Divine Mercy Sunday

My dear friends in Christ,

Today the Church celebrates Divine Mercy Sunday. The central focus is our celebration of the Resurrection of Christ and the floodgates of God’s mercy being opened upon us, and is based both on Scripture and the revelations of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska. Saint John Paul II, in his canonization of Saint Faustina, instituted this day into the Church calendar. He said, “It is important then that we accept the whole message that comes to us from the word of God on this Second Sunday of Easter, which from now on throughout the Church will be called Divine Mercy Sunday. In the various readings, the liturgy seems to indicate the path of mercy which, while re-establishing the relationship of each person with God, also creates new relations of fraternal solidarity among human beings.” In our Gospel, that specific ministry of forgiveness and mercy is passed to the disciples, when Jesus says, “Receive the Hoy Spirit, whose sins you forgive are forgiven them.” This is Divine Mercy. When Thomas, broken and distraught at the death of Jesus cannot, or will not, bring himself to accept the Resurrection, Jesus gently takes him from obstinate refusal to a moment of faith. He gets Thomas to confess one of the great confessions of faith: My Lord and My God! In that moment, Thomas is healed and changed — healed of his grief and pain, changed from doubt to belief. This is Divine Mercy. In this time of Coronavirus crisis, the need for those gifts of healing and mercy are very relevant for us. Our faith is being tried and tested. How will we respond? May we always believe that the trials of faith we weather can bring us closer to God and to eternal life.

May God bless you all,

Father John