Homily 2nd Sunday of Easter - April 16, 2023

 Readings can be found here.

            The second Sunday of Easter is also known as Divine Mercy Sunday.  This feast day received its name based on a revelation to St. Faustina.  She was a nun of the Congregation of Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy during the 1930’s.  St. Faustina received revelations from Jesus and recorded them in notebooks.  In a series of these revelations, Jesus told her of His desire for this feast.  In one of her diary entries, Jesus tells her “My daughter, tell the whole world about My inconceivable mercy. I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and a 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.”

            Jesus wants to show us His mercy and shower blessings upon us.  Our readings today speak of this mercy.  Our psalm tells us that the Lord’s mercy endures forever.  When we’re hard pressed or falling, the Lord will help us.  We should put our strength and courage in the Lord.  Peter tells us what God did for us in His great mercy.  Through the resurrection of Jesus we attain the goal of our faith, the salvation of our souls.  To obtain God’s mercy, we need to do three things.  There’s an easy way to remember them: the ABC’s of mercy.  First, we need to ASK for God’s mercy.  Next, we need to BE merciful to others.  Third, we need COMPLETE trust in God.  Ask for mercy.  Be merciful.  Complete trust in God.

            The way to ask for God’s mercy is through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  We should make use of this Sacrament of healing `and mercy on a regular basis.  Fr. Joe preached about ways to examine our conscience and the need for the Sacrament during Lent.  I’ve found reflecting on the ten commandments very helpful in examining my own conscience.  I’ll admit I don’t make use of this Sacrament of healing often enough and am trying to go more frequently.  I highly encourage everyone to do so also.

Being merciful to others can be very difficult in our culture.  We live in a time of great division.  Our culture tells us we should vilify those that are different from us.  If someone doesn’t share our beliefs or values, then it’s OK to mock them, exclude them, or treat them poorly.  As followers of Jesus, we’re called to do the opposite.  We should love our enemies and pray for our persecutors.  When others hurt us with their words or actions, we should show them mercy and forgiveness.

            Complete trust in God can also be difficult.  Our culture tells us we should rely on ourselves to find happiness and peace.  We’re bombarded with messages that the things of the world can make us happy.  If we have the right job, or the right clothes, or the latest gadget, we’ll be satisfied.  But the things of the world are fleeting.  They may provide happiness for a short time, but eventually will disappoint us.  Only in Jesus can we find true happiness and peace.  In our Gospel, Jesus gave His disciples His peace and they rejoiced.  In our first reading, the community devoted themselves to trusting in Jesus.  All had what they needed and they were joyful in their lives.

Jesus wants to take care of us as well, both in good times and difficult ones.  To trust more fully in Jesus, two things are necessary: faith and prayer.  Have faith that God will give us the things we need in life.  God wants to give us all that is good in abundance.  Do we believe this to be true, deep in our hearts?  Prayer helps us to deepen our faith.  It is through prayer that we grow in our relationship with Jesus.  As our relationship deepens, our trust becomes more complete.  As we practice the ABC’s of mercy, our love for Jesus deepens.  As a result, we experience greater joy and peace in our lives.  We come closer to our goal of the salvation of our souls.

This Divine Mercy Sunday we’re reminded that God wants to pour out His graces upon us.  We must approach Jesus and ask for His mercy.  We also should be merciful to others and completely trust in Jesus.  If we do this and love and believe in Jesus, Peter tells us we will rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy.  And in this joy we will find peace.  It’s as easy as ABC.