When there are tears in the eyes, it can have a few meanings.
It may be tears of joy, and that would be really a moment of great rejoicing.
It may be tears of emotion, as in one is moved to tears.
But more often, it would be tears of grief and sadness.
Those kinds of tears can move others to compassion and sympathy.
When Jesus saw the tears of the widow whose only son had died, He was moved with compassion and felt sorry for her.
And it was through her tears that Jesus brought the young man back to life.
In the 1st reading, St. Paul urged the Corinthians to be ambitious for the higher gifts of the Holy Spirit.
But in order to strive for the higher gifts, we must have the essential gifts of love, compassion, kindness and gentleness.
It is with those gifts that we can dry the tears of those who are pulled down by sorrow and grief.