HOMILY FOR DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY – YEAR B (2ND SUNDAY OF EASTER)
HOMILY THEME: JESUS, I TRUST IN YOU.
BY: FR. JUSTIN CHUKWUNONSO NZEKWE

Today, the church celebrates the feast of Divine Mercy. This feast began on the (thirtieth of April in the year two thousand) 30th of April 2000, when our Lord appeared to Sister Faustina and requested that this feast be established in the Church to propagate the divine and incomprehensible mercy of God. Mercy, therefore, is an essential attribute of God. The story of our Redemption and Salvation which was made possible by God through the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is the story of God’s compassion, mercy, and love for us. Mercy, compassion, and forgiveness are all related in the sense that each seeks the good of the other, heals the wound of the other, and pays the price for the other without demanding anything in return. The responsorial psalm of today reminds us about the identity of God, saying: “Rendete grazie al Signore perché è buono: il suo amore è per sempre.” God gratuitously shows His mercy to us, not because we deserve his mercy and pardon, but because of his heart full of love. The gospel reading of today highlights the importance of mercy, which led Jesus to institute the sacrament of reconciliation. The Risen Lord gives the Apostles the authority to forgive sins in His Name. This means that an ordained Catholic priest, through the absolution of sins, can extend God’s mercy to those who confessed their sins and are ready to make a perfect contrition for their sins. Jesus breathed on his disciples and said to them, “Ricevete lo Spirito Santo. A coloro a cui perdonerete i peccati, saranno perdonati; a coloro a cui non perdonerete, non saranno perdonati.” We obtain God’s mercy and forgiveness through the sacrament of reconciliation. It is therefore a tribunal of mercy where everyone is discharged and acquitted without further condemnation, which our offences deserve.

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The first reading of today reminds us of the early Christian community and how they lived out the mercy of God among the Jews through their CORPORAL WORKS of Mercy, by sharing what they had among themselves with love. There was no poverty among the early believers, and social discomfort and economic challenges could not break their spirit. Their strength was derived from community prayer, “the Breaking of the Bread” and the apostles’ teaching, which was read each time they met. The second reading from the first letter of Saint John focuses on spiritual and corporal works of mercy. Saint John urges us to obey the commandments given by God, especially the commandment of love as clarified by Jesus. Everyone who claims to love God has an obligation to love others and to treat them with God’s mercy and compassion. Unfortunately, some of us are still bearing grudges for years and have refused to forgive the person who offends us. Many families today are no longer at peace with each other because of a lack of forgiveness. It is possible to also encounter some religious or clergymen who have refused to forgive a colleague. Today is the day of reconciliation, when we should decide to forgive and forget the sins of those who hurt us so that our wounded hearts can receive healing. We can do that by making that phone call today in order to tell someone, “I am sorry,” or to say to someone, “I have forgiven you.” This is because we are all called by God to be apostles of mercy. Being an apostle of mercy implies imitating Christ by acknowledging that everybody is weak and imperfect, and we therefore forgive one another’s failings as Jesus always forgives us. Hence, the best way to spread the good news of Christ’s resurrection is by showing an example of mercy. Unless we forgive others who offend us, our celebration of the Eucharist and our Christian life will remain empty, because it is in showing mercy and forgiveness that we can conquer the violence and hatred and restore peace to our troubled world. We pray in this holy mass that, through the intercession of Saint Maria Faustina, we may be able to obtain God’s perpetual mercy. And may God’s infinite mercy and unfathomable love always accompany us even in our weakness as we pray, “Sacred heart of Jesus, I trust in you.”

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