Second Sunday of Easter

Today we celebrate the Second Sunday of Easter which is called Divine Mercy Sunday!   In our Gospel today we have the familiar story of Thomas who needed proof that the apostles had seen the Risen Christ.  He was the sort of man who needed to see the marks of nails in Jesus’s hands and put his fingers right into the wound in His side before he could believe that Christ had risen from the dead. When the other disciples told Thomas, “We have seen the Lord.”  He could not trust their tale. He could not be convinced.

Thomas believed after he had seen, after he had experienced the Risen Christ.  Our faith is one that is an experiential one.  Each one of us is given many different opportunities to experience our faith.  It is truly a matter of the heart.  We develop our relationship with God over our lifetime.  We do not have it all together at a certain point.  For each Christian the journey is unique.

As we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday we ritualize one of God’s greatest gifts – mercy. To understand mercy is to look into the depths of the heart of God and see His great love for each one of us. It is to know that there is nothing that any one of us could do that would make God love us any less or any more. To understand mercy is to allow ourselves to be loved right where we are, right as we are.  Take some time today to reflect on God’s great mercy and love.  Are you able to accept and respond to God’s abundant love for you?