Divine Mercy Sunday 2026 - Unfathomable mercy

 

On the Sunday after Easter in the year 2000, Pope Saint John Paul II surprised the world, and even many of his cardinals, by declaring that the second Sunday of the Easter season is to be known as Divine Mercy Sunday.

Though the title for this Sunday is relatively new, the message of God's merciful love is certainly not a new concept.  It's the central message of the Christian faith preached for 2000 years.  God has mercy upon sinners; we are loved by God even when we are unlovable because of our sins—no matter how sinful, God's forgiveness is available to all who turn to Him.

The celebration of Divine Mercy is a fitting conclusion to the octave of Easter.  On Easter Sunday we celebrated the triumph of God's love over the powers of sin and death.  Jesus' resurrection shows that Sin and death do not get the last word.  God did not counter our sin with fiery wrath from heaven.  Rather, God defeated man’s sin in a totally unimaginable and unexpected way, Mercy.

Think about it.  On Mount Calvary, we violently rejected God in the flesh.  Everytime we sin, we reject God, but the crucifixion, in a sense, is man's ultimate rejection of God.  At that moment, more than any in human history, God would have been justified in simply ending this whole thing project, condemning us as too sick, too depraved, so corrupt we’d rather kill God than admit our errors. 

Yet from the cross Jesus pronounces not wrath, but forgiveness—not an end to mankind, but an end to the reign of sin and death. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”. And from his side flowed blood and water flowed as rays of divine mercy made available to all people in the Sacraments of the Church. 

The Gospel reading for this Divine Mercy Sunday echoes the message of mercy. Entering the upper room, in the midst of his disciples—he shows them, his wounds, and in doing so he wasn’t pointing them out as if to shame his disciples, or to announce his vengeance. “Look what you did, now it’s time for you to pay”. Rather, he points to his wounds, and says, “peace”. 

Today is a day for the Church to celebrate God’s mercy and to commit to making that message known.

Back in the year 2000, when Pope St. John Paul instituted today as the feast of mercy, he did so in the context of the canonization of a saint—a little known polish nun at the time named Saint Faustina Kowalska. 

In the 1930’s Sister Maria Faustina Kowalska, received a series of private revelations from the Lord himself about his desire to make known to the world his mercy.

Listen to the words of Jesus recorded by Sister Faustina:

“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. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day are opened all the divine floodgates through which graces flow. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity. Everything that exists has come from the very depths of My most tender mercy. Every soul in its relation to Me will contemplate My love and mercy throughout eternity. The Feast of Mercy emerged from My very depths of tenderness. It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My mercy.”

The Lord Jesus could have appeared at any moment in history, but he chose the 1930s. The 1930s began an era of cruelty and godlessness. It saw the rise of totalitarian atheistic governments and rampant materialism and the trampling of basic human freedoms like the right to life. Merciless governments, merciless war crimes, merciless genocides in Europe and Africa, merciless wars over the resources of the earth, merciless religious persecutions, merciless killing of babies, merciless pursuit of wealth at the expense of human life. And Jesus shows up, and tells Sr. Faustina, make my mercy known.

It is unfathomable, that in the face of evil, Jesus wants us to announce His mercy. Most of us would be quick to condemn the world for all of these grave sins, but Jesus says that our task to announce his mercy. “Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.”  

Though, of course, the Church must speak the truth about sin. We must never grow tired of announcing mercy. To whom? To everyone. To fallen away Catholics, “you are welcome back”. To those ashamed by their sins: “don’t be afraid of confession, Jesus is waiting for you there.” To filled with anger and hatred: “you will find peace in forgiveness”. To those who think their sins are too big for God to forgive: “God’s mercy is boundless”. To those trapped in patterns of sin, resentment, impurity, addiction, or indifference: Jesus Christ is not done with you: “Trust in Jesus, and you will find freedom, peace, joy, and meaning”. 

There are souls who feel that it is pointless to change their ways because they think are too far gone, they are too entrenched in sin to change: God’s mercy can save you. Allow yourself to be saved. Whatever your sins might be, they can be forgiven, whatever the direction of your life, it can be changed. 

Brothers and sisters, the world is starving for mercy, even when it does not know how to name what it is seeking. Beneath so much anger, confusion, and violence are wounded human hearts—estranged from God—locked in fear. And so the Church, like her risen Lord entering the locked room, must enter those locked rooms say again and again: God’s Peace be with you. No door is truly locked to Jesus. And the message of mercy can reach the most hardened hearts when we have the courage to share it.

