Mercy and Truth Have Met Each Other: Justice and Peace Have Kissed
Don Dolindo's commentary on Psalm 84:11 (85:10)
Have you ever contemplated the profound mystery contained in the Psalmist's words: "Mercy and truth have met each other: justice and peace have kissed"? This beautiful verse from (Psalm 84:11 in the Vulgate; 85:10 in the Hebrew numbering) reveals one of the most sublime paradoxes of our faith. How can attributes that seem so opposed—mercy and truth, justice and peace—come together in perfect harmony? What spiritual treasures lie hidden in this divine encounter and celestial embrace? Let us explore the depths of this verse through the illuminating insights of Don Dolindo Ruotolo.
Don Dolindo sees in this psalm a clear announcement of the coming of the Redeemer. Mercy and truth that meet are not abstract concepts, but living realities that are fully manifested in Jesus Christ.
"Then mercy and truth will meet," explains Don Dolindo, "justice and peace will kiss, because He will come to use mercy and will announce the truth, will satisfy the justice of the Father with his sacrifice, and will give peace to men of good will."
In Jesus Christ we see the perfect meeting between God's infinite mercy and the immutable truth of his nature. Mercy that forgives and truth that cannot compromise with sin seemed irreconcilable, but in Christ they met in perfect harmony.
How marvelous is the symbol of the kiss between justice and peace! Don Dolindo interprets it in a sublime way: "Truth, that is, the Word of God, will sprout from the earth, being born from the immaculate womb of Mary in assumed humanity, and justice will look down from Heaven, because the Redeemer will reconcile men with the justice of the Father, and He himself will be the just Judge descended from Heaven."
This divine kiss took place at the moment of the Incarnation, when Heaven touched earth. It is a kiss that continues to be repeated every time a soul is reconciled with God, every time God's justice manifests itself in forgiveness rather than condemnation.
"As can be seen," continues Don Dolindo, "the Psalm is admirably messianic; in the first part the prophetic light shines in the type, in the second it tears through the clouds and shines like the sun in the firmament."
This divine meeting and kiss are not just events of the past, but continue to manifest themselves in the life of the Church. Don Dolindo sees this mystery continually actualized in history:
"Justice and peace will kiss, because the damned will be driven away forever, and the choir of the blessed will be in the most perfect peace; truth will sprout from the earth, because the reality of Faith will be touched by hand, and justice will look down from Heaven, for the triumph of the Eternal Judge."
In the life of the Church, mercy and truth, justice and peace are manifested in a particular way in the sacraments, especially in the Eucharist. Here the Incarnate Word continues to offer Himself as a living sign of reconciliation between God and humanity.
Don Dolindo, with his profound Eucharistic spirituality, reminds us that in the Tabernacle we find the perfect meeting point between mercy and truth: "How lovely are your tabernacles! Lovely is that which is small but perfect in its smallness; lovely is love that gives itself without restrictions, humility that hides itself, patient suffering; lovely is one who gives generously..."
But how can we live this mystery in our daily lives? Don Dolindo offers us a practical application of this biblical verse, inviting us to make room in our hearts for this meeting between mercy and truth:
"Be all of God! Let there not be in you, almost like an idol, an affection that is not His, let there not be in you, child of the Church, the sad novelty of errors, which are like false images opposed to the God of truth."
When we welcome God's truth with humility and recognize our need for his mercy, we allow this divine meeting to take place in us. When we seek justice not as punishment but as righteousness and allow Christ's peace to reign in our hearts, we live the divine kiss of which the Psalm speaks.
"Let my flesh and heart waste away," prays Don Dolindo, "for God alone is the rock of my heart and my portion forever." My good is to stay close to You, my consolation is to place in You all my hope, my ideal in announcing your praises, because You alone are my life and my prosperity."
Psalm 84:11 invites us to contemplate the mystery of Redemption and to live it every day. In the light of Don Dolindo, we understand that this verse is not just a beautiful poetic image, but a living reality that is actualized in the personal encounter with Christ.
"When this meeting between mercy and truth, between justice and peace takes place," we could say with Don Dolindo, "the soul finds her true joy, because she finds God, and in Him the rest of the heart."
Let mercy and truth meet in our lives, let justice and peace kiss in our hearts. As Don Dolindo teaches us, this is the secret of true holiness, this is the way that leads us to the living Tabernacle of God, where we will find eternal rest.
And in this divine encounter, how can we not remember Mary Most, in whose immaculate womb the kiss between justice and peace was first realized? Don Dolindo, with that filial love that characterized him, invites us to look to her as the privileged creature in whom mercy and truth met in a perfect way. "Truth will sprout from the earth," he tells us, and this blessed earth is Mary, the fertile garden from which the flower of Incarnate Truth sprouted. In her, Heaven kissed earth, divinity joined humanity. And as Don Dolindo taught in his fervent prayers: "O Mary, in you mercy and truth embraced, in you justice and peace kissed. Make me too, like you, become a little tabernacle where this divine encounter is perpetuated, so that my life may be a continuous praise to the Lord, a hymn of love to His infinite goodness."
Reference: This article is based on Don Dolindo Ruotolo's commentary on Psalm 84 verse 11 (Psalm 85:10 in Hebrew numbering).
Author’s Note: If you would like to read more about Don Dolindo’s spirituality, check out those books: Don Dolindo’s Books.