(Divine Mercy Sunday)
Catechism
Links[1]
CCC 448,
641-646:
Appearances of the risen Christ
CCC 1084-1089: The sanctifying
presence of the risen Christ in the liturgy
CCC 2177-2178,
1342: The
Sunday Eucharist
CCC 654-655,
1988: Our
new birth in the Resurrection of Christ
CCC 926-984,
1441-1442:
“I believe in the forgiveness of sins”
CCC 949-953,
1329, 1342, 2624, 2790: Communion in spiritual goods
CCC 612,
625, 635, 2854:
Christ the “Living One” holds the keys of death
 |
| “St Peter Healing the Sick with his Shadow” by Masaccio, 1426-27 |
Reading 1: Acts 5:12-16
Many signs and wonders were
done among the people
at the hands of the apostles.
They were all together in
Solomon’s portico.
None of the others dared to
join them, but the people esteemed them.
Yet more than ever, believers
in the Lord,
great numbers of men and
women, were added to them.
Thus they even carried the
sick out into the streets
and laid them on cots and
mats
so that when Peter came by,
at least his shadow might
fall on one or another of them.
A large number of people from
the towns
in the vicinity of Jerusalem
bringing the sick and those
disturbed by unclean spirits,
and they were all cured.
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Commentary on Acts 5:12-16
The disciples continue to evangelize the people of Jerusalem in
this, the third of St. Luke’s descriptive summaries. We see a continuation of
the healing power of their ministry in the name of Jesus and feel belief in the
risen Lord grow. The miraculous events and signs occurring in the name of Jesus
serve to demonstrate that the Kingdom of God is among those of this early
community.
“Miracles are a form of accreditation God gives to the Gospel
message: they are actions of God in support of the truth of his messengers’
preaching. ‘If they had not worked miracles and wonders,’ Origen says, ‘Jesus‘
disciples could not have moved their hearers to give up their traditional
religion for new teachings and truths, and to embrace, at the risk of their
lives, the teachings which are being proclaimed to them' (Against Celsus, 1,
46).” [5]
CCC: Acts
5:12 699
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24
R. (1) Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his
love is everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Let the house of Israel
“His mercy endures forever.”
Let the house of Aaron say,
“His mercy endures forever.”
Let those who fear the LORD
say,
“His mercy endures forever.”
R. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is
everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I was hard pressed and was
falling,
but the LORD helped me.
My strength and my courage is
the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
The joyful shout of victory
in the tents of the just:
R. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is
everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The stone which the builders
rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been
done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
This is the day the LORD has
made;
let us be glad and rejoice in
it.
R. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is
everlasting.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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Commentary on Ps
118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24
Psalm 118 has been in regular use
during the Easter season. It is a liturgical song of praise and victory. The messianic
imagery is so strong that it has been used for the past three days, reflecting
the joy of the Church in Eastertide. This litany of thanksgiving features the
cornerstone image that, in addition to Acts 4:1-12, was also
used in the Gospel of St. Mark (Mark 12:10) and the
first epistle of St. Peter (1 Peter 2:7) and the
following Old Testament references: Job 38:6; Isaiah 28:16; Jeremiah 51:26. On
Divine Mercy Sunday we begin the selection appropriately with: “His mercy
endures forever.”
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Reading 2: Revelation 1:9-11a, 12-13, 17-19
I, John, your brother, who
share with you
the distress, the kingdom,
and the endurance we have in Jesus,
found myself on the island
called Patmos
because I proclaimed God’s
word and gave testimony to Jesus.
I was caught up in spirit on
the Lord’s day
and heard behind me a voice
as loud as a trumpet, which said,
“Write on a scroll what you
see.”
Then I turned to see whose
voice it was that spoke to me,
and when I turned, I saw
seven gold lampstands
and in the midst of the
lampstands one like a son of man,
wearing an ankle-length robe,
with a gold sash around his chest.
When I caught sight of him, I
fell down at his feet as though dead.
He touched me with his right
hand and said, “Do not be afraid.
I am the first and the last,
the one who lives.
Once I was dead, but now I am
alive forever and ever.
