Since 2000, the second Sunday of Easter has also been known as Divine Mercy Sunday.
Here are some extracts from a sermon given by Pope John Paul II on the occasion of the canonisation of Sister Faustina Kowalska on 30 April 2000:
Today my joy is truly great in presenting the life and witness of Sr Faustina Kowalska to the whole Church as a gift of God for our time. By divine Providence, the life of this humble daughter of Poland was completely linked with the history of the 20th century, the century we have just left behind. In fact, it was between the First and Second World Wars that Christ entrusted his message of mercy to her. Those who remember, who were witnesses and participants in the events of those years and the horrible sufferings they caused for millions of people, know well how necessary was the message of mercy.
Jesus told Sr Faustina: “Humanity will not find peace until it turns trustfully to divine mercy”. Through the work of the Polish religious, this message has become linked for ever to the 20th century, the last of the second millennium and the bridge to the third. It is not a new message but can be considered a gift of special enlightenment that helps us to relive the Gospel of Easter more intensely, to offer it as a ray of light to the men and women of our time.
What will the years ahead bring us? What will man’s future on earth be like? We are not given to know. However, it is certain that in addition to new progress there will unfortunately be no lack of painful experiences. But the light of divine mercy, which the Lord in a way wished to return to the world through Sr Faustina’s charism, will illumine the way for the men and women of the third millennium.
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. Christ has taught us that man not only receives and experiences the mercy of God, but is also called to practise mercy towards others: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy”. He also showed us the many paths of mercy, which not only forgives sins but reaches out to all human needs. Jesus bent over every kind of human poverty, material and spiritual.
It is not easy to love with a deep love, which lies in the authentic gift of self. This love can only be learned by penetrating the mystery of God’s love. Looking at him, being one with his fatherly heart, we are able to look with new eyes at our brothers and sisters, with an attitude of unselfishness and solidarity, of generosity and forgiveness. All this is mercy!
Sr Faustina Kowalska wrote in her Diary: “I feel tremendous pain when I see the sufferings of my neighbours. All my neighbours’ sufferings reverberate in my own heart; I carry their anguish in my heart in such a way that it even physically destroys me. I would like all their sorrows to fall upon me, in order to relieve my neighbour”. This is the degree of compassion to which love leads, when it takes the love of God as its measure!
It is this love which must inspire humanity today, if it is to face the crisis of the meaning of life, the challenges of the most diverse needs and, especially, the duty to defend the dignity of every human person. Thus the message of divine mercy is also implicitly a message about the value of every human being. Each person is precious in God’s eyes; Christ gave his life for each one; to everyone the Father gives his Spirit and offers intimacy.
This consoling message is addressed above all to those who, afflicted by a particularly harsh trial or crushed by the weight of the sins they committed, have lost all confidence in life and are tempted to give in to despair. To them the gentle face of Christ is offered; those rays from his heart touch them and shine upon them, warm them, show them the way and fill them with hope. How many souls have been consoled by the prayer “Jesus, I trust in you”, which Providence intimated through Sr Faustina!.
And you, Faustina, a gift of God to our time, a gift from the land of Poland to the whole Church, obtain for us an awareness of the depth of divine mercy; help us to have a living experience of it and to bear witness to it among our brothers and sisters. May your message of light and hope spread throughout the world, spurring sinners to conversion, calming rivalries and hatred and opening individuals and nations to the practice of brotherhood. Today, fixing our gaze with you on the face of the risen Christ, let us make our own your prayer of trusting abandonment and say with firm hope: Christ Jesus, I trust in you!
Full Version: 2nd Sunday Of Easter (divine Mercy Sunday)
Divine Mercy Rocks!
(can't you tell from my avatar?...
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(can't you tell from my avatar?...
