Friar’s Corner: Jesus’ love is awesome and forever

Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24; 1 Peter 1:3-9; John 20:19-31

Christ’s resurrection at Easter is the most important element of our Catholic faith. Jesus is always with and around us even though his earthly body went back to heaven. As we prayerfully read and think about 10 resurrection appearances of Jesus, we see his earthly presence is different in the way he comes and goes. There are many New Testament teachings about Jesus‘ effects in our lives.

Probably most of us remember many homilies on this Sunday after Easter about “doubting Thomas.” There is a great reason why Pope St. John Paul II changed the name of this Sunday to Divine Mercy Sunday. In our faith there are many “magic” words we use yet don’t really know what they mean, like grace or heaven. God’s mercy is one of them. I asked one of my seminary profs what it means. He said it simply means God’s (the whole Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit‘s) great love for us. There are books about various aspects of love. Unless we were raised by loving parents, we don’t understand what it is. God’s love is very different. His love is not really human. One priest at dinner tonight said it involves four things:

L=listening
O=overflowing
V=visible
E=eternal

That is good yet I want to take a different approach.

To say God is loving to me is like “pie in the sky.” We aren’t in heaven and haven’t seen God (the Father) so we don’t know what he is like. God’s love is most understood by reading the gospel stories about the earthly life of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. He was sent to earth to show us in his daily actions in his public life what love is and how it makes a difference in our life. Jesus had compassion for our sad human state. He mostly got people’s attention by healing countless numbers of people wherever he went. Study his wonderful healing stories. His love wanted and still wants to help and heal us. Jesus founded a new kingdom we call the Catholic Church to continue his work of loving by example, teaching, and so many other ways. And he offers us our “daily bread” at Mass in the Eucharist.

Over the centuries, Jesus has sent his earthly mother, Mary, to ask us to turn to Jesus as she did at the wedding at Cana, “Do whatever he tells you,” she told the waiters when they ran out of wine. She encourages us to go to Jesus, listen and do what he tells us.

St. Faustina

Jesus, himself, has also come with instructions as through St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th century with the First Friday devotions. A simpler and more direct approach is what Jesus told St. Faustina in the 1930s. Most of what he asked to be done has been done.

1) We have this new feast day to explain more of God’s love for us. Jesus said to Sr. Faustina: “My daughter, speak to the world of My inexhaustible Mercy. I desire that this feast be a refuge and a shelter for all souls, especially for poor sinners.”

2) Jesus gave us a new picture of himself with rays flowing from his heart. He called them highways. He calls us to get on one of those rays and come directly into his heart. We don’t have to go through anyone else.

3) He said the most powerful source of God‘s love in our lives is the Mass. He asked us to pray at three o’clock, the hour he died on the cross.

4) Jesus gave us a new rosary he called the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. It only takes about five minutes to say, and it is all directed to God with no mysteries to meditate upon. We can make a novena of them in saying it on consecutive days.

5) Jesus gave us a new novena begging God to bless certain groups of people in 9 consecutive days. Initially, he asked it to be said from Good Friday until the Saturday before this Sunday. These groups include those who love him, priests and religious, those in purgatory, those who have left the church and those who don’t know him, among other intentions.

With all those dying as a result of this virus, all those medical staff who are helping, the rescue workers, police and undertakers, I spiritually gather in my arms every day at prayer asking Jesus to pour out his loving mercy upon all of them. I pray the novena all year long and two or three chaplets every day begging for God’s help.

Trust in his love

With all the love God has for us in so many ways, the most important thing Jesus emphasizes is to TRUST is his love. The inscription that Jesus insisted to be written at the bottom of his new picture was: “Jesus, I trust in you.” I know that is hard when we see so much evil around us, in our church, country and the world. When I think of Jesus and pray before his new picture, I am drawn more into his loving heart. Jesus, I love you. Jesus, I love you.

Perhaps the main point which draws many to these elements of our faith is the plenary indulgence Jesus offers on this Sunday. When we sin, we disobey one of God’s directives. There is the sin itself but attached to it is a certain punishment.

When we admit our sins and go to confession, our sins are taken away by God’s grace, but not the temporal punishment due to those sins.

There are conditions for receiving this grace. Jesus said that the souls that will go to confession, before or after the feast and go to communion on that day, will obtain a complete remission of all their sins and all the punishment due to those sins.

He also said: “Let no soul fear to come to me, even if its sins be as scarlet. This feast emerged from the bosom of my mercy and is founded in the depths of my mercies. I desire that it be celebrated with great solemnity on the first Sunday after Easter.” The church extends twenty days before or after the feast for private confession. Since most of our churches are still closed, you can watch Mass online in many places on the web or EWTN and make a spiritual communion and go to private confession when churches are reopened. Jesus knows everything and as you open your heart more to him, he fills you with more of his awesome love for you.

I am also holding all of you in my arms and heart as I pray each day for a greater outpouring of Jesus’ loving mercy on us. St. Faustina’s diary is long. It is helpful to get a pamphlet, “The Divine Mercy Message and Devotion,” from the Association of Marian Helpers, in Stockbridge MS, 1-800-462-7426. These messages offer us awesome  helps in these difficult virus days.

Have a safe and blessed week closer to Jesus,’

+ Father Bob Hilz, Ambassador for Christ
fbhilz@gmail.com

(© 2020 Father Bob Hilz, TOR)