Divine Mercy Sunday

April 27, 2025

GOSPEL MEDITATION

It’s common for Catholics to hear the question, “Why do I have to go to a priest to have my sins forgiven?” I’ve never liked that question because not only is it clunky (confession is the ordinary way for the pardoning of serious sins, not lesser ones). But it misses the larger context: the wonderful origins of the sacrament it-self. And this context is deeply Jewish.

Ancient Jews associated forgiveness of sins with priests offering sacrifices in the Jerusalem temple. It was a solemn, public, and tangible way to access God’s mercy. So when the risen Jesus breathes on the Apostles and says, “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained” (John 20:23), the upshot is remarkable: he is the new temple and his Apostles are the new priests. Jerusalem is no longer the place to find forgiveness from sin. Jesus’ body, the Church, is.

So why should we go to the Sacrament of Confession? For the same reason ancient Jews went to the temple in Jerusalem: to experience the intimacy, joy, and life-giving power of God’s eternal forgiveness.

–Father John Muir

 

EVERYDAY STEWARDSHIP

Today is the Second Sunday of Easter; more recently in our Church’s history, it has become known as Divine Mercy Sun-day. Our Gospel reading from St John is often referred to as the story of ‘Doubting Thomas’ but the passage involved so much more than the encounter with the skeptical apostle. It is rich with lessons of Christ’s mercy to all, including an encouraging word from our Lord, especially for us, His modern-day disciples.

We see that none of the Apostles were at their best when Christ first appears to them after His resurrection. They were paralyzed by fear and doubt, hiding and cowering and afraid. But Jesus returned to them on a mission of mercy. He comes to offer them peace and the restoration of their relationship with Him. And even more, He commissions them to become ministers of His mercy, by giving them the authority to forgive sins. What a precious and powerful gift is this divine mercy.

We will find that the more deeply we embrace the gift of mercy through regular Confession, the greater will be our capacity to offer mercy to others because we will see ourselves as we really truly are – forgiven sinners deeply loved by God. Let’s commit ourselves to become faithful disciples, stewards of Christ’s mercy 2,000 years after His Resurrection. We will be those very ones to whom Jesus gave a “shout out” during His encounter with Thomas: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed” – in His merciful love.

2025 Catholic Stewardship Consultants

 

PRACTICING CATHOLIC – RECOGNIZE GOD IN YOUR ORDINARY MOMENTS

Mini Reflection: It does sound unbelievable, the story of the Resurrection. But lots of things are unbelievable. That doesn’t mean they’re not true. Take Thomas’ example: stay close to the people you trust. Be willing to recognize Jesus when he’s in front of you.

Wonder, Don’t Wander: My daughter recently asked me if it’s okay to “wonder if all the Jesus stuff is true.” I wasn’t surprised by her question. I’ve expected it, in fact. If you’re raising a child to be a critical thinker, you don’t want them to accept everything you tell them simply because it comes from your lips. I have promised my children that I will always give them the truth about God. But that’s all I can do — give it to them. Whether or not they accept it, ultimately, is their own choice.I know it’s true,” she told me. “But sometimes it just all sounds so…unbelievable.”

She’s not wrong. It does sound unbelievable that an all-powerful God could create us for no reason other than sheer love, that He could be generous enough to give us free will to accept that love, that he could be merciful enough not to destroy us when we reject that love, and finally that he could be faithful enough in that love to become flesh and die in order to save us from the consequences of our own poor choices.

But lots of things are unbelievable. That doesn’t mean they’re not true.

When Jesus says, “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed,” he isn’t calling Thomas a fool for questioning something that sounds a little outrageous. He’s just highlighting the fact that Thomas is afforded a luxury that none of the Christians born after him, my daughter included, will have: he gets to see proof with his own eyes. I told my daughter it’s fine to wonder — just don’t wander. Take Thomas’ example. Stay close to the people you trust. Return to the warmth of the upper room. Be willing to recognize Jesus when he’s in front of you. Never be afraid to believe.

– Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman