"The Church exists to testify to Christ and thus render glory unto God and save men. Only in this way does it serve the divine mercy, it is instrumental to carrying out God’s mercy in the world": it was said today in the homily at international Mass, officiated in the basilica of Saint John Lateran, in Rome, for the participants in the "World Apostolic Congress of Mercy", by card. Camillo Ruini, the Pope’s vicar for Rome. After mentioning the Christian mystery of the incarnation, death and resurrection of Jesus, Ruini said that, "in His death on the cross is accomplished God’s turning against Himself, which goes beyond any human logic, measure, expectation. In it, God gives Himself up to help man get back on his feet and save him". God’s "mercy" is accomplished in this "decisive" way he added , and it "is not something that is distant from all of us, it is the mystery of our concrete, everyday life, of every single day, commitment, call, work, suffering of ours". "Only mercy he concluded is that active and dynamic force that successfully overcomes the deadlock, the stalemate, caused by the throwing back of our faults and mutual offences in our faces, thus setting in motion the process of forgiveness and reconciliation".
