Lord Have Mercy

Maybe all prayer can be reduced to two words: “Kyrie Eleison.” The translation, “Lord, have mercy.” This is the usual prayerful response in most liturgical churches. During that portion of the worship service that involves the “Prayers of the People,” the priest or deacon will rise to lead and say something like, “With all our heart and with all our mind, let us pray to the Lord, saying,” and the people will respond, “Kyrie Eleison” or “Lord, have mercy.”

What, then, is mercy? It is the extraordinary. It is the absurd. It is what no one else could ever do for us; and it’s what we could never, ever, do for ourselves. It’s more than sympathy; more than kindness; and far superior to a handout. Mercy is the improbable gift of goodness, granted not because someone deserves it, but because the giver really is good and gracious.

Here is an…