Mercy
The Call: It’s Another Stinkbug — Cheryl
When I see bugs and spiders, I tend to look the other way (or race into the house for the camera if it’s not already in my hands), but not when it comes to stinkbugs and earwigs. To them, I show no mercy.
The Response: Mother of Mercy — Jessica
When Jesus was criticized for eating at the house of St. Matthew, He responded, “the healthy do not need a physician but the sick do, I have not come here for the righteous but for sinners, it is mercy I desire, not sacrifice.” The Church is not a museum for saints, but a clinic for sinners. The word ‘mercy’ comes from the Latin word Misericordia. … Miseria means misery, pain, sorrow, and cordia means heart. And so it means to take another’s pains to heart: to feel their pain and sympathize with them.
— President of the North American Congress on Mercy, Fr. Matthew R. Mauriello, in his opening remarks Nov. 14, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.
I can’t believe that you have stink bugs that far up north! I hate those darn things (and I actually do show them mercy just because I absolutely cannot stand their smell when you squish them!)
The lighting on your Madonna and Child statue is just gorgeous, Jessica.