Be compassionate - right here and right now!

WORD 2day: Monday, 11th week in Ordinary time

June 14, 2021: 2 Corinthians 6: 1-10; Matthew 5: 38-42

The best is the enemy of the good, is a statement attributed to Don Bosco, they say in the context of doing good to the other. Even the better, sometimes is a formidable enemy. What do we mean by that? We mean, thinking of better options and the best prospects, we can easily miss out on the opportunity and the possibility of the good that we can do at a given time. Is this not a common experience?

At times I have caught myself lamenting the times and the conditions instead of doing whatever little I could to express my true compassion. If only I were someone else or if only I were somewhere else or if only I had such and such a possibility... these are the yearning for the better that neglects the good that is already available.

The Gospel today invites us to go out of our way to express our compassion to the other. The first reading emphatically  adds: now is the time and now is the hour for it, just go ahead do whatever good you can! We may not be able to give or do great things for those whom we come across in dire need, but we can always be compassionate, caring and respectful towards them, wherever we are! Does that need a special condition or time?

Hence what we do and how we do, do matter a lot - but how much love we put into these, matter much more! And that is where compassion comes into play. When we are compassionate we are godly! However righteous we could be, if we are not compassionate, we are nowhere close to being godly! Let us strive to be compassionate - right here and right now!