People often might think that they or others may not go to heaven, based on their own scrutiny of themselves or others. This, however, is a skewed way of looking at who God is and His endless mercy. Some may even doubt that no matter what they do, they still may go to purgatory. Yet Saint Thérèse of Lisieux speaks directly to the soul that clings to a harsh image of God: “My sister, if you want divine justice, you will get divine justice. The soul gets exactly what it expects of God.” (Catholic Education Resource Center, n.d.). Her point is not that God is eager to condemn, but that the heart that refuses mercy often tries to stand before God on its own merits, and that is a terrifying place to stand.

The more we allow God’s grace and forgiveness, and ask for His grace and forgiveness, the more we will receive because it is endless. This is not sentimental optimism. It is the Gospel’s invitation to trust the Father’s heart. Scripture makes clear that we are not saved by a checklist spirit, but by real faith, and that real faith shows itself in action. Faith that never moves the heart, never changes the hands, and never bears fruit is not living faith at all (James 2:17, DRB). Our works do not purchase forgiveness, but they reveal whether we truly believe in the mercy we claim to seek.

As we look closely at the life of Saint Augustine, he lived a troubled life and yet went on to be one of the most influential Christians in human history, a great philosopher, and a Doctor and Saint of the Church. In Confessions, he tells the truth about his disordered desires and wandering heart, and he shows how grace chased him even when he resisted it (Augustine, 1991). Even Saint Augustine had a child out of wedlock, and yet God still drew him into holiness and deep repentance (Kaczor, 2023). The point is not that sin is not an issue. The point is that God’s mercy is bigger than the sinner’s past.

The same pattern appears all over Scripture. Paul persecuted Christians, hunted them down, and tried to crush the Church, but God stopped him and turned him into an Apostle, a witness of the Gospel he once tried to destroy (Acts 9:1–22, DRB). Peter denied Christ three times during His suffering, yet the Lord restored him and made him a shepherd for others (Luke 22:54–62, DRB). This is not to say that sin should be excused or that the mercy of God should be abused. Rather, it sheds light on the magnitude of the Lord’s forgiveness. The lowest sinner until the hour of their death can be forgiven and even raised up for the will of the Father.

That, in essence, is what Jesus did on the cross in redeeming humanity. We see it most clearly in the thief crucified beside Him, who could not offer Christ a future life of visible good works, but he could recognize the face of mercy, Christ Himself, as Savior and King. He turns toward Jesus and says, “Lord, remember me” (Luke 23:42, DRB). And Jesus answers with the mercy of a King: “This day thou shalt be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43, DRB). Because he saw Who was in front of him, he entrusted himself to Jesus, and Christ welcomed him. If Christ can do that at the final hour, then we must be slow to judgment. We do not condone sin and we shall certainly condemn sin, but to the sinner we must extend the love of Christ unto the hour of death.

Even if a person sins repeatedly, the Lord teaches a forgiveness that does not keep score. He commands a forgiveness so complete that it breaks the cycle of resentment and revenge (Matthew 18:22, DRB). For we are not God and it is not for us to judge but to love. That is what Christ called us to do. Sometimes love is tough and we must for our brother’s sake address a sin, but it is a fine line. Christ warns us to examine ourselves first, because it is easy to obsess over someone else’s small fault while ignoring our own larger one (Matthew 7:3, DRB). He also warns that the measuring stick we use on others becomes the measuring stick used on us (Matthew 7:2, DRB).

Do you believe a simple person can change? If so, then do you believe a sinful person who does not repent can change? If the answer is yes, a decision to alienate that person means you are missing your chance to love them. Loving them does not mean that you accept the sin, but it does mean you refuse to treat them as unreachable. This is exactly where the Lord’s own teaching presses on us.

This is also where the “Son of Man” sequence becomes one of the clearest warnings against a hard heart. The question is essentially, what is the kingdom of heaven like, and what will it be like when the Son of Man comes? Jesus says that the Son of Man will come “in his majesty,” and “all nations shall be gathered together before him” (Matthew 25:31–32, DRB). He will separate people as a shepherd separates a flock, “the sheep on his right hand” and “the goats on his left” (Matthew 25:33, DRB). Then the King speaks to the sheep, and his invitation is a welcome into mercy: “Come” and “possess you the kingdom prepared for you” (Matthew 25:34, DRB).

Then Jesus explains the evidence of that belonging, and it is not image. It is love that becomes action. He says that when he was hungry they gave him food, when he was thirsty they gave him drink, when he was a stranger they took him in, when he was naked they clothed him, when he was sick they visited him, and when he was in prison they came to him (Matthew 25:35–36, DRB). The righteous are surprised, asking when they ever did this for him (Matthew 25:37–39, DRB). And the Lord gives the key that drives the whole passage: “As long as you did it to one of these my least brethren, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:40, DRB).

