Lately, I’ve been ruminating on compassion and this idea: What if demonstrating compassion is our way of embodying God (which I define as love) on earth?
The Christian scholar and theologian, Matthew Fox says, “compassion is, of course, a kind of passion. A caring, a feeling of the suffering of others—and acting to relieve that suffering. It is the opposite of a cold heart. Compassion is also the work of the Holy Spirit.”
Fox goes on to remind us that Meister Eckhart insisted that, “the first outburst of whatever God does is always compassion.”
Fox concludes that, “compassion then is our origin and our destiny.”
If we embrace this idea that compassion is, in essence, our mission here on earth, questions naturally arise, such as: How can I extend compassion to others? What might that look and feel like?
I often think about it as the small ways we can demonstrate kindness. A simple act of holding the door to a stranger, or picking up litter on the street.
Of course, there are larger ways we can do this, too, by working in a profession like nursing or teaching, where we are constantly interacting with people and able to offer our attention and love.
We can also emulate servant leaders like Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, who dedicated their lives to “waging peace.”
But here’s the thing, don’t allow your mind to get mired in this being hard or big or too much.
Simply come back to the small, seemingly insignificant ways you can bring compassion to the people in your circle. A smile, a wave, an acknowledgement, a prayer.
And see how you feel.
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