The Second Sunday of Easter is Divine Mercy Sunday. It was on the Second Sunday of Easter, April 30, 2000, that Pope John Paul II canonized Sr. Maria Faustina Kowalska and declared that the Second Sunday of Easter, “from now on throughout the Church, will be called 'Divine Mercy Sunday'.” Pope John Paul II died on the Vigil of the Feast of Divine Mercy, April 2, 2005. His last message to us was read after his death on the Feast of the Divine Mercy, “As a gift to humanity, which sometimes seems bewildered and overwhelmed by the power of evil, selfishness, and fear, the Risen Lord offers His love that pardons, reconciles, and reopens hearts to love. It is love that converts hearts and gives peace. How much the world needs to understand and accept Divine Mercy!” This message of Divine Mercy was a consistent theme throughout the pontificate of John Paul II.
The message of Divine Mercy should be a great consolation to all of us. God revealed His overwhelming mercy and love for us in the Resurrection of his Son, Jesus. As St. Peter tells us in today’s second reading. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…” (1 Peter 1: 3 – 4).
This special feast reminds us to trust in God’s merciful love constantly. In the midst of our dark moments, in the midst of our doubts and fears, the mercy and love of God is there for us. God’s merciful love is faithful and enduring. None of us can actually see love or touch love but we all can feel the power of love in our lives. God our Father revealed His love for us through the sacrifice of His beloved Son, Jesus. God poured out His love on us through the gift of the Holy Spirit. God bestows His love on us through the sacraments. When we experience the total forgiveness of our sins through the sacrament of reconciliation and when we receive the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist our doubts and fears, our hurts and sorrows are transformed into healing and peace that we can extend to others. In this way we can transform our world.
God, merciful Father,
in your Son, Jesus Christ, you have revealed your love
and poured it out upon us in the Holy Spirit, the Comforter,
We entrust to you today the destiny of the world
and of every man and woman.
Bend down to us sinners,
heal our weakness,
conquer all evil,
and grant that all the peoples of the earth
may experience your mercy.
In You, the Triune God,
may they ever find the source of hope.
Eternal Father,
by the Passion and Resurrection of your Son,
have mercy on us and upon the whole world!
Pope John Paul II
