As I sat at the beginning of Mass,
I shared in the sorrow and sadness
of another, of creation,
tears were flowing readily.

I reflected on how the hurt is
often caused by another person.
Those who have been hurt
may never recover.

Mental or physical abuse or neglect,
or a simple act of unkindness or lack of charity.
Each action can have consequences
far greater than we can ever know.
Similarly each act of kindness and compassion
can bear fruit far beyond our imagination.

As I listened to the Gospel reading,
Jesus’s words: "What about you, do you want to go away too?"
Stayed with me.
More tears flowed,
as I became acutely aware of my sinfulness,
my lack of charity, my anger and selfishness, my pride;
Any of those moments
may have had a far greater negative impact
on another than I can imagine.

And yet, as I gazed upon the Cross,
all I experienced was his willingness to die for me,
so that I may know he loves me to the end.
Perhaps not despite of my sin, but because of my sin.

As I shared his Blood with another,
during the Eucharist,
I felt his presence,
his quiet whisper calling each of us,
to be present and to know we are loved.
There was no sorrow or disappointment in his voice,
just love filled joy.

My tears continued to flow
with compassion for others,
with sorrow for my sins,
with gratitude for his love.
Should we, can we ever accept responsibility for another’s sin,
or judge another because of their sin

Whether it is our family, our church, our country;
perhaps not, perhaps all we can do
is to note the act of wrongdoing and deal with it according to the law.
But also to be present and share another’s sorrow
and remain aware of our own sinfulness
as Christ’s blood of forgiveness,
will always bear fruit of love, compassion and gratitude.

I pray we may know deeply,
that through the Cross,
we are forgiven and we are loved,
then we can truly forgive and love ourselves and another.