A few years ago, my family traveled to Toronto area to see the Niagara Falls. For those who have seen it, no words can truly capture how awesome it is. The first thing you hear as you approach the falls is the sound. It’s a constant roaring sound that you feel even inside the car. We got the full effect of the power of the Niagara Falls by taking a boat tour at the bottom of the falls. Ours was called ‘The Maiden of the Mist.’ Although they give you a poncho to wear, it’s no use when your boat approaches near the falls. Everyone will be drenched with poncho or without. They estimate that approximately 35 million gallons of water flows per minute. Put in liters, that’s 2 trillion liters of water per hour; or that’s like pouring 1 trillion 2-liter bottles of coke in an hour. It’s a mind-boggling quantity of water.
It’s also mind-boggling to think about how infinite God’s mercy is. If we think that Niagara Falls is awesome, it is many more times awesome to imagine the depth, breadth, and quantity of God’s infinite mercy. In John’s Gospel, a Roman soldier pierced the side of Jesus on the Cross and water and blood immediately flowed. The Church sees this as the overflowing love of Our Lord for humanity. And the Church specially designated the Second Sunday of Easter to celebrate this overflowing love and mercy of God. On the Second Sunday of Easter of the Jubilee Year 2000, at the Mass for the canonization of St. Faustina Kowalska, Pope John Paul II proclaimed to the world that “from now on throughout the Church this Sunday will be called Divine Mercy Sunday.”
Many of you may be familiar with the Divine Mercy Chaplet. The opening prayer to the chaplet is as follows:
"You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls, and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of Mercy for us, I trust in You!" This chaplet highlights what dramatic change happened to the world between the Good Friday and Easter Sunday. As the prayer says, ocean of mercy was opened up for the whole world. Just like we cannot grasp how tremendous the quantity of water that flows from Niagara Falls, we also cannot grasp how vast and deep God’s ocean of mercy is. When the Roman soldier pierced the side, what was visible was a small stream of blood and water. But what has actually happened was Niagara Falls of God’s love overflowing from the side of Jesus upon those who ask. We cannot not see, measure, or take a photo of God’s mercy flowing upon us. This is the same way that Thomas tried to ‘see’ Jesus in today’s gospel. When other disciples told Thomas that Jesus has appeared to them, Thomas did not believe them. He said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” For many of us, doubt is our starting point of faith. But it cannot remain there. We are missing the grandeur of God’s mercy overflowing like Niagara Falls into our lives.
Do you remember in 1981 when Mehmet Ali Ağca shot Pope John Paul II in the Vatican City? You may also remember that after recovering, John Paul II visited Ali Agca in prison. The Pope’s secretary, now Cardinal Dziwisz, recently published a memoir. In it the Cardinal said that the gunman did not ask for forgiveness on that visit, but wanted only to know: “So why aren’t you dead?” Sadly, many ask the same question about Jesus. “Jesus, why aren’t you dead?” It’s like saying, “Okay resurrection happened. So what?” In asking this question, they miss the real message of the resurrection—that God has poured his infinite love and mercy through the pierced side of His Son. Since we are so deaf to His message of mercy, God has sent apostles of mercy to our generation, namely St. Faustina Kowalska. The following is what the Lord told St. Faustina.
“My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners. If only they could understand that I am the best of Fathers to them and that it is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. ... I desire to bestow My graces upon souls, but they do not want to accept them. (367)
Pray for souls that they be not afraid to approach the tribunal of My mercy. Do not grow weary of praying for sinners. You know what a burden their souls are to My heart. Relieve My deathly sorrow; dispense My mercy.” (975)
Ask for His Mercy. He is more generous than we can imagine. Then teach this message of mercy to our family, friends, and co-workers. And finally, live this message of mercy so people can see God’s mercy working in our lives.
(given at St. Stephens, New Orleans)
