Divine Mercy Novena-Day 2

Second Day

Today bring to Me the Souls of Priests and Religious and immerse them in My unfathomable mercy. It was they who gave Me strength to endure My bitter Passion. Through them as through channels My mercy flows out upon mankind.

Go here for instructions.

Spectator's at the Cross

"And the people stood by by, watching"
Luke 23:35

This is a poignant statement made by Luke in his gospel as to what the people of Jesus' time did as they followed him to Calvary and then to his crucifixion.

We spent our Good Friday at a parish that once served the Irish immigrants and now serves the Hispanic and Asian communities that have come into this country. A somber yet festive recreation of the Passion of Jesus with the Stations of the Cross that led us out of the compound of the parish and into the streets of one of the more crime heavy areas of the city. A slow moving procession of about three hundred souls chanting: "Lord have mercy on your people!"as Jesus carrying his cross went through the streets being beaten by Roman soldiers as though he were a beast carrying a load for them--of course he was carrying the load of our sins on that cross!

Along the way the people of the neighborhood gathered at their doors--people of all types, some scantily clad (it was close to 80 degrees--summer like here), some on cell phones :"and they watched"--and of course I too "watched"--they the recreation of the passion in their streets, me the ongoing passion that no doubt is being lived in their lives.

God save us all, we who watch as your Son is crucified. We who stand by as He passes through our streets, offering us mercy that we dare not rise up to receive. We who receive that mercy and do not reach out to share it with those in need.

The local media records the event:



Photo by Cathie Rowland

The Ninth Station of the Cross

The Crucifixion
by Michael O'Brien

From The Way of the Cross celebrated by the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI, composed by Archbishop Angelo Comastri, © Copyright 2006 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana:

As Pascal insightfully observed:
“Jesus will be in agony until the end of the world;
and we cannot sleep during this time”.[1]

Where is Jesus in agony in our own time?
In the division of our world into belts of prosperity
and belts of poverty ... this is Christ’s agony today.
Our world is made of two rooms:
in one room, things go to waste,
in the other, people are wasting away;
in one room, people die from surfeit,
in the other, they die from indigence;
in one room, they are concerned about obesity,
in the other, they are begging for charity.

Why don’t we open a door?
Why don’t we sit at one table?
Why don’t we realize that the poor
can help the rich?
Why? Why? Why are we so blind?

Good Friday

The Crucifixion
by Michael O'Brien

Divine Mercy Novena-Day 1

First Day

"Today bring to Me All Mankind, especially all sinners and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy. In this way you will console Me in the bitter grief into which the loss of souls plunges Me."

Go here for instructions.

Kung--Expect Big Surprises from Pope

From Ansa Italy:

But, in an article which appeared in Italian daily La Stampa on Thursday, he seemed convinced that change would come, referring confidently to "the surprises of a conservative" .

"He is the supreme shepherd who proceeds with slow, small steps. He takes his time and prefers to promote small changes which trigger other bigger ones," he said. When Benedict was elected a year ago, Kung described the cardinals' choice as a "huge disappointment". But he also said he would suspend judgment and wait to see what the new pontiff did .

Holy Thursday

Christ in Gethsemane
by Michael O'Brien