Compassion, not mercy

- The Spirit of Compassion by Raynor Hoff

I saw an article today at NCR and it resonated with me. Here's a bit of it ...

LGBTQ people need justice, not mercy, from Pope Francis

[M]ercy, it seems to me, is not the door that LGBTQ people need opened to them. Mercy is an act of love, compassion or service given to those who sin or are afflicted in some way. LGBTQ people, same-sex relationships, and transgender persons are not sins or afflictions ...

In our church, mercy sometimes seems like a conditional forgiveness beneficently bestowed by those in power to those who have transgressed ... it's also seen in the case of divorced/remarried people and too for women who have had abortions.

The thing is, marriage equality, divorce and remarriage, even abortion, are not always deemed sins by all Christians .... many other denominations embrace gay relationships and/or marriage, most other denominations don't dis-communion people who have divorced and remarried, many other denominations trust that the decision to have an abortion is a matter of conscience.

I think the relevant question isn't "should we be merciful to these sinners?" but instead "should we re-examine our teachings?"