The stress on the Lord's compassion and kindness in the first reading is linked to the compassion and love found in God's patience with us because He loves us.

Tied to this compassion, love and patience are the virtues of commitment and fidelity. Commitment to God is seen in our being straightforward, our not making half-promises. A "yes" is a "yes" and not a "maybe," not an "If I have time ¡K" nor "If nothing else gets in the way ¡K". A young man who wrote to his girlfriend swearing to climb every mountain and swim every ocean for her, but who ends his letter with: "I shall see you on Saturday if it does not rain" is certainly not a model of the commitment desired of us!

Commitment is seen in Jesus' own actions. Mark says: "And again crowds gathered ¡K and again He taught them." That is exactly what commitment is: "and again"; "and again;" - a never-ending fidelity. It is any wonder that Jesus should answer the Pharisees' question on the permissibility of divorce with a firm: "What God has united, man must not divide" Later, He goes further to declare even more clearly that fidelity is the responsibility of everyone, male and female, for fidelity is not just to one's spouse but more so to God and His plans for humankind. Patience, commitment, and fidelity are irrevocably linked in God's love and compassion for the human race.