I hold the keys to death and
the netherworld.
Write down, therefore, what
you have seen,
and what is happening, and
what will happen afterwards.”
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Commentary on Rev
1:9-11a, 12-13, 17-19
We are given St. John’s first
vision from his revelation. He is instructed to write down all he sees for the
seven churches of his time (Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis,
Philadelphia, and Laodicea). The "lamp stand" reference may
also be reminiscent of the Menorah, the light burning before God in the temple.
We also note that the vision of the Son of Man bears a striking resemblance to
St. Faustina’s vision of the risen Lord.
The evangelist's actions can be
seen as a traditional response to standing in the presence of God.
Historically it was thought that one coming into God's presence would die
instantly. St. John is reassured that the Risen Lord has indeed conquered
death, and now lives forever at the right hand of the Father. (“Once I was
dead, but now I am alive forever and ever. I hold the keys to death and the
netherworld.”)
CCC: Rv 1:17 612; Rv
1:18 625,
633, 635, 2854
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Gospel: John 20:19-31
On the evening of that first
day of the week,
when the doors were locked,
where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their
midst
and said to them, “Peace be
with you.”
When he had said this, he
showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when
they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again,
“Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so
I send you.”
And when he had said this, he
breathed on them and said to them,
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are
forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are
retained.”
Thomas, called Didymus, one
of the Twelve,
was not with them when Jesus
came.
So the other disciples said
to him, “We have seen the Lord.”
But he said to them,
“Unless I see the mark of the
nails in his hands
and put my finger into the
nailmarks
and put my hand into his
side, I will not believe.”
Now a week later his
disciples were again inside
and Thomas was with them.
Jesus came, although the doors
were locked,
and stood in their midst and
said, “Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas, “Put
your finger here and see my hands,
and bring your hand and put
it into my side,
and do not be unbelieving,
but believe.”
Thomas answered and said to
him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Have you
come to believe because you have seen me?
Blessed are those who have
not seen and have believed.”
Now Jesus did many other
signs in the presence of his disciples
that are not written in this
book.
But these are written that
you may come to believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of God,
and that through this belief
you may have life in his name.
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Commentary on Jn 20:19-31
St. John gives us the picture of the disciples (now Apostles) in hiding immediately following the Lord’s crucifixion. Twice Jesus comes to them, once with Thomas absent, and then again when he is present. (Note: no reference was made to Thomas' absence in Luke 24;36-49, the only other account of this event.)
There are a number of very important
elements of this version of the story. First, the Lord’s greeting: “Peace be
with you.” While this may have been a simple shalom, it is more
likely intended to emphasize the rejoicing sense of the meeting. Immediately
the Lord sends them on their mission: “As the Father has sent me, so I send
you." As part of this action, we are told, the Lord gives the gift of
the Holy Spirit to strengthen them. He also gives them authority to act in his
name.
The significance of Thomas’ absence
is used as an evangelizing moment. Doubting Thomas is confronted in the second
visit by the risen Christ and, almost in recompense for his role as
disbeliever, he provides the title with which Jesus is understood now as True
God as well as True Man: “My Lord and my God.” The Lord then delivers a
beatitude for future generations of Christians: "Blessed are those who
have not seen and have believed."
CCC: Jn 20:19 575,
643, 645, 659; Jn 20:20 645; Jn
20:21-23 1087,
1120, 1441; Jn 20:21 730,
858; Jn 20:22-23 976,
1485; Jn 20:22 730,
788, 1287; Jn 20:23 1461,
2839; Jn 20:24-27 644; Jn
20:26 645,
659; Jn 20:27 645; Jn
20:28 448; Jn
20:30 514; Jn
20:31 442,
514
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Homily
When the Lord
appeared to his disciples in the locked room, they were afraid and desolate. The first thing he offered them was a great
gift. They did not yet realize what had
happened. He came to them, even though
the door was locked. He showed them his
glorified and risen body and said: “Peace
be with you.” I’d like to begin this Divine Mercy discourse with a litany
of peace:
Heavenly
Father, in the locked room of their despair you came to the disciples and said,
“Peace be with you.” In our turn we dare to ask your son:
When we are
locked from you in doubt, in your mercy, give us peace.
