Pope Benedict XVI recalled in a 2010 homily an old Jewish legend that featured Adam searching for the "oil of mercy."
When Christians later found this story, they added to it, seeing in this story a prophetic image of Jesus and his "oil of mercy."
It is a beautiful image, one that is realized in the sacraments of Baptism and reconciliation, where penitents encounter first-hand the "oil of mercy," washing away their sins.
Even the Catechism of the Catholic Church recalls how, "The Gospel is the revelation in Jesus Christ of God's mercy to sinners" (CCC 1846).
May we always God's mercy as an "oil" that heals us and brings us into closer union with God.
God is mercy and when we let his mercy touch our lives, we are truly healed and given the fullness of life.