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The readings for this Sunday are about mercy, trusting faith and the forgiveness of sins. The opening prayer addresses the Father as "God of Mercy." In the Psalm we repeat several times, "His mercy endures forever." “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy endures forever!” (Ps 118). Besides mentioning the word, our readings illustrate mercy in action. How did God reveal His mercy? He did so, first and foremost, by sending His only-begotten Son, to become our Savior and Lord by his suffering, death and resurrection. Divine mercy is given to us in each celebration of the sacraments
Today’s gospel The first part of today’s gospel (verses 19-23), describes how Jesus entrusted to his apostles his mission of preaching the “good news” of God’s love, mercy, forgiveness and salvation. This portion of the reading teaches us that Jesus needs the Church as the earthly means of continuing his mission. It also teaches us that the Church needs Jesus as its source of power and authority, and that it becomes Christ’s true messenger only when it perfectly loves and obeys him. The risen Lord gives the apostles the authority to remit sins in his name. He gives the apostles the power of God’s mercy for the sinner, the gift of forgiving sins from God’s treasury of mercy. For centuries in the liturgy, the Church has proclaimed the mercy of God through the Word of God and the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ. The text also reminds us that the clearest way of expressing our belief in the presence of the risen Jesus among us is through our own forgiveness of others. We can’t form a lasting Christian community without such forgiveness. Unless we forgive others, our celebration of the Eucharist is just an exercise of liturgical rubrics.
The second part of the gospel (verses 24-29) presents the fearless apostle St. Thomas, in his uncompromising honesty, demanding a personal vision of, and physical contact with, the risen Jesus as a condition for his belief. Thomas was not with the disciples when Jesus made his first appearance to them. As a result, he refused to believe. This should serve as a warning to us. It is difficult to believe when we do not strengthen ourselves with the fellowship of other believers. When the Lord appeared to him later, He said: “Blessed are those who have not seen but have believed.” Thomas was able to overcome his doubts by seeing the risen Jesus. Modern Christians, who are no longer able to "see" Jesus with their eyes, must believe what they hear. That is why Paul reminds us that "faith comes from hearing" (Rom 10:17).
The unique profession of faith: Thomas, the “doubting apostle” makes the great profession of faith, “My Lord and my God.” Here the most outrageous doubter of the resurrection of Jesus utters the greatest confession of belief in the Lord who rose from the dead. This declaration by the “doubting apostle” in today’s gospel is very significant for two reasons. 1) It is the foundation of our Christian faith. Our faith is based on the divinity of Jesus as proved by his miracles, especially by the supreme miracle of his resurrection from the dead. Thomas’ profession of faith is the strongest evidence we have of the resurrection of Jesus. 2) Thomas’ faith culminated in his self-surrender to Jesus, his heroic missionary expedition to India in A.D. 52, his fearless preaching, and the powerful testimony given by his martyrdom in A.D. 72.
Messages: 1) Faith culminating in self-surrender to God, leads us to the service of our fellow human beings. Living faith enables us to see the risen Lord in everyone and gives us the willingness to render each one loving service. (“Faith without good works is dead” James 2:17). It was this faith in the Lord and obedience to his missionary command that prompted St. Thomas to travel to India to preach the gospel among the Hindus, establish seven Christian communities (known later as “St. Thomas Christians”) and eventually face martyrdom. The Fathers of the Church prescribe the following traditional means to grow in the living and dynamic faith of St. Thomas the Apostle. a) We must come to know Jesus personally and intimately by the daily and meditative reading of the Bible. b) We must strengthen our faith by the power of the Holy Spirit through personal and community prayer. c) We must share in the divine life of Jesus by frequenting the sacraments of Reconciliation and the Holy Eucharist. Mother Teresa presents it this way: “If we pray, we will believe; if we believe, we will love; if we love, we will serve. Only then we put our love of God into action.”
2) A challenge for a transparent Christian life -- "I will not believe unless I see." This "seeing" is what others demand of us. They ask that we reflect Jesus, the Risen Lord, in our lives, by selfless love, unconditional forgiveness and humble service. The integrity of our lives is a fundamental witness to others, who want to see the Risen Lord alive and active and working in our lives. Christ’s mercy shines forth from us as we reach out to the poor, the needy and the marginalized, as Mother Teresa did. His mercy shines forth as we remain open to those who struggle in faith, as did the Apostle Thomas in today’s Gospel. We should be able to appreciate the presence of Jesus, crucified and raised, in our own suffering and in our suffering brothers and sisters, thus recognizing the glorified wounds of the Risen Lord in the suffering of others.