When our minds
are locked in ignorance, in your mercy, give us peace.
In the locked
room of sin, when we are contrite, in your mercy, give us peace.
When we are
trapped in sorrow and depression, in your mercy, give us peace.
When we
struggle to forgive those who have harmed us, in your mercy, give us peace.
When we are
persecuted, in your mercy, give us peace.
When we pray,
in your mercy, give us peace.
As we pray for
your mercy and peace, dear Lord, we pray also that you give us strength to
follow you:
When we feed
the hungry, we show your mercy and offer peace.
When we give
drink to the thirsty, we show your mercy and offer peace.
When we shelter
the homeless, we show your mercy and offer peace.
When we visit
the sick and infirmed, we show your mercy and offer peace.
When we visit
the prisoners, we show your mercy and offer peace.
When we bury
the dead, we show your mercy and offer peace.
When we give
alms to the poor, we show your mercy and offer peace.
Most merciful
God, we ask once more, as your children, adopted through baptism, to be given
the great gift of your peace. May we,
who receive this gift, always be prepared to pass it on to others.
Amen
When St. John
Paul established the Second Sunday of Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday in 2000, at
the canonization of St. Faustina, he said: “Humanity will not find peace until
it turns trustfully to divine mercy.” We
recall those words and we continue our celebration of God’s ultimate act of
mercy, the sacrifice of his Only Begotten Son for our salvation.
While we are
still remembering clearly the divine mercy of Easter, we must all ask ourselves
an important question. What is our
relationship with the Lord? It is not an
easy question. We think about our other
relationships: our relationship with our families, our relationship with
friends, and our relationship with others whom we do not know well. How do we think about our relationship with
Jesus when we compare it with how we relate to our best friend? Do we share everything with him? Do we cry with him when we are in sorrow and
receive comfort from him? Do we laugh
with him when we are happy sharing those times of joy?
In many cases,
the answers to those questions can be: “Well, not really.” If not, where do we place our relationship
with the Lord on a scale that ranges from our “best friend” down to the person
we know about and may have seen on occasion but whom we really don’t know? We also need to ask ourselves if that
relationship is important. Let’s face
it; being in a relationship with someone takes work. We can’t be close to everyone, there’s just
not enough time. So, do we have time for
the Lord?
These questions
become important when we think about our own happiness. As any parent who loves their children knows,
the most important thing they hope for their children is that they are safe and
happy. In short, as parents we hope our
children find peace in their lives. It
is peace that the Lord can offer. It is
peace that our friendship with the Lord provides. When we consider the Corporal and Spiritual
Works of Mercy and how we participate in them, we see this clearly.
We are called
to be conduits of mercy. That means we
are called to accept, no, embrace the mercy shown to us. The mercy that allowed St. Peter’s shadow to
heal, the mercy that calmed the fears of the disciples as they huddled in fear,
the mercy of God that saves us from our own sins through forgiveness. We embrace the love and compassion and then
we are called to pass it on to those who need it most, the sick, the weak,
those in prisons (prisons made from bars, prisons of the mind, and prisoners of
addiction). We extend mercy and in the
act of passing God’s love on, we find the peace he offers.
On this Divine
Mercy Sunday we are reminded of the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy and
are encouraged once more to accept and pass on what we receive:
Our Spiritual
Works:
• Counseling the doubtful
• Instructing the ignorant
• Admonishing the sinner
• Comforting the sorrowful
• Forgiving injuries
• Bearing wrongs patiently
• Praying for the living and the dead
And the
Corporal Works of Mercy:
• Feed the hungry
• Give drink to the thirsty
• Shelter the homeless
• Visit the sick
• Visit the prisoners
• Bury the dead
• Give alms to the poor
Pax
In other years
on this date:
or
[1]
Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, Published by the Congregation for
Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2]
The picture is “St Peter Healing the Sick with his Shadow” by Masaccio, 1426-27.
[4]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the
psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is
for private use only.
[5]
The Navarre Bible, “Gospels and Acts”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, ©
2002, p. 750.
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