Then he turns to the goats. He says “Depart from me” (Matthew 25:41, DRB). And he lists the same realities, but now as omissions: they did not give food, did not give drink, did not take in, did not clothe, did not visit, and did not come to him in prison (Matthew 25:42–43, DRB). They protest and ask when they ever failed him, because they do not recognize him in the least and lowly (Matthew 25:44, DRB). Christ answers that what they refused to do for “the least” they refused to do for him (Matthew 25:45, DRB). And the passage concludes with the seriousness of eternity: some go away to punishment, and others to “life everlasting” (Matthew 25:46, DRB).

That entire passage is not permission to ignore sin. It is a command to never let zeal against sin kill compassion for sinners. It also shows what mercy looks like when it becomes real. It becomes food. It becomes drink. It becomes presence. It becomes care. It becomes love that moves toward suffering instead of away from it.

And Christ drives that same point home with Peter after the Resurrection. Jesus comes to Peter, the same Peter who denied him three times, and he does not crush him. He restores him by drawing love out of him, and then commanding mercy from him.

Jesus asks, “Simon, son of John, lovest thou me more than these?” (John 21:15, DRB). Peter answers, “Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee” (John 21:15, DRB). Jesus responds, “Feed my lambs” (John 21:15, DRB).

Then Jesus asks again, “Simon, son of John, lovest thou me?” (John 21:16, DRB). Peter answers again, “Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee” (John 21:16, DRB). Jesus responds again with the same demand of love made practical: “Feed my lambs” (John 21:16, DRB).

Then Jesus asks a third time, “Simon, son of John, lovest thou me?” (John 21:17, DRB). Peter is grieved because it is the third time, and he says, “Lord, thou knowest all things: thou knowest that I love thee” (John 21:17, DRB). And Jesus answers again, and this is the point. Love is proved by mercy, and mercy is proved by care for souls: “Feed my sheep” (John 21:17, DRB).

This is why we must be wary of our judgment. The Pharisees’ sin was not only hypocrisy, it was the illusion that external righteousness meant they were not sinners too. Christ shattered that illusion again and again, whether by offering living water to a woman with a complicated past (John 4:7–26, DRB), or by stopping a public stoning and forcing everyone to face their own guilt before acting like judge and executioner (John 8:7, DRB). The Lord’s holiness never made Him cruel. It made Him truthful, and His truth was aimed at healing.

If we want a clean summary of this spirit, Pope Francis says it plainly: “Jesus never tires of forgiving: we are the ones who get tired of asking for forgiveness.” (Zengarini, 2024). The same line is commonly repeated in collections of his sayings: “The Lord never tires of forgiving. It is we who tire of asking for forgiveness.” (Xavier University, n.d.). And Saint Thérèse of Lisieux lived as if that were literally true, because she built her whole spiritual life on trust rather than self confidence. In Story of a Soul, she describes hope that keeps offering itself to God even when the heart feels dry: “Even should the fire of love seem dead, I would still throw my tiny straws on the ashes, and I am confident it would light up again.” (Thérèse of Lisieux, n.d., as cited in eCatholic2000, n.d.). That is the posture of a child who believes the Father is truly Father.

And this confidence is not naive. It is cruciform. Christ took the place of sinners, and the Gospel even shows it through Barabbas, the guilty man released while Jesus goes to the cross in his stead (Matthew 27:15–26, DRB). Love covers a multitude of sins, not because sin is ignored, but because mercy is stronger, and Christian charity refuses to give up on the sinner (1 Peter 4:8, DRB). If we look at Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and her absolute confidence in God’s mercy, we are invited to the same love of Christ: a love that covers a multitude of sins, remembers the thief on the cross, remembers Barabbas, and remembers that Jesus died for the forgiveness of all. Let us be confident in the absolute, ever saving grace and mercy of God.

References

Augustine. (1991). Confessions (H. Chadwick, Trans.). Oxford University Press.

Catholic Education Resource Center. (n.d.). Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and mercy. https://catholiceducation.org/en/religion-and-philosophy/saint-therese-of-lisieux-and-mercy.html

Douay Rheims Bible, Challoner Revision. (n.d.). The Holy Bible (passages referenced: Acts 9:1–22; James 2:17; John 4:7–26; John 8:7; Luke 22:54–62; Luke 23:42–43; Matthew 7:2–3; Matthew 18:22; Matthew 25:31–46; Matthew 27:15–26; 1 Peter 4:8).

eCatholic2000. (n.d.). The Story of a Soul, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (excerpt). https://www.ecatholic2000.com/therese/sos17.shtml

Kaczor, C. (2023, August 28). If you read one book this year, make it Augustine’s “Confessions”. Word on Fire. https://www.wordonfire.org/articles/if-you-read-one-book-this-year-make-it-augustines-confessions/

Xavier University. (n.d.). Jesuit Resource, Pope Francis quotes. https://www.xavier.edu/jesuitresource/online-resources/quote-archive1/pope-francis

Zengarini, L. (2024, March 28). Pope on Holy Thursday: “The Lord never tires of forgiving”. Vatican News. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-03/pope-on-holy-thursday-the-lord-never-tires-to-forgive.html