Please read the Scripture passage before the homily.
I want the war in Ukraine to end, and I want God to bless Vladmir Putin. I am glad the Second World War and I hope that Hitler and all the bad people of history are in heaven. If all these bad people are in heaven and if Putin ends up in heaven, then there is hope for you and me and the rest of the world, because God is merciful.
We often judge others. When we do, we often judge favorably for ourselves and negatively according to the other. We judge according to how actions affect us. This means that we judge, not according to objective truth, but according to our interpretation of truth, or, perhaps more truthfully, according to our falsehood.
I have not walked in Putin’s shoes, nor have I walked in Hitler’s. Perhaps if I had, I would have done worse. Perhaps, had they walked in my shoes, they would have done better.
God sees the whole picture, while I see only my small part of the picture. This is why Jesus tells us to be merciful just as our Father is merciful. We judge by our standards; if God were to judge us by our standards, we would not have a chance. If God were to forgive us the way we forgive others, we would never be judged fit for heaven.
The good news of Jesus Christ is that God judges us worthy of forgiveness and mercy. The good news is that God does not use our standards in dealing with us. The good news is that God judges us according to God’s standards, and is merciful.