Quotes of the Day for February 17, 2026 – Thoughts on being merciful like Christ
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“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7). In Matthew’s Gospel, four times people approached Jesus with the petition, “Have mercy on me” or “mercy on us – they include two blind men, the Canaanite mother, and a father of a sick boy. Each time Jesus grants their requests for mercy…Mercy is standing in the shoes of the other and deciding what to do based on how the other feels. Compassion allows us to see things from their point of view. This is exactly what Jesus did in the incarnation in becoming human. He sees us humans from our own point of view and chooses to show us mercy which is the very reason for His coming into the world.” (Fr. Ted Bobosh)
“The Lord showed mercy throughout His earthly ministry to suffering people who responded to Him with faith, regardless of whether they were considered righteous or unclean Jews. He praised the spiritual understanding of a Gentile woman and cast a demon out of her daughter. (Mk 7:24-30) He said that no one in Israel had greater faith than the Roman centurion whose servant He healed. (Lk 7: 1-10) He restored the broken life of St. Photini, the Samaritan woman, by disregarding the prejudices of the time through His shocking conversation with her. (Jn 4:1-42) The Savior did not treat these people as members of various factions or nations, but according to His love for all Who bear His image and likeness. And they all opened themselves to receive His mercy by entrusting themselves to Him in faith, not by inflaming their passions as they condemned others who were not part of their group.” (Fr. Philip LeMasters)
“The mercy of the Heavenly Father is selfless, therefore, emulating Him, you should try to make your mercy the same, without the contamination of any kind of calculation; that is, not because you should show mercy in order to then be praised for it or to receive such kindness in return, but solely out of love, according to the sincere calling of the heart.” (St. Gabriel of Imereti)
“…the mercy we receive from God is meant to encourage us to ministry on behalf others (2 Cor 4:1)…We pray that Christ will reveal to us the needs of others as He sees them. Just as God loves us, although we are sinners, He loves everyone. He calls us to love as He does! Let us heed Christ’s mandate and pray for the Lord to show us how to extend His love by offering mercy to others. Only then will His ministry begin to take root in us. Strive to love others! God can ignite our love for the unlovable, showing us how to extend care to the hateful, to give even when we are being used, and to go that extra mile (see Mt 5:41). Such love may seem impossible to our fleshly mind, but God mercifully equips us to extend Christ’s ministry without wavering or becoming discouraged by abuses we encounter.” (Dynamis 9/2/2021)
“God’s love is perfect because God is perfect. It’s perfect because it doesn’t manifest itself in palaces and at feasts, but on the Cross; it reveals itself to us in suffering. We love God and others only in peaceful times and in satiety; and even then, mostly with our mouths. But God loves us always—especially in times of adversity and temptation. He loves us when we pray and when we sleep; when we go to church and when we go to the tavern; when we repent, and when we sin. He always loves us as a kind and merciful Father. In times of danger, in times of temptation, we run, we hide, we betray our brother, we lie, we even kill, just to survive. But God loves us to the end (cf. Jn. 13:1). In times of danger, He doesn’t abandon us, but goes ahead, carries our cross for us, is the first to ascend upon it, is the first to endure blows, and the first to die in the flesh so that we might live.” (Archimandrite Iachint Unciuleac)