Today, on Divine Mercy Sunday, we thank God for his infinite mercy for each of us and for all—pro omnibus et singulis. But we also pray for the grace to be ambassadors of mercy—for as the Lord has proclaimed peace, so must we—to lead souls to the font of mercy: Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, whose mercy endures forever, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

2nd Sunday of Easter 2023 - Mercy for the Facebook Killer

 Six years ago, this time of year, Cleveland became the center of national news. You may remember this sad story, that a 74-year old man named Robert Godwin Sr was shot and killed while walking on a sidewalk in the Glenville neighborhood. His murderer posted a cellphone video of the shooting on his Facebook account, leading many media outlets, to dub him the "Facebook killer".

Following his murder, Mr. Godwin’s family appeared on television. And in front of the entire nation, they forgave the murderer. Speaking for the family, his daughter Tonya said, “Each one of us forgives the killer… I forgive you and love you, but most importantly,” she said, “God loves you. God can heal your mind and save your soul.” She says, We want the killer to know, “that God loves him, we love him. Yes we’re hurt, but we have to forgive him because the Bible says if we don’t then the heavenly father won’t forgive us.” Of course she is referring to Matthew chapter 6 verse 15 which says “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Mercy, forgiveness, healing. This is what we celebrate today on this Feast of Divine Mercy. And the Godwin family proclaimed this truth, lived this truth so beautifully.

God loves us. God can heal our minds and save our souls. God calls us to forgive, and by that act of forgiveness, we ourselves are forgiven.

Mr. Godwin's son, Robert Jr, echoed the sentiment shared by his sister. He said,  “One thing I do want to say [to the killer] is I forgive him. Because we are all sinners…I’m not happy with what you did, but I forgive you.”

Here is a family, devastated by the senseless death of a dear loved one, but filled with the mercy of God. 

St. Peter said in our second reading that that we will have “to suffer through various trials…that our faith is tested”. The death of their loved one at the hands of the Facebook killer certainly tested the faith of the Godwin family, it was certainly a trial. But mercy radiated from this family in a way that truly glorified God.

This is our vocation as Christians: to be filled with the Mercy of God. Mercy was at the heart of Good Friday: the Lord prays, "Father, Forgive Them...have mercy on them...for they know not what they do. Mercy was at the Heart of Easter Sunday: the Lord bursts through lock doors, shows the wounds in his hands and feet, caused by sinners, and announces not his wrath, but peace, peace to all sinners, those who denied him, rejected him, ran away from their vocations, all of us. Today’s Feast celebrates the mercy lavishly poured out upon us by God and the mercy we are in turn to pour out for others.

In the 1930’s a simple Polish nun by the name of Sister Maria Faustina Kowalska, received a series of private revelations from the Lord himself regarding Mercy. Now canonized, St. Faustina recorded these private revelations in a diary of about 600 pages detailing a whole program of devotion to the mercy of Jesus Christ. Consider the Lord’s timing in appearing to St. Faustina! 

The 1930s was the beginning of an era of unparalleled cruelty of man toward his brother. It saw the rise of totalitarian atheistic governments and rampant materialism and the trampling of basic human freedoms like the right to life. Merciless governments, merciless war crimes, merciless genocides in Europe and Africa, merciless wars over the resources of this earth, merciless religious persecutions, merciless killing of babies, merciless pursuit of wealth at the expense of human life. 

The Lord said to St. Faustina, “Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.” 

While evil has certainly shown its terrible and ugly face these last hundred years. So has Divine Mercy. In saints like Maximilian Kolbe offering his life to save his fellow concentration camp prisoner, St. Gemma offering the sacrifice of her life for her unborn child, St. Padre Pio and many others who bore the wounds of the holy stigmata out of mercy for the sins of the world, St. Oscar Romero suffering martyrdom for calling the Salvadoran soldiers to show mercy to their political enemies, St. Mother Theresa and her holy sisters engaging in the works of mercy toward the poorest of the poor.

That’s not to mention the proliferation of so many Catholic institutions, institutions that your families have supported these last hundred years. Institutions of mercy right here in Cleveland: rosary hall and matt Talbott, mercifully providing professional substance abuse and mental health services to addicts. Our Catholic hospitals. Catholic Charities. St. Vincent de Paul programs. The hungry have been fed. The sick have been healed. The imprisoned have been visited. The doubtful have been counseled. Those stuck in cycles of sin have been sought out.

Yes, there has been an outpouring of evil in these last hundred years, but there has also been an outpouring of mercy. Opportunities for grace and conversion. So many souls coming to know God’s peace through the font of Christ’s mercy. 

In a sense, these last hundred years have been a century of mercy on a massive scale. 

Jesus told St Faustina, "I demand from you deeds of mercy... You are to show deeds of mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere."