3) Like St. Thomas let us use our skepticism to help us grow in faith. It is our genuine doubts about the doctrines of our religion that encourage us to study these doctrines more closely and thus to grow in our faith. This will naturally lead us to a personal encounter with Jesus through prayer, study of the Word of God, and frequenting of the sacraments. However, we must never forget the fact that our faith is not our own doing, but a gift from God. Hence we need to augment our faith every day by prayer so that we may join St. Thomas in his proclamation: “My Lord and my God”.
4) Let us have the courage of our convictions to share our faith as St. Thomas did. We are not to keep the gift of faith locked in our hearts, but to share it with our children, our families and our neighbors, always remembering the words of Pope John XXIII: “Every believer in this world must become a spark of Christ’s light.”
#5: An invitation to celebrate and practice mercy: One way the Church celebrates God’s mercy throughout the year is through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Finding time for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is another good way to observe Divine Mercy. The gospel command, "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful," demands that we show mercy to our neighbors always and everywhere. We radiate God's mercy to others by our actions, our words, and our prayers. It is mainly through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy that we practice mercy in our daily lives and become eligible for God’s merciful judgment..
Today’s gospel The first part of today’s gospel (verses 19-23), describes how Jesus entrusted to his apostles his mission of preaching the “good news” of God’s love, mercy, forgiveness and salvation. This portion of the reading teaches us that Jesus needs the Church as the earthly means of continuing his mission. It also teaches us that the Church needs Jesus as its source of power and authority, and that it becomes Christ’s true messenger only when it perfectly loves and obeys him. The risen Lord gives the apostles the authority to remit sins in his name. He gives the apostles the power of God’s mercy for the sinner, the gift of forgiving sins from God’s treasury of mercy. For centuries in the liturgy, the Church has proclaimed the mercy of God through the Word of God and the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ. The text also reminds us that the clearest way of expressing our belief in the presence of the risen Jesus among us is through our own forgiveness of others. We can’t form a lasting Christian community without such forgiveness. Unless we forgive others, our celebration of the Eucharist is just an exercise of liturgical rubrics.
The second part of the gospel (verses 24-29) presents the fearless apostle St. Thomas, in his uncompromising honesty, demanding a personal vision of, and physical contact with, the risen Jesus as a condition for his belief. Thomas was not with the disciples when Jesus made his first appearance to them. As a result, he refused to believe. This should serve as a warning to us. It is difficult to believe when we do not strengthen ourselves with the fellowship of other believers. When the Lord appeared to him later, He said: “Blessed are those who have not seen but have believed.” Thomas was able to overcome his doubts by seeing the risen Jesus. Modern Christians, who are no longer able to "see" Jesus with their eyes, must believe what they hear. That is why Paul reminds us that "faith comes from hearing" (Rom 10:17).
The unique profession of faith: Thomas, the “doubting apostle” makes the great profession of faith, “My Lord and my God.” Here the most outrageous doubter of the resurrection of Jesus utters the greatest confession of belief in the Lord who rose from the dead. This declaration by the “doubting apostle” in today’s gospel is very significant for two reasons. 1) It is the foundation of our Christian faith. Our faith is based on the divinity of Jesus as proved by his miracles, especially by the supreme miracle of his resurrection from the dead. Thomas’ profession of faith is the strongest evidence we have of the resurrection of Jesus. 2) Thomas’ faith culminated in his self-surrender to Jesus, his heroic missionary expedition to India in A.D. 52, his fearless preaching, and the powerful testimony given by his martyrdom in A.D. 72.
