Are We Like Jonah? Do we Resent the Mercy God Shows Sinners?

I love Jonah! He is my favorite prophet. I like him so much because he seems so real and genuine to me, and I like that. I sometimes run from God and try to hide. Thank goodness, I haven't been swallowed by a fish!
There are so many gems to be found in the story of Jonah. From the lesson that turning from God leads to death, to Jonah's reaction to the repentant response of the people he converted. You would think Jonah would be happy and rejoice at seeing people repent and turn to God. As we can see though, he doesn't, he pouts and is upset by the mercy God decided to shower on Nineveh. I love that he responds this way, not because it was true or right, or virtuous, but because it is so dang human.

I love Jonah, he is so flawed, just like me!

I am not sure most of us can appreciate, recognize or understand the fear Jonah had regarding his mission. Also, the hatred he probably had for this group of people. The Assyrian people were very brutal. They were a war mongering nation, and they were powerful. They conquered many lands and were very barbaric to war prisoners. It didn't matter if these prisoners were men, women or children, war prisoners were subject to barbaric forms of torture such as impalement and being flayed alive, just to name a few. So as Jonah entered this city, you can imagine what must have been going through his head, and what fear he must have suffered. Of course, once you have been swallowed and spent three days in the belly of a fish, perhaps your perceptions change and are purified.

The point of all this is, when we understand just how horrid the Assyrians of Nineveh were, it should be easier for us to understand and commiserate with Jonah and his flight from this mission and city. It should also be a bit reassuring that Jonah had trouble trusting God, because we have the same inclinations and weaknesses. The thing is though, when God has a mission for us, he will provide and protect. God's ultimate goal though is our eternal salvation, and the eternal salvation of everyone, so sometimes, the means to that end might and even probably will not be very clear to us. Jonah is wildly successful with his mission. The people of Nineveh repent and are saved. Jonah seems to know that he has only been the messenger. He was an evangelizer. He proclaimed the message, and then let God do the work on the hearts of these people. More often than not, we make the mistake of not only taking on the responsibility of proclaiming the message, but we seem to think is it up to us to initiate the repentance. That is not our job or our place, that is for God to do. We deliver the message and then we must step back, and watch God do the work! And just like Jonah's message, our message is urgent. We are all running out of time, and we need to bare the message, so God can do the work in hearts.

I think something else though is going on with Jonah. It is also a behavior and attitude we see in our own hearts, and the heart of so many throughout the history of the church, and during the lifetime of Christ as well. There seems to be many of us, who resent the mercy God shows to sinners. We seem to be envious of this mercy. We, after all, are working hard to become holy, we are making sacrifices and doing the hard work required to live good and holy lives. Why do those who live in such sinful ways, merit this kind of mercy? Why does God focus so much more on sinners, than those of us who are trying to live holy lives? It doesn't seem fair, does it?

God knows our hearts and he addresses these feeling and inclinations we have. Two parables come to mind. The prodigal son and the story of the day laborers. I must say again, I can relate to the feeling and behavior of the older son in the story of the prodigal son, and also understand the injustice felt by the day laborers who received the same amount of pay, even though they worked many more hours in the hot and grueling sun. These characters tug at my heart, because I can relate to their feelings. I can understand their ire at putting in such a great effort, and greater effort than others, and yet receiving the same or even less of the reward. How exactly is this justice, how is this fair?

Well, God's ways are not ours, but his ways are just and they are Truth, and we must remember this. We must also, render our hearts toward this kind of mercy ourselves, even when it doesn't seem fair and might even seem scandalous. We must reserve our judgement on how God is guiding his Church and Her Magisterium, and trust in Her authority and the promise from Christ, that the Gates of Hell will not prevail against the Church. Do we believe God is being too merciful? Do we believe God is not just? Do we trust Jesus? Why do we react so negatively to God showing sinners mercy through His Church? Why are we so resentful of those living in sin approaching God and asking for mercy and assistance? What exactly are we fearful of? Why are we not rejoicing? Why are we acting just like Jonah, the older brother and the day laborers?

If we or the Church shows mercy and others manipulate that mercy for evil ends, don't we believe God will take care of that in the end? If we fear some of the faithful will be scandalized and misunderstand authoritative teaching by the Church showing mercy, I would offer that isn't really our burden to bear. Each of us has a responsibility to find, learn and know Truth, if some fail in that quest, that is between God and that individual. We must not be reluctant to spread the Gospel or show God's mercy to sinners because we assume to much responsibility ourselves in these manners which are for God to work out and redeem. Pride and arrogance can have sneaky and covert ways of entering into our lives and more dangerously our hearts, it is fight, we must constantly engage in. Jesus offers us so many examples of this fight, in so many of his parables and interactions during his life and ministries. In fact, was not His crucifixion scandalous to the faithful? Was in not an act of mercy that so many manipulate now for evil ways.

This is not a new story, and we are not unique in the history and story of salvation. We can be unique in the way we respond though. And we can each be unique in how we spread the Gospel which is immersed in God's tender and unfathomable mercy toward sinners, who are each and every one of us.