The opening words of the second reading, sets the tone for our reflection on this Laetare Sunday. “God…is rich in mercy.” He gives us time to repent and believe, always one more chance to surrender to His Will. God is indeed rich in mercy.

But, we have learned that He can also be tough. He can get angry. Look at the first reading from Chronicles. Priests and people had polluted the temple in Jerusalem with infidelity. When the Lord showed them mercy, they mocked, despised and scoffed at Him. And even then, God gave them another chance through Cyrus of Persia, a person we least expect.

The Gospel carries this message forward with the words spoken to Nicodemus, ”For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.”

God is rich in mercy and to remind us at every turn in our life He sent His Son to dwell among us, here on this Altar and among you His holy People and out there among the marginalized and the lost.

St. John, who likes to explain things in terms of light and darkness, warns us, that if we mock and despise or even ignore Him….”this is the judgment: that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil.”

We are not by nature evil, but there is evil in the world, and we are capable of choosing evil over good. But why would anyone want to choose darkness when there is so much light! There are so many people, so many good encounters with the holy out there to help you find yourself and your path toward salvation!

As Psalm 33 put it: “The Lord…fills the earth with goodness.” Go out and discover Him waiting to bathe you in the Light of Day.