Messages: 1) Faith culminating in self-surrender to God, leads us to the service of our fellow human beings. Living faith enables us to see the risen Lord in everyone and gives us the willingness to render each one loving service. (“Faith without good works is dead” James 2:17). It was this faith in the Lord and obedience to his missionary command that prompted St. Thomas to travel to India to preach the gospel among the Hindus, establish seven Christian communities (known later as “St. Thomas Christians”) and eventually face martyrdom. The Fathers of the Church prescribe the following traditional means to grow in the living and dynamic faith of St. Thomas the Apostle. a) We must come to know Jesus personally and intimately by the daily and meditative reading of the Bible. b) We must strengthen our faith by the power of the Holy Spirit through personal and community prayer. c) We must share in the divine life of Jesus by frequenting the sacraments of Reconciliation and the Holy Eucharist. Mother Teresa presents it this way: “If we pray, we will believe; if we believe, we will love; if we love, we will serve. Only then we put our love of God into action.”
2) A challenge for a transparent Christian life -- "I will not believe unless I see." This "seeing" is what others demand of us. They ask that we reflect Jesus, the Risen Lord, in our lives, by selfless love, unconditional forgiveness and humble service. The integrity of our lives is a fundamental witness to others, who want to see the Risen Lord alive and active and working in our lives. Christ’s mercy shines forth from us as we reach out to the poor, the needy and the marginalized, as Mother Teresa did. His mercy shines forth as we remain open to those who struggle in faith, as did the Apostle Thomas in today’s Gospel. We should be able to appreciate the presence of Jesus, crucified and raised, in our own suffering and in our suffering brothers and sisters, thus recognizing the glorified wounds of the Risen Lord in the suffering of others.
3) Like St. Thomas let us use our skepticism to help us grow in faith. It is our genuine doubts about the doctrines of our religion that encourage us to study these doctrines more closely and thus to grow in our faith. This will naturally lead us to a personal encounter with Jesus through prayer, study of the Word of God, and frequenting of the sacraments. However, we must never forget the fact that our faith is not our own doing, but a gift from God. Hence we need to augment our faith every day by prayer so that we may join St. Thomas in his proclamation: “My Lord and my God”.
4) Let us have the courage of our convictions to share our faith as St. Thomas did. We are not to keep the gift of faith locked in our hearts, but to share it with our children, our families and our neighbors, always remembering the words of Pope John XXIII: “Every believer in this world must become a spark of Christ’s light.”
#5: An invitation to celebrate and practice mercy: One way the Church celebrates God’s mercy throughout the year is through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Finding time for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is another good way to observe Divine Mercy. The gospel command, "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful," demands that we show mercy to our neighbors always and everywhere. We radiate God's mercy to others by our actions, our words, and our prayers. It is mainly through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy that we practice mercy in our daily lives and become eligible for God’s merciful judgment..
Where will you be celebrating Divine Mercy?
EWTN is airing live from the Divine Mercy Shrine in Massachusetts.
I'm attending a Divine Mercy Shrine celebration in San Antonio, TX run by Polish Franciscan Sisters. It's just like being in Poland!
I love this feast! Today, I pray for those I have offended, and I pray for those that have offended me!
EWTN is airing live from the Divine Mercy Shrine in Massachusetts.
I'm attending a Divine Mercy Shrine celebration in San Antonio, TX run by Polish Franciscan Sisters. It's just like being in Poland!
I love this feast! Today, I pray for those I have offended, and I pray for those that have offended me!
On this "Divine Mercy Sunday" -- the annual feast instituted by John Paul II to honor the visions of the Polish mystic Sr Faustina Kowaklska, who the late pontiff canonized -- Benedict XVI paid tribute to his predecessor and the devotion at today's Angelus:
“Mercy,’ said Benedict XVI, ‘is in reality the core of the Evangelical message; it is the name of God itself, the face with which He revealed Himself in the Ancient Covenant and fully in Jesus Christ, incarnation of Creative and Redemptive Love. This love of mercy illuminates the face of the Church as well, and manifests itself via the Sacraments, in particular that of the Reconciliation, and charity, community and individual works. All that the Church says and does is a manifestation of God’s mercy for man. When the Church has to reiterate an unrecognised truth or a good thing that was betrayed, it does so driven by a merciful love that men may have life and have it more abundantly (cf Jn, 10:10). From Divine Mercy, which pacifies the hearts, comes true peace in the world, peace among different peoples, cultures and religions.”
