"Be compassionate as your Heavenly Father is compassionate." A first reaction to these words of Jesus may be to wonder at the apparent comparison contained in the little word "as" and to ask how we could ever be as compassionate as our heavenly Father, since his mercy and compassion are infinite. But we must learn to get beyond the superficial meaning of Scripture and in deeper reflection probe the depth of what Jesus is telling us.

Jesus teaches us: "Your heavenly Father is compassionate." The apparent comparison is a call to experience God's compassion. It is by God's grace that we turn towards God and reform our lives. God's forgiveness strengthens and encourages us to turn to others and to be compassionate towards them.

Jesus is not encouraging us to do something merely human. There are not two different compassions, God's compassion for us and our compassion for our brothers and sisters. There is only one compassion: God's compassion. As we enjoy the grace of God's forgiveness and compassion, we appreciate that every gift, every grace, must in turn become part of our life and our relationships with others. We become the channels of God's forgiveness and compassion for the world.