Pope Francis has sent a video message to the Polish faithful, compatriots of Pope John Paul II, and a written message to the citizens of Bergamo, the province in which the village of “Sotto il Monte”, birthplace of Pope John XXIII, is located.
In his video message, rebroadcast by Polish Television (TVP) and by Polish Radio, the Pope remarks that he is happy to be able to proclaim John Paul II a saint, and expresses his gratitude to the Polish Pope for his “tireless service, is spiritual guidance, for bringing the Church into the third millennium of faith, and for his extraordinary witness of holiness”.
Francis recalls the words Pope Benedict XVI used to describe Pope Wojtyla in the homily of his beatification in May 2011: “society, culture, political and economic systems he opened up to Christ, turning back with the strength of a titan – a strength which came to him from God – a tide which appeared irreversible.
“By his witness of faith, love and apostolic courage, accompanied by great human charisma, this exemplary son of Poland helped believers throughout the world not to be afraid to be called Christian, to belong to the Church, to speak of the Gospel.
“In a word,” the Pope said, “he helped us not to fear the truth, because truth is the guarantee of liberty”.
In his message to the citizens of Bergamo, published in the daily newspaper “L'Eco di Bergamo” with which Pope John XXIII collaborated during the years of his priesthood, he invites them to “give thanks to God for his holiness, a great gift to the universal Church”, and he encourages them to “conserve the memory of the land in which it germinated: a land of profound faith lived in daily life, in families that are poor but united by the love of the Lord, of communities capable of sharing in simplicity”.
The Holy Father says that “the renewal brought by Vatican Council II opened up the way, and it is a special joy that the canonisation of Pope Roncalli should take place alongside that of Blessed John Paul II, who continued this renewal during his long pontificate”.
He expresses his hope that “civil society too may always draw inspiration from the life of Bergamo's Pope and from the environment that he generated, searching new ways, adapted to the times, of building co-existence based on the perennial values of fraternity and solidarity”.
(April 25, 2014) © Innovative Media Inc.
So much to celebrate
Fr. Jack Peterson, YA
This Sunday is a most special day for the Catholic Church. Principally, we celebrate the second Sunday of Easter, also designated as Divine Mercy Sunday. On this day, we conclude the octave of Easter in which for eight days the church extends her joyful and grateful celebration of Easter Sunday. The significance of the empty tomb on the third day following His horrendous death on a tree cannot be captured in one day; so the church gives us eight days to ponder, celebrate and enter into the mystery of Easter morning. Additionally, today we join with the church in Rome as two of her beloved sons, Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII, officially are declared saints by Pope Francis.
If you have ever questioned or doubted your faith in Jesus’ resurrection, today is your day. Our Gospel reading from St. John recounts Thomas the Apostle’s personal doubt about the Resurrection, which ironically becomes a rich blessing for us. Thomas’ doubt, Jesus’ patient and earthy response (“put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side”), and Thomas’ subsequent act of faith serve to strengthen our belief in the reality and power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Thomas’ doubt reminds us that the disciples were human and weak, like all of us, and that faith in Jesus is a gift of the Holy Spirit that does not come easily. It is a gift that must be embraced with deep gratitude and a leap of trust in God the Father’s amazing love.
Jesus grasps the fact that faith in Him does not come easily to His disciples in any age and praises us when we make this leap of trust: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
Pope John Paul II designated this Sunday as Divine Mercy Sunday in 2001 in part as a response to Jesus’ appearances to St. Faustina Kowalska. Today is a most fitting day for this celebration because the church proclaims the Gospel in which Jesus institutes the sacrament of penance and confers on the apostles, the first bishops of the early church, the power to forgive sins in His name: “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Jesus appeared to St. Faustina, a humble Polish nun, during the 1930s in a series of private revelations. She was inspired by Christ to encourage the universal church to proclaim ever more loudly and boldly the message of God’s mercy, which flows from His wounded side. Every human being is invited by the Father to find comfort and seek refuge in the heart of Christ, pierced for our offenses.
Our Lord’s message to St. Faustina is enormously encouraging. She reminds the world that the greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to Christ’s mercy. Souls that appeal to Christ and His mercy bring delight to the Lord. To such souls, Christ grants even more graces than they ask.
This humble, unpretentious nun issued a challenge to the world: Trust in Jesus who opened His heart as a living fountain of mercy. Every human being should draw life from His heart and approach the sea of mercy with loving trust and confidence. Our Lord encouraged three devotions to help spread the good news about His gracious mercy: the well-known image of Divine Mercy (painted by the saint herself), the feast of Divine Mercy and the chaplet of Divine Mercy.
Finally, let us turn to our two new saints. The church will continue to reap the benefits of the holiness and pastoral zeal of these two amazing popes for many, many years. Pope John XXIII had a true shepherd’s heart for the needs and concerns of the flock. In addition, he had the courage to call the universal church to engage in the Second Vatican Council. This council helped the church look long and hard at the need to find new and effective ways to understand, celebrate and apply our faith to the modern era.
Admittedly, it is hard to encapsulate the long papacy of Pope John Paul II. He brought the papacy to the whole world with his extensive travels. He gave young people a sense that they are very important to the Lord by focusing a healthy portion of his ministry on them and establishing World Youth Day. He wrote and preached comprehensively on how to properly apply the spirit and teachings of the Second Vatican Council to the present day. This commitment included the promulgation of a universal catechism. He shared with us a deep love for Mary and added the luminous mysteries to the rosary. He helped the world prepare for and enter prayerfully into the third Christian millennium. Pope John Paul II initiated the church’s growing focus on the new evangelization.
This Sunday is a day to celebrate with abandon God’s many blessings upon the church.
Fr. Peterson is assistant chaplain at Marymount University in Arlington and director of the Youth Apostles Institute in McLean.