The virtue of the month for April in Conquest and Challenge is compassion and mercy. This is special month because Sunday April 3rd is Divine Mercy Sunday in the Year of Mercy and our virtue of the month is compassion and mercy, which go hand in hand. It is almost impossible to be merciful if you do not have compassion. You can remember the message of mercy and our mission to be compassionate with the simple ABC’s. A = Ask for God’s Mercy. God wants us to approach Him in prayer constantly, repenting of our sins and asking Him to pour His mercy out upon us and upon the whole world. B = Be merciful and compassionate. God wants us to receive His mercy and let it flow through us to others. He wants us to extend love and forgiveness to others just as He does to us. C= Completely trust in Jesus. God wants us to know that the graces of His mercy are dependent upon our trust. The more we trust in Jesus, the more we will receive.
Compassion is the willingness to help anyone in need, especially those in need of pardon or forgiveness. Justice calls us all to assume responsibility for our actions. Mercy and compassion go beyond the issue of who is responsible. Mercy is simply love’s response to suffering. When we see someone who is suffering, we show them compassion. The greatest form of suffering is to not know God or his love. That is why there are spiritual works of mercy to help people get close to God.
God is the Father of Mercy and compassion. Jesus was an example of mercy here on earth. He is our example of a merciful heart. We sin and offend him in little and big things and he forgives us. His mercy comes from his love for us. If we want to be merciful to other people, then we need to look at them with love and see their needs. The YOUCAT # of the month for Conquest and Challenge speaks about this concrete mercy we should have #450: What are the “corporal works of mercy”? To feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, visit the sick and the imprisoned, and bury the dead.