![\"Peter](\"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2016\/02\/Peter-sinking-boat.jpg\")
<\/a>with fish so that the boats were in danger of sinking .\u00a0 .\u00a0 .\u201d \u00a0Peter saw this and said, \u201cDepart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.\u201d Jesus replies, in Luke\u2019s Greek, me phobou<\/em>, \u201cDo not be afraid;\u201d In 64 A.D., Peter was crucified upside down on Vatican Hill in Rome, a martyr. Do not be afraid. This is motif in the Gospel of Luke. The angel told Zachary, me phobou<\/em>, \u201cDo not be afraid.\u201d The angel told Mary in Nazareth, me phobou<\/em>, \u201cDo not be afraid.\u201d The angel told the shepherds outside of Bethlehem,\u201d me phobou<\/em>, \u201cDo not be afraid.\u201d<\/p>\nMilitary force overwhelmed Isaiah, Paul, and Peter, but they were enveloped in the mercy, providence, grace, and love of God. The important point is that, even if they were caught up in vast and sweeping historical movements, God\u2019s mercy, providence, grace, and love went one on one with them. Do not be afraid. God\u2019s mercy, providence, grace, and love are particular, individual, unique, and personal. Since God sees us as individuals, each one matters. Isaiah, Paul, Peter, Zachary, Mary, and the shepherds matter. So do I, so does Father John, my wife MaryAnn, Desiree, Reid, Molly, Patty, Eban, President Dlugos and his family, each one matters in God\u2019s sight. Do not be afraid.<\/p>\n
Let me end with a long quote from a sermon that Blessed John Henry Newman gave to university students in 1833. Note the old-fashioned \u201cthee\u2019 and \u201cthou.\u201d These pronouns refer to you singularly.<\/p>\n
God beholds thee individually, whoever thou art. He \u2018calls thee by thy name.\u2019 He sees thee, and understands thee, as He made thee. He knows what is in thee, all thy own peculiar feelings and thoughts, thy dispositions and likings, thy strengths and thy weaknesses. He views thee in thy day of rejoicing, and thy day of sorrow. He sympathizes in thy hopes and thy temptations. He interests Himself in all thy anxieties and remembrances, all the risings and fallings of thy spirit. He has numbered the very hairs of thy head and the cubits of thy stature. He compasses thee round and bears thee in His arms; He takes thee up and sets thee down. He notes thy very countenance, whether smiling or in tears, whether healthful or sickly. He looks tenderly upon thy hands and thy feet; He hears thy voice, the beating of thy heart, and thy very breathing. Thou dost not love thyself better than He loves thee. Thou canst not shrink from pain more than He dislikes thou bearing it; and if He puts it on thee, it is as thou wilt put it on thyself, if thou wert wise, for a greater good afterwards. Thou art not only His creature, thou art man redeemed and sanctified, His adopted son, favored with a portion of that glory and blessedness which flows from Him everlastingly unto His Only Begotten Son. Thou art chosen to be His. Thou wast one of those for whom Christ offered up His last prayer, and sealed it with His precious blood. What a thought this is, a thought almost too great for our faith! Scarce can we refrain from acting Sarah\u2019s part, when we bring it before us, so as to \u2018laugh\u2019 from amazement and perplexity.<\/em><\/p>\n When you meet God, as indeed you already have, and as indeed you will again and again, enveloped in God\u2019s mercy, providence, grace, and love, me phobou<\/em>, Do not be afraid. Uncle Sam may need an army. You don\u2019t need an army. You do not need a general. Follow in the footsteps of Isaiah, Paul, Peter, Zachary, Mary, and the shepherds. Do not be afraid.<\/em><\/p>\n Daniel Sheridan<\/strong> is Professor of Theology at Saint Joseph\u2019s College and former Director of the Online Theology Program. He is a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Portland.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When we talk about mercy, we should remember that it has one range of meanings when talk about the works of mercy and another range of meanings when we speak about God\u2019s mercy. For God, mercy evokes God\u2019s providence, grace, … Continue reading