Always and everywhere. And that’s quite the challenge, isn’t it? To show mercy to murdering facebook killers and annoying neighbors and inconsiderate drivers. To show generosity to God’s poor ones who reach out to you for help despite their rough personalities. To show patience to those who are wandering on the margins of the church or who have even stepped outside her bounds. Always and everywhere means always and everywhere. That’s a challenge. It’s a trial. It’s a test of faith. But by being dedicated to forgiveness and to deeds of mercy, we attain the goal of our faith, the glory of God and the salvation of your souls.

Divine Mercy Sunday 2017: The Facebook Killer and Mercy

As you may know, last Sunday, Cleveland became the center of national news again. Sadly, a 74-year old man, Robert Godwin Sr, was shot and killed while walking on a sidewalk in the Glenville neighborhood. His murderer posted a cellphone video of the shooting on his Facebook account, leading many media outlets, to dub him the "Facebook killer".

Well, this week, Mr. Godwin’s family appeared on television. And in front of the entire nation, they forgave the murderer. Speaking for the family, his daughter Tonya said, “Each one of us forgives the killer… I forgive you and love you, but most importantly,” she said, “God loves you. God can heal your mind and save your soul.” She says, We want the killer to know, “that God loves him, we love him. Yes we’re hurt, but we have to forgive him because the Bible says if we don’t then the heavenly father won’t forgive us.” Of course she is referring to Matthew chapter 6 verse 15 which says “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Mercy, forgiveness, healing. This is what we celebrate today on this Feast of Divine Mercy. And the Godwin family proclaimed this truth, lived this truth so beautifully this week.

God loves us. God can heal our minds and save our souls. God calls us to forgive, and by that act of forgiveness, we ourselves are forgiven.

Mr. Godwin's son, Robert Jr, echoed the sentiment shared by his sister. He said,  “One thing I do want to say [to the killer] is I forgive him. Because we are all sinners…I’m not happy with what you did, but I forgive you.”

Here is a family, devastated by the senseless death of a dear loved one, but filled with the mercy of God.

This is our vocation as Christians: to be filled with the Mercy of God. Mercy was at the heart of Good Friday, Mercy was at the Heart of Easter Sunday. Today’s Feast celebrates the mercy lavishly poured out upon us by God and the mercy we are in turn to pour out for others.

Today’s feast of Divine Mercy stems from a series of private revelations given by our Lord in the 1930’s to a simple Polish nun by the name of Sister Maria Faustina Kowalska. Now canonized, St. Faustina recorded these private revelations in a diary of about 600 pages detailing a whole program of devotion to the mercy of Jesus Christ. Consider the Lord’s timing in appearing to St. Faustina! The 1930s was the beginning of an era of unparalleled cruelty of man toward his brother, it saw the rise of totalitarian atheistic governments and rampant materialism, and the trampling of basic human freedoms like the right to life.

So, Our Lord himself gave to the Church this special and important gift, right when we needed it, to help us survive an era of darkness—an era which continues still.

In the pages of St. Faustina’s diary we learn of the Image of Divine Mercy. The Lord explained how this image is to help us remember God’s mercy and the need to show mercy. I encourage you to place the image of Divine Mercy somewhere in your homes.

In the Diary, we hear about the Divine Mercy Chaplet, which the faithful should pray with great devotion: asking God to show mercy upon our troubled world. The Lord said to St. Faustina, “Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.” So, we do well to pray the Chaplet. If you don’t know how to pray the Chaplet, I’ve just given you homework. Learn it and pray it. Don’t turn on a television until you’ve done your homework!

Also in the diary St. Faustina writes about the Hour of Mercy, how our Lord desires that every day at three o’clock, his death on the Cross—the supreme sign and source of God’s mercy—be recalled in prayer and devotion. Every day we should stop at 3pm, and thank God for the gift of our salvation.

St. Faustina records in numerous places in her diary Jesus’ desire that a liturgical feast be instituted in honor of his mercy on the second Sunday of Easter. Thanks to St. John Paul II who instituted this feast, we honor our Lord’s wishes today.

Finally, Jesus told St Faustina, "I demand from you deeds of mercy... You are to show deeds of mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere."

Always and everywhere. To terrorists, show mercy. To murdering facebook killers, show mercy. To annoying neighbors and inconsiderate drivers, show mercy.  To people who you disagree with 

politically, show mercy and patience. To people who betray your trust, show mercy. To rude shoppers at the grocery store, show mercy. To God’s poor ones who reach out to you for help, show mercy. For souls trapped in cycles of sin and souls in danger of hell, pray for mercy.  For bishops, priests, and religious who so often fail in our solemn duties, pray for mercy. For children whose parents do not raise them in the faith, pray for mercy. “Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.” You and I will not have peace until we become people of mercy for the glory of God and salvation of souls.