Appearances are seldom what they seem to be. Only God is witness to many of the things that are hidden in the hearts and minds of men. Frequently, we are not even aware of the many things that transpire within us. Because of this, we should be ever more vigilant in the discerning of the motives of others. A child that has just been reprimanded or punished, often thinks (feels) that he is no longer loved because he sees the anger in his father's face. Every father, however, knows that the appearance of his countenance at this moment is not reflective of the sentiments of his heart. For the father truly loves his child. It is love for the child that causes him to become displeased and even angry over the sins, faults, or failings of his child. It is actually love for the child that brings him to discipline and correct him.
A harsh word from our superiors should not fill our hearts with dismay, but should be rather a consolation that the superior cares enough for us to correct us. Tragically, there are many in the world that fail to see or understand this, and end up filling their lives with great anxiety and even misery. We should care when we are corrected, and we should strive always to make amends and do better, but we should not allow the correction to cause despair or hopelessness.
The corrections, punishments, and chastisements of God and of the Church are signs that we are loved. This should fill our hearts with joy not despair. Outwardly we may see something completely different, but when we examine it from within — on a spiritual level — we find something much more beautiful and pleasing.
Christ spoke to and ate with sinners, and the "righteous" were scandalized by this. They could not comprehend how a holy man could in any way associate with sinners. The real motives of Christ were not visible to them because they were filled with pride and vanity. Christ loved these men too, and He went out of His way to explain to them the love that God has for all men, and how His heart rejoices in the salvation of those souls that were lost in sin.
The evil of sin, became a grace to those that Christ went after to save. He, like the shepherd, went in search of them and picked them up and returned them to their proper place with God. The humility of the sinner opened for him the door to grace. The grace of righteousness in the Scribes and Pharisees became an evil for them because they were proud and vain. We must not be too quick to judge someone as a sinner or as a saint. We all have some of both in us. The sinner through humility and the grace of God can become a saint. The righteous in this world may actually be the greatest sinner of all. Things are not always what they appear to be.
If we have been lifted up from evils or preserved from them, we should be especially grateful to God and become ever more humble. We must, however, be careful not to despise those who appear to be less blessed with the graces of God than we have been. The obvious and humiliating sins of others are often less detestable than the hidden vices of pride and vanity.
We caution one and all true Catholics to be grateful to God for this gift and to become ever more humble, realizing that this is God's gift and not our own work. We need not look down upon or scorn those less fortunate. The love we have for God and our fellow men should be abundant enough in us that we are drawn to compassion for these less fortunate. We should have compassion even upon those who consider themselves our enemies and do evil to us. As Jesus said upon the cross: "Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing." It may be necessary for us to correct and instruct from time to time, in doing so, we should remember how gently and kindly God dealt with us when we were in sin; as well as remember the compassion that Jesus has for sinners, even as He corrected and instructed the Scribes and Pharisees. May we humbly do good always as Christ has done — even to those who do evil to us.