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Benedict
XVI Stresses
Divine Mercy
Pope Benedict XVI highlighted the importance of Divine Mercy devotion
before praying the Regina Caeli with more than 50,000 individuals
gathered in St. Peter’s Square on the event of the Divine Mercy
Sunday.
He stressed that devotion to Divine Mercy is “an integral dimension
of a Christian’s faith and prayer”.
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
This Sunday the Gospel of John recounts that the risen Jesus appeared
to his disciples, gathered in the cenacle, on the evening of the
"first day of the week" (John 20:19), and that he showed
himself to them again in the same place "eight days later"
(John 20:26).
From the beginning, therefore, the Christian community began to
live a weekly rhythm, highlighted by the encounter with the risen
Lord.
It is what is also emphasized by the Second Vatican Council's constitution
on the sacred liturgy, which affirms: "The Church, by an apostolic
tradition, which has its origin in the same day of the resurrection
of Christ, celebrates the paschal mystery every eight days, on the
day that is called with reason 'day of the Lord' or Sunday"
("Sacrosanctum Concilium," No. 106).
The evangelist also recalls that in both apparitions the Lord Jesus
showed the disciples the signs of the crucifixion, very visible
and tangible also in his glorious body (cf. John 20:20,27). Those
sacred wounds, in the hands, the feet and the side, are an inexhaustible
source of faith, hope and love in which each one can drink, especially
souls most thirsty of Divine Mercy.
In consideration of this, the Servant of God John Paul II, valuing
the spiritual experience of a humble religious, St. Faustina Kowalska,
wanted the Sunday after Easter to be dedicated in a special way
to divine mercy, and providence disposed that he should die precisely
on the vigil of that day (in the hands of Divine Mercy).
The mystery of the merciful love of God was at the center of the
pontificate of my venerated predecessor. Let us recall, in particular,
the encyclical "Dives in Misericordia" of 1980, and the
dedication of the new shrine of Divine Mercy in Krakow, in 2002.
The words he pronounced on that last occasion were as a synthesis
of his magisterium, evidencing that devotion to Divine Mercy is
not a secondary, but an integral dimension of a Christian's faith
and prayer.
May Mary most holy, mother of the Church, whom we now address with
the Regina Caeli, obtain for all Christians to live in fullness
Sunday as the "week's Easter," relishing the beauty of
the encounter with the risen Lord and drinking from the source of
his merciful love, to be apostles of his peace.
[After praying the Regina Caeli, the
Pope greeted pilgrims in eight languages. In English, he said:]
I am happy to greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors
present for this Regina Caeli. Today's Gospel portrays the risen
Christ as the bearer of peace, granting the Church the power to
forgive sins. On this, the second Sunday of Easter and Divine Mercy
Sunday, may God's blessings of reconciliation and peace be with
you all!
Source: www.zenit.org
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| LIVES
OF THE SAINTS |
MAY 1
ST. JOSEPH THE WORKER
This is St. Joseph's second feast day on the Church calendar of celebrations. We honor him also on March 19. St. Joseph is a very important saint. 
MAY 2
ST. ATHANASIUS
St. Athanasius was born around 297 in Alexandria, Egypt. He devoted his life to proving that Jesus is truly God.
MAY 3
ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES
Both of these saints were part of the original group of Jesus' twelve apostles.
MAY 4
BLESSED MARIE-LEONIE PARADIS
Blessed Marie-Elodie Paradis was born in the village of L'Acadie in Quebec, Canada. It was May 12, 1840.
MAY 5
ST. JUDITH OF PRUSSIA
St. Judith lived in the thirteenth century. She was born in Thuringia. This was in what is now central Germany. She wanted to model her life on the example of St. Elizabeth of Hungary.
MAY 6
BLESSED FRANCOIS DE MONTMORENCY LAVAL
Blessed Francois was the first bishop of Quebec City, Canada. He was born in 1623 in a small town in France.
MAY 7
BLESSED ROSE VENERINI
Blessed Rose was born in Viterbo, Italy, in 1656. Her father was a physician. Rose entered the convent but returned home after a few months.
MAY 8
BLESSED CATHERINE OF ST. AUGUSTINE
St. Catherine was born on May 3, 1632, in a little village in France. She was baptized the same day.
MAY 9
BLESSED NICHOLAS ALBERGATI
Blessed Nicholas was born in Bologna, Italy. Nicholas' family could afford to send him to the university where he began to study law.
MAY 10
ST. ANTONINUS
St. Antoninus lived in the fifteenth century. Even as a boy he showed that he had good sense and will power.
MAY 11
ST. IGNATIUS OF LACONI
St. Ignatius was the son of a poor farmer in Laconi, Italy. He was born on December 17, 1701.
MAY 12
ST. NEREUS, ST. ACHILLEUS AND ST. PANCRAS
Sts. Nereus and Achilleus were Roman soldiers who died around 304. They were probably Praetorian guards under Emperor Trajan. We know little else about them.
MAY 13
ST. ANDREW FOURNET
St. Andrew Fournet was born on December 6, 1752. He was from Maille, a little town near Poitiers, in France. Andrew's parents were religious people.
MAY 14
ST. MATTHIAS
St. Matthias was one of Our Lord's seventy-two disciples.
MAY 15
ST. ISIDORE THE FARMER
Saint Isidore was born in 1070, in Madrid, Spain. His parents were deeply religious. They named their son after the great St. Isidore, archbishop of Seville, Spain.
MAY 16
ST. UBALD
St. Ubald lived in twelfth-century Italy. He was an orphan raised by his uncle, a bishop. Ubald was given a good education.
MAY 17
ST. PASCHAL BAYLON
St. Paschal, a Spanish saint, was born in 1540. From the time he was seven, he worked as a shepherd. He never had the opportunity to go to school.
MAY 18
ST. JOHN I
St. John I was a priest of Rome. He became pope after the death of Pope St. Hormisdas in 523. At that time, Italy's ruler, Theodoric the Goth, was an Arian.
MAY 19
ST. CELESTINE V
Peter di Morone was the eleventh of twelve children. He was born around 1210 in Isernia, Italy. His father died when he was small.
MAY 20
ST. BERNARDINE OF SIENA
St. Bernardine of Siena was born in 1380 in a town near Siena, Italy. He was the son of an Italian governor.
MAY 21
BLESSED EUGENE DE MAZENOD
Blessed Eugene was born in France in 1782. He became a priest in 1811. Father Eugene was sensitive to the needs of the poor and he ministered to them.
MAY 22
ST. RITA OF CASCIA
St. Rita was born in 1381 in a little Italian village. Her parents were older. They had begged God to send them a child. They brought Rita up well.
MAY 23
ST. JOHN BAPTIST ROSSI
St. John Baptist Rossi was born in 1698 in a village near Genoa, Italy. His family loved him. They were proud when a wealthy couple visiting their town offered to educate him. His parents knew the couple and trusted them.
MAY 24
ST. DAVID I OF SCOTLAND
St. David was born in 1080. He was the youngest son of St. Margaret, queen of Scotland, and her good husband, King Malcom.
MAY 25
VENERABLE BEDE
Venerable Bede, the English priest, was famous as a saint, a priest, a monk, a teacher and a writer of history. He was born in England in 673.
MAY 26
ST. PHILIP NERI
St. Philip Neri was born in Florence, Italy, in 1515. As a child, his nickname was "Good little Phil." He was always so jolly and friendly that everyone he met loved him.
MAY 27
ST. AUGUSTINE OF CANTERBURY
St. Augustine was the abbot of St. Andrew's monastery in Rome. Pope St. Gregory the Great chose him and forty other monks for a mission dear to his heart.
MAY 28
BLESSED MARGARET POLE
Blessed Margaret was born in 1471. She was the niece of two English kings, Edward IV and Richard III. Henry VII arranged her marriage to Sir Reginald Pole.
MAY 29
ST. MAXIMINIUS
St. Maximinius was a bishop who lived in the fourth century. It is believed that he was born in Poitiers, France. As a young man, he heard of a saintly bishop of Trier, in Gaul.
MAY 30
ST. JOAN OF ARC
St. Joan was born in 1412. Her hometown was Domremy, a little village in France. Jacques d'Arc, her father, was a hard working farmer.
MAY 31
THE VISITATION OF MARY
Visitation means "visit." The Archangel Gabriel told the Blessed Virgin Mary that her cousin Elizabeth was going to have a baby.
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PHOTO OF THE MONTH |
Tour
of the Relics of the Passion
(International Center
for Holy Relics)
www.HolyRelics.org
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| REFLECTIONS |
 “Jesus’
Baptism”
Why did Jesus, the sinless one sent from the Father in heaven,
submit himself to John’s baptism? John preached a
baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (Luke
3:3). In this humble submission we see a foreshadowing of
the “baptism” of Jesus bloody death upon the
cross. Jesus’ baptism is the acceptance and the beginning
of his mission as God’s suffering Servant (Isaiah
52:13-15; 53:1-12). He allowed himself to be numbered among
sinners. Jesus submitted himself entirely to his Father’s
will. Out of love he consented to this baptism of death
for the remission of our sins. Do you know the joy of trust
and submission to God?
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