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A Marist Way of Living Compassion In a culture of achievement, productivity and competition, compassion might seem to be a bit of a non-starter. Yet we read in the Scriptures. "When he had finished washing their feet, he put his outer clothes on again and went back to the table. 'Do you understand' he said 'what I have done to you?'" (John 13.) Compassion, like love, longs for some real expression. It is by our compassionate service that people will see we are Jesus' disciples and experience his love. On their own, veils, clerical collars, or statues to the Virgin have no meaning.  Under the headline, "Why Forgive?", Time Magazine reported the historic meeting of Pope John Paul II and his would-be assassin Mehmet Ali Agca in a Roman prison: "For 21 minutes, the Pope sat with his would-be assassin. The two talked softly. Once or twice Agca laughed. At the end of the meeting, Agca either kissed the Pope's ring, or pressed the Pope's hand to his forehead in a Muslim gesture of respect. John Paul's words were intended for Agca alone. 'What we talked about will have to remain a secret between him and me. I spoke to him as a brother whom I have pardoned and who has my complete trust.' It was a startling drama of forgiveness and reconciliation. On one level, it was an intensely intimate conversation between two men. But if the Pope spoke in whispers, he also meant to proclaim a message to the world. The Pope's deed spoke, not his words, and it spoke with full authority." Compassion has many expressions: action, word, song. The expressions may vary, but compassion doesn't. In all their works, Marists are to be wholly compassionate and understanding towards human frailty." (Constitution 137.)
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