As we continue to celebrate the Jubilee Year of Mercy with Pope Francis and with the Catholic Church throughout the world, we have been reflecting on the Spiritual Works of Mercy.

Those actions are specific means that are part of the traditional wisdom of the Church. They help us to conform our spiritual lives and those of our brothers and sisters, to Jesus and His mercy.

The next spiritual work of mercy for our consideration is to bear wrongs patiently.

Humanly speaking, it is difficult to bear offenses that we receive from others. As children, if we are pushed on the playground, our reaction is to push back. As adults, if we are insulted, our first inclination is probably to respond in kind.

What is difficult here is that we are truly, in such cases, the one who is offended. This spiritual work considers the circumstance where we are right and the other is in the wrong. How do we respond in accordance with God’s will?

The image of not striking back but bearing wrongs patiently immediately brings to mind Jesus, and especially Jesus on the cross.

If anyone was ever a truly innocent victim of offenses, it was the Son of God. Not only was His crucifixion the greatest injustice the world has ever seen, but even during His three hour agony, He was mocked and taunted by onlookers and by those sharing His misery.

Despite those provocations, the Scriptures tell us that the response of Jesus was still one of love and of mercy. The First Letter of St. Peter tells us, “When He was insulted, He returned no insult; when He suffered, He did not threaten; instead, He handed himself over to the one who judges justly” (1 Pt. 2:23).

And of course when Jesus did speak, He expressed His mercy for all to hear. “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34).

To bear wrongs patiently, then, is to imitate Christ in our own lives. Since we must seek to be like Jesus in all things, that alone would make such forbearance to be beneficial.

Still, bearing the offenses from others has wide and deep spiritual benefits. Our human sense of justice is always somewhat flawed.

We cannot escape reflecting on the fact that if we are innocent on this occasion, there are other moments when we ourselves have offended. We would then hope for the patience of those we have hurt.

Further, responding to insult or offense does not restore our hearts. Rather, it can stoke our anger. Our hearts can become hardened and overly sensitive to slights. Haven’t we all known someone who “just can’t let things go?” There is often a peace of heart that comes from bearing those wrongs.

We should consider as well the situation of those who offend us. Yes, perhaps they are simply evil or hard-hearted. But their actions might also be the result of ignorance or of pressures or tensions in family or in their life about which we are unaware.

Whatever the case, the Year of Mercy has been established by Pope Francis so that we might renew our desire for the conversion of all. We truly must want all men and women to be in heaven with Christ, even those who have done us ill.

Our bearing wrongs patiently can give those who offend us an example and even the time and circumstances to reconsider their actions. Like Christ on the cross, the response of mercy can be disarming and, even for those who offend us, a source of healthy spiritual embarrassment that leads to conversion.

The parable of the Prodigal Son is, from many perspectives, the most beautiful story told by Christ. But at the heart of that story of conversion is the patient endurance of the loving father with his two sons.

Offended by both sons in different ways, the father’s patience never wavers. One son returns to his father. About the other, we are left to guess.

We should see ourselves, both in the two sons and in that loving and patient father. We must strive to see ourselves in Jesus as He hung on the cross.

Above all, we must bear with those who hurt us and even with our enemies. They will be the better for it, and so will we.