The Feast of My Mercy has issued forth from My very depths for the consolation of the whole world (Words of Jesus recorded in the Diary of St. Faustina, 1517).
On Paschal Octave Sunday, 2000, St. John Paul II
established Divine Mercy Sunday, in honoring Jesus’ explicit desire to have
solemn celebration of the Divine Mercy on every Octave Sunday of Pascaltide
(Second Sunday of Paschaltide).
Jesus in his private apparition to St. Maria
Faustina said:
My
daughter, tell the whole world about My Inconceivable mercy. I desire that the
Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially for poor
sinners. On that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a
whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy.
The
soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain
complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day all the divine
floodgates through which grace flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near
to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind,
be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity.
Everything that exists has come forth from the very depths of My most tender
mercy. Every soul in its relation to Me will contemplate My love and mercy
throughout eternity. The Feast of Mercy emerged from My very depths of
tenderness. It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday
after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My
Mercy (Diary of
St. Faustina, 699).
Though Jesus died as the Lamb of God who takes away the
sin of the world (John 1:29; cf. Exodus 12:3-7, 12-13), and was raised from the
dead to validate this truth, there still exists the problem of unhealthy souls.
This problem on the evening of the day of the resurrection and the following
Sunday is reflected in today’s Gospel Reading (John 20:19-31). And, we still
have this problem today.
So, Jesus said to St. Faustina,
“My soul
suffered the most dreadful loathing in the Garden of Olives because of lukewarm
souls" (Diary of St. Faustina, 1228)(cf. Luke 22:44)
“Souls without
love or devotion, souls full of egoism and selfishness, proud and arrogant
souls full of deceit and hypocrisy, lukewarm souls who have just enough warmth
to keep themselves alive: My Heart cannot bear this. All the graces that I pour
out upon them flow off them as off the face of a rock. I cannot stand them
because they are neither good nor bad “(ibid.,
1702) (cf. Revelation 3:16).
Jesus urged St. Faustina to tell the world to seek
the Divine Mercy, as Jesus can heat up these lukewarm souls through him, who is
the Divine Mercy. So he requested to dedicate Paschal Octave Sunday, Sunday after
Resurrection Sunday, as the solemn feast of the Divine Mercy.
So how can we reflect the presence of the Divine
Mercy through the Scripture Readings for Divine Mercy Sunday – Second Sunday of
Paschaltide?
In the Gospel Reading (John 20:19-31), you can see
how risen Jesus appeared to the disciples, who were in self-lock-down out of
fear – not fear of pandemic but fear of being found and caught by the religious
leaders who arrested had had Jesus killed. It was the evening of the day when
Jesus resurrected early in the morning.
At that time, the disciples were not really
convinced that Jesus was risen – though Mary Magdalene, who had a personal
encounter with risen Jesus in the morning had told them that she had seen risen
Lord (John 20:18). Mary Magdalene’s testimony alone was not enough to open up
the disciples’ hearts hardened with grief, doubt, fear, and resentment. Their
hearts were too cold to be warmed so that they are opened for joy of the
resurrection.
It was when risen Jesus appeared and greeted with
peace and showed his hands and side to the fear-stricken disciples (John
20:19-20a) so that they would know that he was truly risen with his whole
original body. In response, they began to recognize him as the risen Lord and
rejoiced (John 20:20b).
As they rejoiced, recognizing his resurrection,
risen Jesus greeted with peace again and indicated that the disciples will be
sent out as the Father sent him to them (John 20:21). Then, he invited them to
receive the Holy Spirit and breathed on them (John 20:22) and spoke of
forgiveness, reiterating what he had taught on this theme before (Matthew
16:19; 18:18) (John 20:23).
This points to what was ahead of the disciples upon
recognizing and rejoicing Jesus’ resurrection. Namely, it is that they would be
sent out on their respective mission works, through which importance of
forgiveness for salvation needs to be taught, upon receiving the Holy Spirit on
Pentecost. Therefore, there is a blueprint of Pentecost in the evening of the
day of the resurrection.
And this is how the Divine Mercy works –
transforming hardened hearts into joyful hearts that can be prepared for
commissioning and engaging in mission works upon empowered by the Holy Spirit.
The Divine Mercy in risen Jesus heat up lukewarm souls of the fear-ridden
disciples so that their closed hearts are opened to receive the Holy Spirit,
through which many gifts are brought in.
But, at that evening, Thomas was absent (John
20:24).
So, the disciples told Thomas about what he missed,
telling him that they had seen the Lord (John 20:25a) – just as Mary Magdalene
had told them so (John 20:18) – perhaps, describing how risen Jesus appeared
and heated up their lukewarm souls to the point of recognizing and rejoicing
over his resurrection and opened up to receive the Holy Spirit. But Thomas
remained skeptical about the resurrection, telling that he would not believe it
unless he himself would see the nail marks in Jesus’ hands and put his hand on
the side of Jesus’ body (John 20:25b).
