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Vigils Reading
March 5
EVERYWHERE MERCY PRECEDES
From a sermon of Blessed Guerric of Igny3
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O happy the humility of those who repent; O blessed the hope of those
who confess. How mighty you are with the Almighty; how easily you conquer
the unconquerable; how quickly you turn the dreadful judge into a devoted
father. We have heard to our great edification of the prodigal son’s sorrowful
journey, tearful repentance and glorious reception. He was so gravely guilty and
had not yet confessed but only planned to; had not yet made satisfaction but
only bent his mind to it. Yet by merely intending to humble himself he
immediately obtained a pardon, which others seek for so long a time with such
great desire, beg for with such tears, strive for with such diligence. The thief on
the cross was absolved by a simple confession, the prodigal by only the will to
confess…
Scripture says, “I will confess my transgression to the Lord; and you did
forgive the guilt of my sin.” Everywhere mercy precedes. It had preceded the
will to confess by inspiring it; it preceded also the words of confession by
forgiving what was to be confessed. “When he was still far off,” we read, “his
father saw him and was moved with compassion, and running to meet him fell
upon his neck and kissed him.” These words seem to suggest that the father was
even more anxious to pardon his son than the son was to be pardoned. He
hastened to absolve the guilty one from what was tormenting his conscience, as
if the merciful father suffered more in his compassion for his miserable son than
the son did in his own miseries. We do not mean to attribute human feelings to
the unchangeable nature of God; we intend rather that our affection should be
softened and moved to love that supreme goodness by learning from
comparison with human feelings that he loves us more than we love him…
See how where sin abounded grace abounds still more. The guilty one
could scarcely hope for pardon; the judge, or rather not now the judge but the
advocate, heaps us grace. “Quick,” he says, “bring forth the best robe and clothe
him in it, put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet; fetch the fatted calf and
kill it, let us eat and make merry, for this son of mine who had died has come
back to life.
”
… What a wealth of graciousness and sweetness, what an
abundance of most blessed joy, what torrents of most holy delight do they not
contain?…
If such is the grace accorded to the repentant what will be the glory of
those who reign? If such are the consolations of the wretched, what will be the
joys of the blessed? And since he gives us so much in advance while we are still
on the way, what treasures is he not keeping stored up for us when we arrive in
our fatherland? Indeed, what has not entered into the heart of man: that we
should be like him and that God should be all in all.
3 Guerric of Igny – Liturgical Sermons – vol. 1 – CF #8 – Cistercian Publications – Spencer, MA – 1970.7