Divine Mercy Sunday
Reflections on Acts of the Apostles 5:12-16 / Revelation 1:9-11A, 12-13, 17-19 / John 20:19-31
by Frank Savadera, SJ
Friends,
today is Divine Mercy Sunday. I browsed through the selection of readings prescribed for today and can easily pick up
a theme … not of MERCY but of FAITH. Strange?
A
large number of people gathered around Peter and the apostles, bringing in the
sick and those disturbed by unclean spirits … and they were cured. More and more came to believe in the
Lord. Isn’t this FAITH? Also, those who studied Scriptures among
us would affirm that our 2nd Reading for today from the Book of
Revelation does not speak of how the end or the last judgment will be. The Book of Revelation speaks of
encouragement for the people of God to have MORE FAITH in a time of severe
persecution. “Do not be afraid,” it
says. “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.” The book, amidst hardships
in life, inspires believers to have MORE FAITH. Also, we see Jesus in the Gospel today
speaking to Thomas saying: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have
believed.” I was already scratching my
head and telling myself how the readings obviously speak about FAITH. Where is MERCY here?
And
necessarily so … amidst my own personal experiences of confusion, I paused and
prayed: Lord how do I find MERCY from the selection of readings today. The first thought that came to my mind is
this: We cannot be merciful unless we
have FAITH. The MORE INSTENSE our
faith is, the MORE RADICAL is our expressions of MERCY. The readings on Easter will continue to talk
about how the apostles take on the role of Jesus … moving about … like CLONES
of Jesus. They begin reaching out to the
sick, the lame and crippled … curing them, taking seriously what Jesus himself
commissioned them to do: Whatever you
forgive on earth will be forgiven in heaven.
The people began flocking to them … as they did with Jesus. The description we’ve read is … they’ve laid
on cots and mats so that when Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on
one or another of them. Imagine: Matamaan lang ako ng ANINO nya … is great
consolation already for the people of God.
Friends, what GREAT IMPACT the apostles were accomplishing for
Jesus. They’ve become CHANNELS of the
Lord’s Mercy and people begin to recognize Jesus in them. They were going out of their way, offering
people Jesus’ same brand of LOVE and MERCY … and WHY? Because they themselves had an intense
encounter with Jesus and they BELIEVED.
Pope Francis tells us: Do not be
afraid to show goodness and tenderness. The
reality is that WE ARE AFRAID to show goodness and tenderness. Have faith.
We cannot be merciful unless
we have FAITH. The MORE INSTENSE our
faith is, the MORE RADICAL is our expressions of MERCY.
2nd
POINT: MERCY calls us to express greater THANKSGIVING. Remember how during the crucifixion, a
soldier thrusts a spade/ lance unto the side of Jesus … water and blood poured
out from Jesus’ wound. This is the
image/ basis of Sister Faustina’s devotion to the Divine Mercy of Jesus. Our prayer:
“You expired, O Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls and
an ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.” In his passion and death on the cross, Jesus
didn’t fight it out. He accepted his
fate wholeheatedly. He didn’t condemn
his accusers. Instead, he showed great
mercy: Father forgive them for they do
not know what they are doing. The MERCY
of Jesus is symbolized by the BLOOD and WATER that came out from his
wound. The BLOOD, his sacrifice on the
cross is what we witness to and celebrate during the mass. We call our practice EUCHARISTIA or literally
THANKSGIVING. Mercy is symbolized as
well as water … also the sign of our baptism, assuring us that wherever we go,
we are GIFTED by the SPIRIT that will guide us and provide us wisdom.
MERCY … the BLOOD and WATER that oozed out of the WOUND of Jesus calls
us to THANKSGIVING. Our
salvation did not come CHEAP. We were
ransomed and it cost so much. The MERCY
of God saves us … and before the CROSS, we are called to be more THANKFUL.
LASTLY,
Jesus instructs the unbelieving 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.” We cannot be MERCIFUL unless we DIP our fingers into the WOUNDEDNESS of
OTHERS. We cannot say that we FULLY
UNDERSTAND the troubles and pains of a brother or a sister in community. We can’t.
But if we seek to understand the difficulty of another; if we grapple
with the context and chaotic circumstance of another, then we can be
MERCIFUL.
We cannot be
merciful unless we have FAITH. The MORE
INSTENSE our faith is, the MORE RADICAL is our expressions of MERCY.
MERCY … the
BLOOD and WATER that oozed out of the WOUND of Jesus calls us to THANKSGIVING.
We cannot be
MERCIFUL unless we DIP our fingers into the WOUNDEDNESS of OTHERS.
