Page:SermonsFromTheLatins.djvu/581

 God's mercy  surpasseth  all  understanding,  be  assured, the  day  will  come — the  day  of  our  death — when He  will  make  our  mercy  the  measure  of  His own. " For,"  says  St.  Luke,  "  with  the  same  measure that  you  shall  mete  withal  it  shall  be  measured to  you  again."

Nothing, to  my  mind,  brings  out  into  stronger light the  vileness  of  our  nature  than  our  lack  of  appreciation for  this  lovely  virtue,  for  mercy  for  her own sweet  sake  is  worthy  of  all  love. Among virtues she  is  the  highest  in  the  highest. The Church, in one  of  her  prayers,  says:  "The  omnipotence  of God  is  shown  especially  by  mercy  and  pardon." Speaking of  mercy  of  man  to  man  Shakespeare says: "  It  becomes  the  throned  monarch  better  than his  crown,  for  earthly  power  doth  then  show  likest God's,  when  mercy  seasons  justice." Mercy it  is that  constitutes  us  children  of  the  Most  High,  for  in Matt. (v. 45,  46)  we  read:  "  Pray  for  them  that  persecute and  calumniate  you,  that  you  may  be  the  children of  your  Father  who  is  in  heaven." Our powers  of forgiveness  are  the  measure  of  our  loyalty  to  Our Saviour, for  to  forgive  means  to  overcome  self,  and Christ has  said:  "  If  any  man  will  be  My  disciple  let him  deny  himself." In fact,  chief  among  the  objects of Christ's  coming  was  to  teach  mercy  to  every  living creature. He came  to  level  the  opposing  fortifications of  God's  justice  and  man's  arrogance,  and though as  to  the  former  He  succeeded,  as  to  the latter, alas! His mission  was  partly  a  failure. For with all  the  ingratitude  of  the  servant  in  the  parable,