Pastor's Corner, April 19, 2015

Dear Parishioners and Friends,

Last week Pope Francis announced that starting December 8, 2015 (Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception) and ending on November 20, 2016 (Solemnity of Christ the King) the universal Church will celebrate an Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy.

The Holy Father outlined three main reasons for such a special year: “A year in which to be touched by the Lord Jesus and to be transformed by his mercy, so that we may become witnesses to mercy.”

With the Papal Bull Misericordiae Vultus (“The Face of Mercy”) Pope Francis provides us with a beautiful summary of the biblical revelation about the mercy of God, tracing this aspect of divine love throughout the history of Israel and culminating in the ministry, passion and death of Jesus Christ. As the Pope points out, “the signs he [Jesus] works, especially in the face of sinners, the poor, the marginalized, the sick, and the suffering, are all meant to teach mercy. Everything in him speaks of mercy” (8).

Our prayer for this year is that the Church and all her members will be living beacons of mercy, giving testimony to the mercy that is ours in Christ Jesus. As Pope Francis puts it, “May she never tire of extending mercy, and be ever patient in offering compassion and comfort” (25).

In Christ,

Msgr. Baker