20260721 Tuesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

[그리움하나]

(Mi 7:14-15.18-20, Mt 12:46-50): The Flock of Your Inheritance

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today, God is opening the deepest and warmest embrace of His love toward our fragile souls—we who strive to follow His will but so often find ourselves stumbling along the way.

In today’s first reading, from Micah chapter 7, verse 14, the prophet refers to God's wounded and scattered people as "the flock of your inheritance, dwelling apart in a woodland, in the midst of a fertile land." (Mi 7:14) This image, in many ways, closely resembles us as believers today, struggling to live according to God’s will in the midst of a harsh and barren world. We deeply desire to be the Lord’s good little lambs, yet because of the temptations of the world and our own weaknesses, we frequently lose our way, stumble, and wound our hearts.

However, in the subsequent verses 18 and 19, the prophet offers a magnificent confession of love to all of us who are discouraged, revealing exactly who our God is: "Who is a God like you, who removes guilt and pardons sin for the remnant of his inheritance; Who does not persist in anger forever, but delights rather in clemency, and will again have compassion on us, treading underfoot our guilt? You will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins." (Mi 7:18-19)

These words deeply move our hearts. Our God is not a strict judge who calculates our every sin. He is a Father of mercy who tenderly embraces the broken hearts and shortcomings of His children—even if they stumble a hundred times on their journey—as long as they open their hearts and try to turn back to His will. To tread our shameful guilt underfoot and cast all our sins into the depths of the sea so they are remembered no more: this is the true heart of God toward us.

This profound, merciful love is completed in an even more astonishing and intimate relationship through the words of Jesus in Matthew chapter 12, verse 50. Speaking of His biological mother and brothers who came to see Him, Jesus declares: "For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother." (Mt 12:50)

The new family that Jesus defines is not made up of 'flawless people who keep the law perfectly.' Rather, it consists of those who, despite being weak and stumbling frequently, open their hearts to the will of their heavenly Father and take steps of faith to follow Him. The Lord looks at that pure intention and desire to follow God’s will, and He welcomes us as His most intimate family—His own brothers and sisters who share His flesh and blood.

When we fall while trying to follow God's will, the accuser whispers, "Are you really a believer? How can you call yourself a part of the Lord's family?" Yet, in that very moment, the Lord tenderly whispers to us through the prophet Micah: "You are still the flock of my inheritance. I have cast your guilt into the depths of the sea, so do not be discouraged; rise again and walk with me."

Dear brothers and sisters, let us not lock ourselves away by dwelling only on our shortcomings. The Lord is not waiting for a perfect, righteous person; He is waiting for the 'wounded lamb' who trusts in His mercy and is ready to begin again.

In this Holy Mass today, let us deeply experience the love of God, who washes away even our stumblings with tears full of tenderness. Empowered by that infinite mercy, let us become the true family of the Lord, joyfully orienting our lives toward the Father's will this day. Amen.