Lo and behold, risen Jesus appeared once again on
the following Sunday evening to the disciples in the firmly locked Upper Room,
greeting with peace, just as he did a week ago. This time, Thomas was with
everyone else (John 20:26).
Knowing Thomas’ skeptical heart due to the
lukewarmness of his soul, Jesus invited him to do what he needed to do to
believe (John 20:27). And Thomas came to believe in astonishment, saying, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
This is how the Divine Mercy works. It makes us utter in amazement, “My Lord and My God!” as it touches us and heat up our lukewarmness, which has made us susceptible to Satan’s attacks, him planting seeds of doubt for apostasy when we are in fear. Even such a stubbornly hardened heart, like Thomas’, was opened up instantly with the warms of the Divine Mercy, risen Jesus.
The Divine Mercy was afforded to us for our
salvation – even though our souls may become lukewarm in faith, as today’s
Gospel Reading reflects. And in today’s First Reading (Acts 4:32-35), our
Christian communities shall be places of the Divine Mercy. Namely, this is
echoed by St. John XXIII, as he viewed the Church to be the dispenser of the
(Divine) Mercy of God. That is why Pope Francis wants the Church to function as
a “field hospital” amidst of constant war against Satan, as so many souls are
wounded and become lukewarm. In this “field hospital”, the medicine of the
Divine Mercy is prescribed and described so that broken hearts are healed and
lukewarm souls are heated up.
In this nascent Church, growing community of the
faithful believers, reflected in the First Reading (Acts 4:32-35), there is no
egotism as nobody claimed personal possession but willing to share what they
have with others (Acts 4:32). To restore this condition for today’s Christian
community, Jesus invites us for his Divine Mercy, as Jesus really cannot
tolerate egotism and selfishness prevail and let soul deteriorate from its
lukewarmness (i.e. Diary of St. Faustina, 1702).
To restore and maintain Christian community, the Church
in unity, characterized with mercy, we need to act as agents of the Divine
Mercy, doing the works of mercy, spiritually and physically, we support one
another – we love each other, as in Jesus’ new commandment (John 13:34).
Speaking of love, which is inseparable to mercy, the
Second Reading (1 John 5:1-6), links love and the Divine Mercy, as reflected in
these words of Jesus to St. Faustina, "I
demand from you deeds of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me"
(Diary of St. Faustina, 742).
We are beloved children of God through Jesus the
Christ who is begotten by God. And we live with this love that binds us to God,
and our works of mercy, reflecting the Divine Mercy, in our efforts to be
merciful as God the Father is (Luke 6:36 ), reflect Jesus’ commandment of love.
Jesus is the one who came through water and blood,
as testified by the Holy Spirit (1 John 5:6). This recalls that Jesus made
himself appear in public upon his Baptism to embark on his salvific ministry (Matthew
3:13-17//Mark 1:9-11//Luke 3:21-22; John 1:31-34) for the water, and that he
died and shed blood, along with water, to consummate his ministry on the Cross
for the blood (John 19 :34) so that the Divine Mercy is made available to us.
This is to say that through water and blood, the
Divine Mercy has come to us, recalling the blood and water flowing – gushing
out of the body of Jesus, now reflected in the read and pale blue rays
radiating from the Sacred Heart of Jesus the Divine Mercy (Diary of St.
Faustina, 299). And the Holy Spirit on Pentecost testifies to this truth (John
7:37-39; 14:17).
From the terrible heat of the cleansing fire
Rises a plaint to Your mercy,
And they receive comfort,
refreshement, relief
In the stream of mingled Blood and
Water.
Prayer
on the 8th day of the Divine Mercy Novena
The Divine Mercy streams from Jesus, who was crucified
and raised, as the fount of the Mercy. And this is reflected in “Come Thou
Fount of Every Blessing” written by Robert Robinson in 1758.
Come Thou fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
Streams of mercy, never ceasing
Call for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet
Sung by flaming tongues above
Praise the mount, I'm fixed upon it
Mount of Thy unchanging love
Here I raise my Ebenezer
Here there by Thy help I come
And I hope by Thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home
Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wandering from the fold of God
He to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood
Oh, to grace how great a debtor
Daily I'm constrained to be
Let that grace now, like a fetter
Bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here's my heart, oh, take and seal
it
Seal it for Thy courts above
Come Thou fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
Streams of mercy, never ceasing
Call for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet
Sung by flaming tongues above
Praise the mount, I'm fixed upon it
Mount of Thy unchanging love
Streams of mercy, never ceasing
As
today’s responsorial Psalm (118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24), sings, this is the day that
the Lord has made to celebrate and rejoice the Divine Mercy, which endures
forever, afforded by Jesus’ death and resurrection.
God’s mercy endures forever…(Psalm 118:1-4, 29)….it
is better to take refuge in the Lord (Psalm 118:8).
This is the day that the Lord has made for the
solemn feast of the Divine Mercy, indeed, because Jesus died and was raised and
ascended, so that the Holy Spirit has been poured out on Pentecost. Let us
rejoice and be saved in the refuge of the Divine Mercy!
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