It was thanks to John Paul II that the second Sunday of Easter (Dominica in Albis) became the ‘Sunday of Divine Mercy’. “This occurred at the same time as the canonisation of Faustina Kowalska, a humble Polish nun born in 1905 who died in 1938, a zealous messenger of the Merciful Jesus.”
“Like Sister Faustina,” the Pope added, “John Paul II was several times the Apostle of Divine Mercy. That unforgettable Saturday, 2 April 2005, when he closed his eyes to this world, was the eve of the Second Sunday of Easter, and many noted the singular coincidence with its Marian dimension, that of being the first Saturday of the month and that of Divine Mercy. In effect the heart of his long and multifaceted pontificate lies in that; his entire mission in the service of the truth about God and man and peace in the world is summarised in this announcement, which he made himself in Krakow-Łagiewniki in 2002, when he inaugurated the Shrine of Divine Mercy: ‘[A]part from the mercy of God there is no other source of hope for mankind.’ His message, like that of St Faustina’s, leads back to the face of Christ, the supreme revelation of God’s mercy. Constantly contemplating that face, that is the heritage he left us, and which we welcome and make our own with joy.”
While Benedict's Sunday liturgy took place in his private chapel, Papa Ratzi sent his Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB, to celebrate a Mercy Sunday Mass at Santo Spirito, Rome's Polish parish.
Mercy's a year-round theme there; the community has become rather famous for its annual tradition of including a figure of Faustina -- one of the most popular 20th century saints -- in its Christmas creche.
http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/20...y-of-mercy.html
“Mercy,’ said Benedict XVI, ‘is in reality the core of the Evangelical message; it is the name of God itself, the face with which He revealed Himself in the Ancient Covenant and fully in Jesus Christ, incarnation of Creative and Redemptive Love. This love of mercy illuminates the face of the Church as well, and manifests itself via the Sacraments, in particular that of the Reconciliation, and charity, community and individual works. All that the Church says and does is a manifestation of God’s mercy for man. When the Church has to reiterate an unrecognised truth or a good thing that was betrayed, it does so driven by a merciful love that men may have life and have it more abundantly (cf Jn, 10:10). From Divine Mercy, which pacifies the hearts, comes true peace in the world, peace among different peoples, cultures and religions.”
It was thanks to John Paul II that the second Sunday of Easter (Dominica in Albis) became the ‘Sunday of Divine Mercy’. “This occurred at the same time as the canonisation of Faustina Kowalska, a humble Polish nun born in 1905 who died in 1938, a zealous messenger of the Merciful Jesus.”
“Like Sister Faustina,” the Pope added, “John Paul II was several times the Apostle of Divine Mercy. That unforgettable Saturday, 2 April 2005, when he closed his eyes to this world, was the eve of the Second Sunday of Easter, and many noted the singular coincidence with its Marian dimension, that of being the first Saturday of the month and that of Divine Mercy. In effect the heart of his long and multifaceted pontificate lies in that; his entire mission in the service of the truth about God and man and peace in the world is summarised in this announcement, which he made himself in Krakow-Łagiewniki in 2002, when he inaugurated the Shrine of Divine Mercy: ‘[A]part from the mercy of God there is no other source of hope for mankind.’ His message, like that of St Faustina’s, leads back to the face of Christ, the supreme revelation of God’s mercy. Constantly contemplating that face, that is the heritage he left us, and which we welcome and make our own with joy.”
While Benedict's Sunday liturgy took place in his private chapel, Papa Ratzi sent his Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB, to celebrate a Mercy Sunday Mass at Santo Spirito, Rome's Polish parish.
Mercy's a year-round theme there; the community has become rather famous for its annual tradition of including a figure of Faustina -- one of the most popular 20th century saints -- in its Christmas creche.
http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/20...y-of-mercy.html
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