
God, in the person of Jesus Christ, took the initiative in searching for us.
During the Great Depression, police brought an elderly man before a New York City night court magistrate. The man was starving and had stolen a loaf of bread.
That night Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia was presiding over the court, as he sometimes did to stay close to the citizens. He fined the old man $10. “The law is the law, and cannot be broken,” the mayor said. At the same time, he took a $10 bill out of his wallet and paid the fine for the man.
Then LaGuardia cited each person in the courtroom for living in a city that did not help its poor and elderly, unduly tempting them to steal. The mayor fined everyone in the audience 50 cents and gave almost $50 to the amazed defendant. Both justice and love were served when LaGuardia paid the penalty and more for the old man.
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