Mercy and Justice in Matthew 5:1-11 & Romans 3:5-8

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Mercy is in the news. Rt. Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde spoke about mercy directly to the president. This caused a huge reaction, positively and negatively toward her message. When looked at in totality, her sermon was a very mainstream message about unity and mercy. Given to an ordinary congregation, even with her admonition to a new president, would have been praised and quickly forgotten. But to this president and this political context, it has been seen as a direct challenge. Why the difference? I will explore the meaning of mercy and justice in scripture. Predictably, the "empathy is sin" crowd has ramped up their attacks to justify the worst of unmerciful and unjust behavior. Romans 3 is used to gaslight people into thinking that empathy is unjust. There is a long history behind what we are seeing. This reactionary response to Jesus's words is consistent with every authoritarian response to the Beatitudes in Matthew 5. 

#beatitudes #bishopbudde #sermononthemount #empathy #mercy #justice #edmonds #edmondspres #pcusa