Mercy for One and All

Gospel: Matthew 18: 21-35

"Fasting is the soul of prayer, mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. Let no one try to separate them; they cannot be separated.  If you have only one of them or not all together, you have nothing.  So, if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition heard, hear the petition of others.  If you do not close your ear to others you open God's ear to yourself.  When you fast, see the fasting of others.  If you want God to know that you are hungry, know that another is hungry.  If you hope for mercy, show mercy.  If you look for kindness, show kindness.  If you want to receive, give.  If you ask for yourself what you deny to others, your asking is a mockery."  - St. Peter Chrysologus

When we hear that God desires not the death of a sinner but rather in the sinner's restoration, what do we who claim to be Christian do in response?  Is the proper response a death penalty system and a penal system built on retribution?  Or does the Church come together to develop a robust system of ministry in prisons, jails, hospitals, and other facilities of care?  Imagine if these became the primary work of the Church instead of what consumes most of our time.  Imagine if we showed the same mercy to others that we desire for ourselves...