Reflecting on God's mercy

By RENEE WEBB, Globe editor
April 19, 2007

Divine Mercy Sunday, the Sunday after Easter, was celebrated by millions of Catholics throughout the world. Several parishes in the Diocese of Sioux City also held special services on April 15 to observe Divine Mercy Sunday.

It was the biggest crowd ever at the Sioux City service that was hosted at Blessed Sacrament Church. Roxanne Lohr and Regina Ratino, organizers of the event, estimated that about 400 people attended.

Bishop R. Walker Nickless was the homilist for the service.

He started his homily off by quoting Scripture from the Office of Readings that morning - a letter from St. Paul to the Colossians - "Because you are God's chosen ones, holy and blessed, clothe yourself in heartfelt mercy with kindness, humility, meekness and patience. Bear with one another, forgive whatever grievances you have against one another. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven."

Bishop Nickless said they gathered on the occasion of Divine Mercy Sunday with the joy of Easter resounding in their hearts.

"Christ has risen," he said. "Christ has conquered sin and death through his own passion, death and resurrection. The greatness for us is that we as followers of Christ share in his victory. Our sins can be forgiven through his mercy and love."

He pointed out that death is still something that people are afraid of but the Easter message makes it clear that death is the door to eternal life.

The bishop reminded the people that Jesus gave the disciples the power to forgive the sins of the people who repent.

"Our merciful God breaks through the locked doors of our hearts and stands among us - full of mercy and forgiveness," said Bishop Nickless.

The bishop spoke of St. Faustina, who promoted the Feast of Divine Mercy. He mentioned that the Polish nun had died in 1938 at the age of 33. She was proclaimed a saint by fellow Pole, the late Pope John Paul II in the year 2000.

"Jesus told St. Faustina, 'My mercy is greater than your sins and those of the whole world.' As the beautiful image of Christ reminds us, so much a part of this Divine Mercy devotion, the blood and water that flow from Christ's side represent the three sacraments of mercy. Baptism, when we first became followers of Christ. Penance, when we allow God to come into our hearts and forgive our sins and of course the great sacrament of the Eucharist," explained Bishop Nickless.

The bishop said their was much to reflect upon on Divine Mercy Sunday.

He said that Pope John Paul had connected the Divine Mercy devotion to Easter through these words, "To humanity, which in times seems to be lost and dominated by the powers of evil, selfishness and fear, the risen Lord offers the gift of his love that pardons, reconciles and opens the soul in hope. It's love that converts hearts and brings peace. How much this world needs to understand and accept Divine Mercy."

Bishop Nickless spoke of the many ills of the world today - wars, starvation, genocide and abortion.

"Do we need mercy in the world? In the face of such horrendous human behavior, it can be difficult to speak of mercy. But what St. Faustina and Pope John Paul II helped us to understand is mercy is who our God is. Mercy is Jesus Christ and what he has brought to us and mercy is what he has commanded us to preach and live," said the bishop.

He called on people to trust in God and show mercy to others.

The Sioux City observance of Divine Mercy Sunday began at 1:30 p.m. with the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and people had the opportunity to go to confession.

"In keeping with Pope Benedict XVI's recent urging to 'welcome penitent sinners like the father in the prodigal son,' the six priests that gathered here today did a wonderful job of making known the merciful love of God to each penitent that availed himself of the Sacrament of Reconciliation," said Ratino.

The Hour of Mercy began at 3 p.m. with Kevin Keane and Claudia Hardy leading the congregation as they sang the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.

"I am amazed each year at the fervor and the passion with which Claudia and Kevin sing the chaplet. People seem to feel an overwhelming desire to dig a little deeper within their being to beg God to 'have mercy on us and on the whole world,'" said Ratino.

Father Merlin Schrad, pastor at Blessed Sacrament Church, served as the host for the celebration. After the chaplet, he explained that in 2002 the late pontiff, Pope John Paul II declared that people could receive a plenary indulgence by following certain steps on Divine Mercy Sunday. The pastor then led the Act of Entrustment.

After the bishop's homily, the service closed with benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, which was led by Msgr. Roger Augustine.

"It was wonderful to witness the joy and peace that people felt after adoring our Eucharistic Lord with pray and song, and venerating the sacred Image of the Divine Mercy," said Ratino. "Them seemed to walk away with a renewed commitment to trust in Our Lord and a desire to follow St. Faustina's beautiful example of becoming an Apostle of Mercy."

Lohr liked how the bishop emphasized God's great love for the people, that God is merciful and that people must turn to God in trust.

She pointed out that she continues to promote the Divine Mercy service because in addition to enjoying it, "I want to spread the great mystery of Divine Mercy."

Celebrations were held in other parts of the diocese as well such as in Algona, Fort Dodge, Ida Grove and Manning.

At St. Joseph Church in Wesley, the organizer of the event, Deb Trenary, said they had a bigger crowd than what she expected. Over 60 people showed up for the service, many of them were from out of town.

"It was amazing," she said.