Mercy: The Essence of the Gospel and the Key to Christian Life

This book "Mercy"is just wonderful. It is bold, forthright and honest. I loved reading it and I respect the calls for reform in line with what His Holiness Pope Francis wants to see happen. The Holy Spirit is at work here. My book SPIRITUALLY OPPRESSED details the horrors of spiritual fear as I myself experienced that horror devoid of Mercy. I love the advances now happening in the Church and this exceptional book,"Mercy" will help bring them about sooner; 5 stars all the way for this book "Mercy".My heart just aches for the poor, the rejected, the misunderstood, those unable to be seen, the invisible hurting all around us, for those who need God's Unconditional Love the most. Jesus can be seen in Pope Francis so well, and just like Jesus, this Pope has run into some harsh criticism because he not only talks the talk, but walks the walk. Cardinal Walter Kasper was respectful of other vibrant Spirit filled Christian communities as well and even Martin Luther. Our God is a God of inclusion; it is us mortals who are seen all too often espousing exclusiveness. In my book authored, under the pen name Michael J. Gerard, for personal privacy reasons of others at that time. Now some of the questions unanswered in this book "Mercy", like the indication that yes, there is a hell, but as one respected learned man of the cloth put it "it is empty." can now be considered. It is NOT God who punishes, but man himself by rejecting God's Grace.This good man was maligned severely and put down, not in this book, but in the closed settled thought community. I know the answer as to why Hell is probably empty, but it's too simple for the learned to figure out. It is not God who sends people away, rather it is man himself who rejects God's gracious offer, even of unmerited Mercy. Why? John 3:19; read it for yourself!That is why God, in His wisdom, often times uses the lesser people in the world's eye to answer big questions, often times those that need to show great Mercy. Also on the bottom of page 164 and into page 165 of the book "Mercy", comes the plea and call for a new invigorated penitential order to remedy today's crisis in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I know what that new order needs to be, but how does a mere High School graduate reach the people needed to let God's will be done. I need help from someone here on this earth. ie. Saint Faustina, such great knowledge of Our Lord and with so little formal education. She had wisdom come directly from God. I love Sister Faustina, now Saint Faustina, and how she was able to by God's Grace achieve her mission here on earth.I also was blessed,,only by God's Grace's, to personally experience a powerful and direct encounter with my Lord. experiencing His Love; His Unconditional Love, flow through me, and it changed my heart in an instant, but only when I felt completely lost and called on Him directly for Mercy. It's all detailed in my book SPIRITUALLY OPPRESSED. I wish so much that Cardinal Walter Kasper and His Holiness Pope Francis, could read my story and insights I received causing me to boldly declare "Merciful Compassion" as God's greatest attribute in this 2009 COPYRIGHTED book, as well as many other insights, including the most gracious and unexpected Gift of Prophetic Insight into the hearts of those who's suffering I experienced as well. I truly believe these Gift's to have had their basis in Him, Jesus Christ.I pray God I did not mess this message up too badly. The book "Mercy" is a Gift from God. My real name: Gerard Joseph Michael McLain. I love my Lord so very very much, almost more than I can endure as merely a human being..Truly I can now say that I belong only to Him, Jesus Christ, my Lord and my Savior!!! All praise, All Honor, All Glory be to God, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. Amen and Amen!!!

It is easy to see why Pope Francis exclaimed the book did him a lot of good. Me too. The book has opened my eyes to a merciful God like Jesus Christ vs the angry God portrayed in the Torah, particularly Exodus.Cardinal Kasper explains in detail the study, in systematic theology, of justice and a punitive God. By doing so the reader comes to understand why European Protestants and now American fundamentalist Catholics obsess about retributive justice as opposed to merciful justice. It stems from Martin Luther's inner conflict of reconciling a merciful God to one who was just.This book is worth every penny. I bought the Kindle version and will be holding a book discussion at our parish. The Rector and DRE are on board."The best known example and the one with the greatest consequences in church history is young Martin Luther, for whom the question—“ How do I get a gracious God?”—caused a frightening turmoil of conscience for a long time until he came to know that, according to the Bible, God’s justice is not God’s punitive justice, but rather God’s justifying justice, which includes his mercy. The church became divided over this issue in the sixteenth century. The relation of justice and mercy thus became the fateful question of Western theology."

Rewriting the meaning of mercy to fit an updated metanarrative of the Christian dogma, Cardinal Kasper clearly expresses the modern loss of God as most problematic when it comes to the question of Mercy. Here I think about  The Age of Atheists: How We Have Sought to Live Since the Death of God  This in turn becomes the focus of faith in God that is rekindled by the same loss recognized. In his analysis of the meaning of Mercy Kasper the Friendly Cardinal gives a wonderful description of the philosophical history of the concept from Plato to the present hitting all the big themes from the philosophical corpus. Some of the later ones, like Nietzsche especially were interesting in light of  Hitler's Philosophers  (Including some not so famous as our contemporary Karen Armstrong  The Case for God  because of her works. I wonder about non-Western or Middle Eastern too because of  Reading Darwin in Arabic, 1860-1950 . I notice he views philosophy as incapable of going much farther. At one point his comments suggest he is thinking with the Monty Python "Let's not argue about who killed who."

I love it seems too strong a term, so far it is helpful in my Christian life; but beyond that I can't say because I am checking all biblical and scholarly sources available to me as I go. I have been a united reformed church ordained elder, I am currently a member of a methodist church and help run a uniformed youth group (the Boys' Brigade/Girl's Association) in an Anglican Church; a part from that I attend an Eastern Orthodox Mass midweek when I can. I have since a child been interested in biblical faith and biblical history. This book is the latest of many, I am currently for bedtime listening on CD and reading the course notes on a series of lectures by The Great Courses I have just finished 24 lectures on the Olt Testament, and I have 24 lectures on both the New Testament and writings that did not make it into the bible. Which means my study of Mercy is fragmented

After spending some years on the metaphysical trail Kasper's book is a tonic.While I much appreciate Being and how it underpins all I kept saying but this is not what Christ was about.The huge stress on mysticism bores me rigid I have to say.What did Christ ask of us ? Certainly NOT to interiocise our love of God and our neighbour.Kasper does not philosophise but teaches!

I really loved this book. I was so surprised that such an old fashioned idea could be so central to the Christian faith and have such contemporary relevance.

Try it - you will find it great

I think this book is very well written for all to read a lot of helpful information on the Mercy of. God. It is good book to read more than once . I would recommend it is helpful for prayer.

Excellent.