“God sees not as the mortal sees” (1Samuel 16:7) reminds us of how different God’s view is from ours in human judgement, no matter how smart and learned we are. We have the privilege of coming to know what is happening around us 24/7, the good but more often the evil. The ever-increasing violence and crimes of all sorts against humanity especially the most vulnerable are rampant.

Human suffering and assault on environment are all over. The saddest part is that the more common these are, the more numbed and blind we become to these evils. These increasing trends we come to accept passively as “the order of the day”. These may seem natural to us, they irrefutably state that our human history has been and is immersed in sin. Is there a way to break that cycle?

In the first reading, God was on the mountain giving the law to Moses. People below think that they were doing the right thing by making the golden calf their god and worshipping it. God points to their sinful- ness. He warns them with annihilation. Moses while not defending the people’s actions intercedes for them. God relents his punishment. God calls their sin for what it is. Still despite his anger He is willing to forgive and save them.
In the Gospel proclamation, the Lord Jesus is the perfect image of the merciful Father. He has come to save, not to condemn. The Lord Jesus’ enemies accuse Him of breaking the law of Moses. For them, fidelity to the law brings eternal life. though the Lord Jesus is the source of life. For them, following God meant following laws. They failed to accept the Lord Jesus because they were not open both to love God and to allow God to love them.
We are sinful, but God does not encourage us to sin. Because he loves the sinner but not the sins. We can approach God for ourselves or for others because God is merciful and forgiving. Only He can help us break that cycle of evil.

Prayer: Abba Father, I am sinful, help me to seek your mercy for me and for all. Amen.