Today we hear two important messages, that might seem like they contradict one another. On the one hand, we hear in the Epistle reading (II Cor. 6:16-7:1) that we are to “come out” and “be separate” from the world. Referring to passages in Isaiah and Ezekiel, in which the Lord is promising to deliver the people of Israel and separate them from the heathen, St. Paul applies these words to Christians, who are to separate themselves from the idolatry found in the world. Christians have no part with idols; they are called to be the Temple of the Holy Spirit. They are to “come out” from the uncleanness of the world and the way of life of unbelievers.

On the other hand, we hear in today’s Gospel that we are to “be merciful.” We hear that whatever we want others to do to us, so we should do to them. We are even to love our enemies and do good to them. Setting the unfathomable mercy of God as the ultimate standard, the Lord even commands us “be merciful as your Heavenly Father is merciful.”

How can we “be separate,” and, at the same time, “be merciful”?

There’s a phrase that we often hear that might help us out of this predicament, if we understand it rightly. It’s the phrase, “in the world but not of the world.” This actually comes from St. John’s Gospel, in which it describes, first of all, the Lord Jesus. He is in the world, but He is not from this world, nor is He “of” (like, according to) this world. His life and His way of life are from Heaven. Yet He freely enters into this world, out of love for the world, “for the life of the world, and its salvation.” Thus, He sets the standard for us and shows us how we, who are called by His name, are to be. We, too, are to be “in the world but not of it.”

Real mercy begins with, and is brought to life by, our relationship with Christ. And the first step in our relationship with Him is to separate ourselves from whatever separates us from Him. We have to “come out” and “be separate” from any kind of idol-worship, or any substitute for Him. We have to reject the false in order to embrace the real. This means making a clean break with the world and its ways.

The world, the flesh and the devil all teach us to be unmerciful. They teach us to treat other people as objects, which is the polar opposite of mercy, and one of the clearest manifestations of idolatry in our lives. If I see you as an object for my gratification or gain, then I’m not seeing you as a person to whom I should show mercy. Some idol has displaced my humanity and stolen my love. Mercy comes with the rejection of the idol and the recovery of love. It means see ing others as persons, made in the image of the personal God, infinite in value, destined for eternity.

So we aren’t to look at others as objects of lust. That would be totally unmerciful. The merciful thing, when we are tempted to look at others with lust, is to avert our eyes and ask God for help. The first antidote to the sickness of objectifying others is to pray for them and to pray for God to help us see them as His children and our brothers and sisters. Every person we see is at least potentially a member of the Body of Christ, and therefore part of our spiritual family.

We may be tempted to look at others as objects of the desire for gain. Whether it be gaining money, power, praise, or whatever else, we are tempted to care more about what we can get from people we meet than we care about their well-being. This is especially easy to fall into in our day-to-day business. St. Justin Martyr, in his 1st Apology, remarks how Christians are distinguished, among other things, by “the way they do business.” How do we interact with people when we’re out and about, in our roles at work, as we run errands, as we go to our kids’ school functions? Are we witnessing to the love of Christ? Again, if we can begin to pray for those with whom we “do business” and struggle to see the image of God in them, those interactions have the potential to be transformed. Then even the way I deposit a check at the bank - with a sincere, friendly greeting and a prayer for the teller - can be an act of mercy.

Another way we may treat others as objects is by seeing them as obstacles to our achievements. I have a million things to get done, and someone interrupts me with something that seems unimportant to me. I’m tempted to treat that person, not as a person, but as a speed bump that I need to get past as quickly and painlessly as possible. If I can pause and pray for that person, and realize that that person is of infinite worth, and that my to-do list can probably wait a few more minutes, then I can show that person a little mercy.

In every case, the unmerciful tendency to turn people into things is overcome, first of all, by prayer, which is in fact the greatest act of mercy we can do. Of course, showing mercy does involve helping concretely, materially, in specific acts of kindness, whenever we can. Insofar as we have the opportunity to help others, we should. But when all else fails, or when the situation doesn’t call for giving material aid (as when we are simply tempted to see others as objects) then the greatest mercy we can show is in the prayer for the other, and for God to change our heart towards the other.

Prayer for discernment also plays a role here. Sometimes the most merciful response to a request is “yes,” and sometimes the most merciful response is “no.” Again, we have to remember to be “in the world but not of it.” If someone wants us to join him in sinning, the merciful response is certainly to say “no.” We are to “speak the truth in love,” and the two things are inseparable. There’s no love without truth. Rather than enabling harmful behavior, we may have to deny a request. Rather than acquiescing to a lie, we have to witness to the truth. Here we find ourselves needing to “separate ourselves” from the idols that we and others make. People may not like, it, but our separation in that case is actually an act of kindness and mercy.

Whatever situation we may face, though, we are always called to pray for the people we meet, and we always need to pray for God’s help to love each person and to show mercy the right way. May God help us to say “yes” when “yes” is needed, and “no” when “no” is needed, and to treat each person with dignity and respect, as the icon of Christ. Amen.