"Mercy" | Reflection by Patricia Thurston

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (Matthew 5:7)

“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6)

Growing up, Lent seemed less about mercy, and more about what each of us was going to sacrifice for 40 days. My mom was hoping we might replace what we were giving up with good habits, and motivation to love and serve others. Mostly, we counted the days until Easter, when we could say good-bye to abstention. Christ sacrificed his life for us; but Lord have mercy, some days a younger sibling-as-sacrifice would have been a welcome substitute. That said, this Lenten tradition did eventually instill in us the importance of reviewing life choices and treatment of others, at least once a year. This year, I’m working to embrace the painful cost and effort needed to make mercy a habit. My Aunt Barbara Anne says, “You can’t have mercy at a distance.” Bishop Michael Curry says, “Never let anyone drag you so low as to hate him.” Someone has to go first, and it won’t always go well for the person putting on the heart of compassion, kindness, and humility. Some people cling to a world view that life is a perpetual struggle for the upper hand, and the natural state will always be unequal power. But I’ve seen how even a small moment of mercy and kindness can close the distance and division brought on us by the pandemic, climate, and politics. I’m choosing to hold onto the Hope, that the way of mercy and love will win in the end.

Photo Credit: Patricia’s Aunt Barbara Anne

Words in the Wilderness - Walk through the season of Lent with Trinity, one word at a time. Every day (except on Sundays) we will post a photo and a brief refection written by someone in our Trinity community. https://www.trinitynewhaven.org/words-in-the-wilderness