DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY
THEME: “THE DIVINE MERCY”
((Readings: 1st: Acts 2:42-47; Ps: 117; 2nd: 1 Pet 1:3-9; Gos: Jn 20:19-31))
The 2nd Sunday of Easter is also called Divine Mercy Sunday. Divine Mercy refers to God´s compassion and grace based on trust and forgiveness. The origin of this devotion is based on the apparitions of Jesus to Sister Faustina Kowalska in 1931. Our risen Lord appeared to Faustina to give her a wonderful message of mercy for all mankind. “In the evening, when I was in my cell, I became aware of the Lord Jesus clothed in a white garment. One hand was raised in blessing, and the other was touching the garment at the breast. From the opening of the garment at the breast there came two large rays, one red and the other pale. In silence I gazed intently at the Lord; my soul was overwhelmed with fear, but also with great joy. After a while Jesus said to me, paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the inscription: Jesus, I trust in You”.
The church and her faithful continue to worship the risen Christ, who is now alive forever. Christ is now present in our midst, bringing healing and Peace. This feast is a reminder of how God extended his mercy to us by allowing his son to pay the ransom for our sins.
The first Christian community as described in Acts of Apostles was characterized by mercy and love: (i) All followed the teachings of the apostles, (ii) They had everything in common (iii) They met together for the breaking of bread/celebration of Eucharist, and (iv) They prayed together. The early church was known for its solidarity with one another. Their cheerfulness, simplicity, generosity, brotherliness, and love won the approval of everybody and they were greatly admired. No one was rich neither did anybody lack anything. This was proof that the risen Lord was alive in his followers. Christ is present in our life if we open our hearts and let our mercy and compassion flow to the needy.
The message of mercy is that God loves us; all of us, no matter how great our sins are. In brief, let us remember the following ABC of Divine Mercy.
- ASK FOR HIS MERCY: God wants us to approach Him in prayer constantly, repenting our sins and asking Him to pour His mercy out upon us and upon the whole world. In the gospel we find the disciples locking themselves into a room, self-imposed quarantines out of fear of the Jewish authorities. They were also guilty because of their unfaithfulness, betrayal, and denials. These were their lowest moments. What are some of the prisons that you have locked yourself inside? Some are inside self-imposed prisons of fear, doubts, and sin. The risen Lord broke into this prison and breathed the Holy Spirit into them, filling them with power and hope, granting them peace hence freeing them from fear and releasing them to share in his mission.
Through the passion and death of Jesus, an infinite ocean of mercy was made available for all of us. Therefore, whenever we ask for His mercy, we are given. St. Faustina wrote the following: “No soul that has called upon my mercy has ever been disappointed (Diary,1541).” We all need to plead for mercy for ourselves and the whole world.
- BE MERCIFUL TO OTHERS: God wants us to receive His mercy and let it flow through us to others. He wants us to extend love and forgiveness to others just as He does to us. Mercy is love that seeks to relieve the misery of others, to heal, comfort, console, and forgive them. After unlocking the disciples from their prison of sin and guilt, Jesus sends them into the world as ambassadors of peace and forgiveness. “For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven. (Jn 20:23). By these words, Christ instituted the Sacrament of Reconciliation/Penance.
If we have received God’s mercy freely, then we should show mercy freely. “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” (Lk 6:36). The scripture reminds us that the measure with which we use for others is the same measure God will use for us. (Lk 6:38). We receive mercy on one condition that we also become merciful. Our Lord spoke the following words to St. Faustina “If a soul does not exercise mercy in some way, it will not obtain My mercy on the day of Judgement (Diary,1317).”
- COMPLETE TRUST IN JESUS: God wants us to know that the graces of His mercy are dependent upon our trust. The more we trust in Jesus, the more we will receive his divine grace. Trust in Jesus is the foundation of the message of mercy. Trust is the vessel with which we use to fetch Mercy from the fountain of the Most sacred heart of Jesus. “I have opened my heart as a living fountain of mercy. Let all souls draw life from it. Let them approach this sea of mercy with great trust (Diary, 1520).”
In the Gospel, the doubting Thomas lacked this vessel, because of his continuous absence from the community. Our Faith is built when we remain in the community of believers. The more we attend church services, prayer meetings, and seminars, the stronger our faith becomes.
In brief, God is mercy, and the church is inviting us to practice the ABCs of mercy. When we ask for mercy with complete trust, our risen Lord will fill us with grace so that we can be merciful as our heavenly Father is merciful. “I am love and mercy itself. When a soul approaches me with trust, I fill it with such an abundance of graces that it cannot contain them within itself, but radiates them to other souls (Diary, 1074).”
Prayer: Jesus, I trust in you!
HAPPY EASTER!!! ((Contact our vocation office on +255629269140 or +254792299140))
“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the word and the spirit of Grace; and may the heart of Jesus live in the heart of all the people. Amen” SVD Prayer
JAMBO KENTAN 
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