Praised be Jesus Christ! We celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, formerly known as “low Sunday.” Maybe you’ve been praying the beautiful novena that began on Good Friday or will be attending one of the Divine Mercy devotions offered in the area. Christ the King is hosting Divine Mercy from 1:00 until 3:00 p.m. and you’re of course invited to attend. For those who are not sure about this devotion, the Diary of Saint Faustina can be summarized by the phrase “Jesus, I trust in You.” I read the Diary during Lent in 2006 and I barely finished just before the Easter Vigil. It is a long book but very instructive in how Jesus generously reaches out to heal a broken world. The main vice of the 20th century, according to Saint Maximilian Kolbe, was indifference. One might rightly claim that the dominant vice so far for the 21st century is ignorance. For example, most do not recognize the frailty of the human condition and sadly turn to material things to numb the pain. It’s interesting to note the countless painkillers available at the omnipresent Walgreens which can be found in every town and seemingly on every corner of the bigger cities. Truly we are afraid of suffering and the world does all it can to assure us that we don’t have to. But that is not the Gospel that Jesus preached and certainly not the message conveyed to the world through St. Faustina. Her testimony reveals a God who is intimately aware of the hurts we carry and He wants to help us find redemption in offering them to Him. I think of all the pain I hear in the confessional and in counseling people and I hope I’ve been able to teach people the old tradition of “offering it up” to Jesus. So many times in our lives suffering leads us away from God because we wonder if He cares and why He’s not doing anything to help us. The offertory during Mass is when the gifts are brought to be sacrificed to the Lord and we naturally think of water, wine, hosts, and money. But there is nothing more valuable to God than our suffering. If we could lay our pain on the altar with the bread and wine, it would slowly but surely be turned into something spiritually fruitful. It is sad to hear, for example, that people going through a divorce feel ashamed and no longer feel worthy of coming to Mass. Their pain is visible to God and He wants them to unite it to His Son’s sacrifice on the altar so that He can heal them by giving them the grace of forgiveness. The crucifix is a constant reminder that we were saved by suffering; Archbishop Fulton Sheen frequently lamented that so much suffering is wasted because it is not given to God through prayer and trust in the Lord. Divine Mercy is a feast that calls us to lay our broken hearts on the altar with the firm belief that God can heal them and that we too shall rise again. You can be a part of this by being vulnerable yourself and by inviting people who are hurting in any way to come and put their trust in Jesus. Especially for the hurts that bring ongoing shame, such as any kind of abuse, addiction to pornography, alcohol or drugs, and unforgiveness – these are the hurts that lead to the deepest darkness. As the senior quote I saw years ago in a yearbook put it, “If in life you reach a hopeless end, turn to God and you’ll have an endless hope.”
Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world! Your friend in Christ, Father Martin
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MASS SCHEDULE
Tuesday - Friday: 8:00 AM Saturday: 4:00 PM Sunday: 8:00 AM & 10:00 AM RECONCILIATION
Saturday: 3:15 - 3:45 PM OFFICE HOURS
Monday - Thursday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM Friday: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM Stay Connected with Our ParishWelcome from Our PastorWelcome to Christ the King Catholic Church! Ever since 1938 this parish has been assisting souls in their quest for deeper union with God. Our mission statement is essentially found in the stained glass window above the main altar: “For Christ our King.” Insofar as God made us and we belong to Him, we have come to... Read More
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