Presence of God

O Lord, reveal to me the beauty of Your justice, teach me to love it ardently and trustfully.

Meditation

I. Although justice does not seem to resemble mercy, it is, like the latter, an aspect of the sanctity of God, of His goodness, and of His infinite perfection. Justice and mercy are, to be more exact, two different—but inseparable—aspects of that one love with which God loves His creatures. Mercy is love, infinite love of the good, and justice is equally so. Mercy and justice penetrate each other. "Precisely because He is just, God is also compassionate," says St. Therese of the Child Jesus" (L, 203). God is merciful because He is just, and He is just because He is merciful; so, knowing our wretchedness, He bends down to us with infinite mercy. Nevertheless, justice is distinct from mercy, or better, justice is God’s love which gives us all we need for our good, for the attainment of our last end; and mercy, on the other hand, is God’s love which gives us much more than we need. But justice is never separated from mercy; it rather presupposes it. Could God, for example, provide for the needs of our life—and this is the work ofjustice—if He had not first created these needs in us when He called us into existence—this being the work of mercy? Justice, then, is always accompanied by mercy, for God invariably gives us much more than our due. As created beings, we are only entitled to a state of natural happiness, but God has willed to call us to a state of supernatural happiness. We could live as children of God with thq help of grace alone, but God has given us in addition the great gift of the Eucharist. One drop of the Blood of Jesus would have sufficed to redeem the world from sin, but He willed to die on the Cross. This is mercy, which ever accompanies and surpasses justice. They are always interrelated, since God would not be infinite Justice ifPie were not infinite Mercy, and vice versa.

II. Mercy is the effusion of the sovereign Good who communicates His goodness to creatures; justice is zeal defending the rights of that sovereign Good who ought to be loved above all things. In this sense, justice intervenes when the creature tramples on God’s rights and offends Him instead of loving and honoring Him. The punishment of the sinner is the fruit of justice, but at the same time it is the fruit ofmercy, for "whom the Lord loveth, He chastiseth" (Pv. 3, 12). God does not punish a sinner in order to destroy him but to convert him. In this life the means used by divine justice are always directed by mercy, insofar as their purpose is always to put the sinner in such conditions as to profit by the divine mercy. Therefore, God is always merciful even when He punishes; His chastisements are not merely punishments, but they are also, and above all, remedies to cure our souls from sin, except in the case of those who refuse to be converted.

In our spiritual life, mercy and justice are continually alternating and intertwining. God’s mercy offers us His divine friendship; but, in justice, He cannot receive as an intimate friend anyone who retains the slightest attachment to sin and imperfection. Therefore He subjects us to purifying trials for a twofold purpose : to make us atone for our faults—which is the aim of justice—and to destroy in us the last roots of sin that we may be disposed for union with God—and this is the aim of mercy. Hence, we must accept our trials humbly, realizing that we deserve them. We must accept them with zeal and a love ofjustice, wishing to avenge in ourselves God’s rights, rights which we too often forget and ignore. We ought to accept them too with love, for every trial is a great mercy on the part of God, who wants to make us advance in the way ofsanctity.

Colloquy

"O God, You have manifested to me Your infinite mercy, and in this resplendent mirror, I contemplate Your other attributes. There each appears radiant with love—Your justice perhaps more than the rest. What a sweet joy, O Lord, to think that You are just, that You take into account our weakness and know so well the frailty of our nature. What then need I fear? You, the God of infinite justice, who deigned to pardon lovingly the sins of the prodigal son, will You not also be just to me who am always with You?

"I know that one must be most pure to appear before You, the God of all holiness, but I know, too, that You are infinitely just; and it is this justice, which terrifies so many souls, that is the basis ofmyjoy and trust.... O Lord, I hope as much from Your justice as from Your mercy; precisely because You are just, You are compassionate and merciful, long-suffering and plenteous in mercy" (T.C.J. St, 8 - L, 203).

"What will become of me who have so many faults with which to reproach myself? But where sin abounds, grace also abounds. And as Your mercy, O God, is eternal, I shall sing Your goodness forever, Your goodness, Your justice, not mine. I have only Yours because You are my justice. Should I fear that it will not be enough for both of us? But Your justice is infinite and remains forever and it will cover both of us with its immensity. In me it will cover the multitude of my sins, while in You, O Lord, it will only conceal the treasures of Your goodness which await me in the wounds of Christ. Here I shall find Your infinite sweetness, hidden, it is true, and only for those who are willing to surrender themselves" (cf. St. Bernard).