Divine Mercy Sunday
Dear Friends,
Easter is not simply one feast among others, but the "solemnity of solemnities," which culminates in Divine Mercy Sunday - that is today! Why do we turn our attention to God's mercy during the holiest time of year? It is woven throughout all scripture and comes to its fullest expression in the Resurrection. We hear this most explicitly in today's second reading from St. Peter, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy (IN HIS GREAT MERCY!) gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
In this passage, the Resurrection is revealed as the manifestation of Divine Mercy. Through Jesus' life, death, and rising we get to encounter the Face of Mercy — God's love reaching down to meet the needs and overcome our miseries. I like to imagine the hand of God breaking through the clouds, reaching down to pull us up out of our struggles and suffering. To say that God is mercy is to reflect on his great attributes of covenant love, tenderness, and compassion. One of the Hebrew words for mercy, rachamim, comes from the root for a mother's womb. In the Sacrament of Confession, we are drawn back to that place of origin — back to the One in whom we were first held, known, and loved.
It is only in this immersion in mercy that we can truly receive Jesus’ greeting in today’s Gospel, “Peace be with you.” Just as He did for the disciples, Jesus enters into our fear and breathes peace and mercy into every situation. During this season of Easter, I invite you to pause at 3:00 PM (also known as the hour of mercy and the hour that Jesus died for us on the cross), to offer a simple prayer, Jesus I trust in You.
Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself. Amen.
Anthony Quinn
Young Adult Coordinator