Divine Mercy: The Heart of the Gospel

John Paul II: The Mercy Pope 53 Lord, for He is merciful.” April 10, 1994: Second Sunday o f Easter, Regina Caeli Address: What is mercy if not the boundless love o f God, who con­ fronted with human sin, restrains the sentiment o f severe justice and, allowing Himself to be moved by the wretchedness o f His creatures, spurs Himself to the total gift o f self, in the Son’s cross? “O happy fault... which gained for us so great a Redeemer!” (Easter Proclamation). Who can say he is free from sin and does not need God’s mercy? As people o f this restless time of ours, wavering between the emptiness o f self-exaltation and the humiliation o f despair, we have a greater need than ever f o r a regenerating experience o f mercy (April 10, 1994, emphasis added). In this address John Paul II makes strong appeal for an experience o f Mercy that is regenerating. This means we need a revival of God’s life within us. Then in the following year, again on Mercy Sunday, he makes another strong appeal to personally experience the tender Mercy o f the Father. April 23, 1995: Pope John Paul II celebrates Divine Mercy Sunday in Holy Spirit Church, the Shrine o f Divine Mercy in Rome (. L ’Osservatore Romano, English Edition, April 26, 1995). In his homily he challenges us to “trust in the Lord and be Apostles of Divine Mercy.” In his Regina Caeli address, he speaks o f this Octave o f Easter as one day and this Sunday as the day o f thanksgiving for God’s Mercy, called the Sunday o f Divine Mercy: Dear brothers and sisters, we must personally experience this [tender-hearted mercy o f the father] if, in turn, we want to be capa­ ble o f mercy. Let us learn to forgive! The spiral o f hatred and vio­ lence which stains with blood the path o f so many individuals and nations can only be broken by the miracle o f forgiveness. (Italics in the text) Here we have one o f the great exhortations o f the Mercy Pope call­ ing us to personally experience the Mercy o f God that revives us and makes it possible for us to forgive.