# The Holy Year of Mercy – God's Mercy in the Bible
*2015-11-29*

> Bill Young reflects on the meaning of mercy in Scripture, linking the Old‑Testament covenant love of God with the New‑Testament revelation in Christ, and closes with Pope Francis’ prayer for the Holy Year of Mercy.

## Saint of the Day: Thomas Becket

Today, December 29, the Church commemorates St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. A close friend of both the Pope and King Henry II, Becket became chancellor and later archbishop. After a conflict with Henry II, he fled to France for seven years. He returned to England on Christmas Day 1170, and just a few days later was martyred in Canterbury Cathedral, slain by a mob of knights.

## Mercy in the Old Testament

In the Hebrew Scriptures, the word often translated “mercy” (ḥesed) conveys a deep covenantal love. It includes loyalty, dependability, trustworthiness, and a readiness to help when we are in trouble. God’s desire is to be in a covenant relationship with us, listening to our cries and delivering us from the sins that separate us from Him. Mercy is not merely a feeling toward those who suffer; it is God’s fierce attachment to us, a loving Father who bestows gifts not because of our merit but out of gratuitous generosity.

## Mercy Revealed in the New Testament

Jesus, the face of the Father’s mystery, reveals how God’s love and mercy are fulfilled in a new way. He announces the Kingdom of God—a covenant community where God is king and benefactor, merciful and providing what we need. Rather than emphasizing the law as a shield for holiness, as the priests and Pharisees did, Jesus calls us to give thanks for the gifts we receive from God’s mercy and to share those gifts with others.

## Prayer for the Year of Mercy

Let us pray the prayer Pope Francis gave for the Holy Year of Mercy:

Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us to be merciful as the Heavenly Father. You said that when we see the suffering of others, we see you. Show us your face, that we may be saved. You are the visible face of the invisible Father, whose power is forgiveness and mercy. May the Church be that visible face in the world. Send your Spirit, consecrate each of us with the anointing of this Jubilee of Mercy. May this year bring grace to the Church, renewed enthusiasm, the good news to the poor, liberty to the captive, and sight to the blind. Amen.

## Conclusion

God’s mercy is a covenant love that calls us to respond with gratitude and to extend that mercy to all around us.

*God’s mercy invites us into a covenant relationship and challenges us to share that generous love with the world.*