His mercy is our joy (Sunday homily)

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday, which completes the Easter Octave.
As you’ve heard me say before, for us as Christians,
The resurrection of our Lord Jesus
is such a HUGE reality to celebrate, that one day is just not enough;
So the Church creates a special eight-day “day.”
That’s what an “octave” is, and it’s what the past week has been.

It reminds me of an old newspaper I saw last week, from August, 1945:
the headline blared, “Japan surrenders!”; it was the end of World War II.
A little lower it said, “today and tomorrow are national holidays.”
It’s the same idea.

You and I know this is the weirdest Easter we’ve known, but so be it.
Honestly, I’m getting tired of talking about
the you-know-what that has turned everything upside down.

I’m tired of giving that virus so much attention!
I want to talk about Jesus!
I want to talk about his victory over death!
About his power over everything!

And I don’t know about you,
but I’m tired of being moody and disoriented.
What happened when Jesus appeared to the Apostles?
They were moody and disoriented, and what did he say?
“Peace!” “Peace be with you!”

Ever since I was a boy, I’ve heard this reading, and wondered:
What was it like for Thomas to be invited
to put his hands into the nail marks, into the wounded side, of Jesus?
Did Thomas actually do it, as Jesus welcomed him to do?
Or maybe, once Thomas saw Jesus, he no longer needed that.
But for me, the thought of actually putting my hand there,
and feeling those wounds endured by my Lord and Savior,
has always been the most wonderfully consoling thought.

No matter what sins I dread, no matter what cares keep me awake,
to have Jesus say, “Bring your hand there,”
Gives me peace, and he wants it to give you peace, too.

Do you realize that Jesus is talking about you and me in this Gospel?
You didn’t know you were mentioned in the Bible? But you are!
He says, “blessed are those who do not see, and yet believe.”
That is you. That is me. We are even more blessed than Thomas!
How wonderful, how peace-giving, that is!

So we celebrate Jesus’ boundless mercy today.
Of course that is about forgiving sins,
and opening the gates of heaven to each of us, and all who believe.
But his mercy goes beyond that: “his mercy endures forever”!

So no matter what happens in all this mess,
In the ways that really matter, we will be all right.

If the entire world turned upside-down –
I mean, literally upside down –
Jesus is still Lord, he is in charge,
because he is the only one who can take the earth and flip it.
 
This coming Saturday, something wonderful,
something we’ve all looked forward to, will happen in Cincinnati.
Our own Elijah Puthoff will be ordained a deacon by the Archbishop.

Now, of course our original plan was to transport
half of Shelby and Darke counties down to Cincinnati for that.
And now, bummer, that’s not possible.
But he is still going to be ordained, and in a week,
we’ll all see him dressed as a deacon for the first time.
Maybe I’ll talk him into giving us a homily sometime soon.

I know the rest of the Puthoff and Richard families
are not letting anything dim their happiness,
and that’s good advice for you and me.

Normally we would be gathering in church this afternoon
to observe Divine Mercy Sunday, but we can’t this year together.
Obviously, we should not all show up at 3 pm at church.

But we will have four hours of Exposition this morning,
outside St. Remy Hall, just as we’ve been doing,
and will keep doing, during this lock-down.
You and I know that nothing blocks Jesus;
so we don’t have to be all in the same place at the same time,
to ask for, and to receive, and to give thanks for, Jesus’ Divine Mercy.

Jesus and his mercy is everywhere, for all; and what did he say?
“His mercy endures forever.” Amen!