One morning 25 years ago, Kathleen Beckman and her husband
were taking their sons to play baseball when they received a
terrible call: her father-in-law had been brutally beaten.
They rushed to the hospital where they saw a man with “no
semblance of his former countenance,” said Beckman. Her
father-in-law died from the injuries, and Beckman grieved
bitterly for the beloved man she had known since age 13.
Some days after his death, she would sit in a chapel and
mourn from the time she dropped off her kids at school until
she had to pick them up again. Yet with God’s help,
eventually she was able to forgive her father-in-law’s
murderer, she told the participants of the Women’s
Conference, held March 12 at St. Joseph Church in Herndon.
During her prayer she would cry to God for justice, but
eventually she began to pray, “Father, forgive them for they
know not what they do.” At first she simply recited the
verse, but soon she began to truly mean the words. She hoped
for the salvation of the assailant who had caused her and her
family so much pain. “There is no one outside of God’s
mercy,” she said.
Beckman, the co-founder and president of the Foundation of
Prayer for Priests, was one of two speakers at the Women’s
Conference, titled “God, the Father of Extravagant Mercy.”
The conference was sponsored by the diocesan Office of Family
Life and the Arlington Diocesan Council of Catholic Women.
While Beckman spoke of forgiving in extraordinary
circumstances, Sister Clare Hunter, director of the diocesan
Respect Life Office, spoke about accepting God’s mercy in
everyday life.
Sister Clare said she often feels like a person who plants a
seed one day and comes back a day later to see if it has
sprouted yet. “I often feel panicked that I’m not perfect
yet, like it’s something to finish up. By Wednesday, I should
probably be pretty perfect,” she joked.
Recently she said she headed to confession hoping the priest
would reprimand her for committing the same sins over and
over. Instead, the priest told her he was so glad that she
was there. He showed her loving compassion. “He was the heart
of Christ,” said Sister Clare. We are never going to be
perfect, she said, and so we have to live the joy of constant
conversion. Catholics are called to accept God’s much needed
mercy every day, she said.
“Mercy and love are synonymous. Mercy reveals God to us.
Mercy is a bridge that connects God and man,” said Sister
Clare. In His mercy, Christ enters into our brokenness and
suffering, she said.
Jesus showed mercy upon the “normal, holy, and dysfunctional
family” of Lazarus, Martha and Mary when He raised His dear
friend Lazarus from the dead, said Sister Clare. John 11
speaks of how Christ journeyed from miles away to comfort the
grieving sisters. Martha greeted Him, saying, “Lord, if you
had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now,
I know God will give you whatever you ask of him.” Her
statement showed a beautiful level of discipleship in the
midst of mourning, said Sister Clare.
Yet like all of us, even in her belief she lacked
understanding. When Christ commanded them to open Lazarus’s
tomb, Martha replied that it would undoubtedly smell. Like
the kind priest who ministered to her, said Sister Clare,
Christ tells Martha to let go and trust in Him.
Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde celebrated Mass for the 400
women attending the conference. In his homily, he encouraged
the women to meditate upon Christ’s moments of mercy in the
Bible with their families and in adult formation.
Preaching on the Gospel, the bishop noted that all the early
disciples came to see Jesus because He spoke like no one ever
had, like one with authority. “Let us devour every word of
the Lord,” said Bishop Loverde.
Di Mauro can be reached at [email protected] or on
Twitter @zoeydimauro.
