to separate wheat from the weeds on our own. Not until we stop feeding the weeds will they stop growing. Not until we start feeding the wheat will that start growing. Violence begets violence. Love begets love. And we need God’s wisdom to know the difference. We need God’s mercy as much as we need to give God’s mercy.
Maybe then we can build a just world.
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