Most of us can remember a single act of kindness that changed a difficult day — or perhaps even changed our lives. Maybe it was a teacher who believed in us. A stranger who stopped to help. A doctor who spoke with compassion. A priest who listened without judgment. We may forget many sermons and speeches, but we rarely forget genuine kindness. Perhaps that’s because kindness gives us a glimpse of God. Kindness links us with the infinite. Kindness is a foretaste of heaven.

One of the most challenging verses in all of sacred Scripture is found in the ancient Book of Wisdom: “Those who are just must be kind” (Wis 12:19). “Those who are just must be kind.” Not “should” be kind. “MUST be kind.” Those who are just must be kind. Perhaps if God had given us an 11th commandment, it would have been exactly that: “Those who are just must be kind.” THOU SHALT BE KIND! Or, even more simply: “Be kind.”  

Be kind. I know that sounds almost too simple. It sounds like something we might embroider on a pillow or sing around a campfire. Yet, in today’s world, kindness has become surprisingly countercultural, hasn’t it? It is easy to criticize. Easy to condemn. Easy to assume the worst about people. Justice often comes naturally to us. Mercy does not. And unfortunately, neither does kindness.

Back when I was in the seminary in the late 1970s, I had a wonderful professor of moral theology, Father Thomas Kane, whose advice has stayed with me for nearly 50 years. He said to us future priests: “When you hear confessions, you will sometimes be tempted to err on the side of leniency and sometimes on the side of harshness. My advice is this: always err on the side of leniency. God will forgive you for that. He will be much less pleased with you if you err on the side of harshness.” That was probably the most important lesson of my entire seminary career.

Like you, I like to think of myself as being a just person. So, “those who are just must be kind” should guide my daily actions. When someone irritates me and I’m ready to tell them off …“Those who are just must be kind.” When another driver cuts me off in traffic and I’m about to lay on my horn … “Those who are just must be kind.” When I lament about my own family members who no longer practice the Catholic faith and how I might deal with them … “Those who are just must be kind.” When I, as a Catholic priest, enter the confessional … “Those who are just must be kind.” And when you enter my confessional, I hope that you’ll recall that I’ve already reminded myself of those very words: “Those who are just must be kind.”

When election season reaches its loudest and most divisive moments as we approach the first week of November, I’ll remind myself again: “Those who are just must be kind.” When I watch the evening news, instead of shouting at the television, (which, I’ve discovered, accomplishes absolutely nothing), I’ll remember: “Those who are just must be kind.” And, my own personal political mantra will be “Let’s Make America KIND Again.” Because America is already great, but America, I fear, is no longer as kind as it once was — at least not as much as I remember. 

Perhaps if every Christian carried just that one sentence, “Those who are just must be kind,” into this coming week, our homes would be more peaceful, our conversations more charitable, our parishes more welcoming, our nation less angry, and our leaders less arrogant. Indeed, “those who are just must be kind.” That’s not a pious exhortation; it is a command, a command made by God. Perhaps there should be an 11th commandment: “Thou shalt be kind.” And after all, isn’t that exactly how our just and merciful God has treated each one of us? With kindness?