Suy Niệm Chúa Nhật Thứ Hai Phục Sinh – Chúa Nhật Kính Lòng Thương Xót

Suy Niệm Chúa Nhật Thứ Hai Phục Sinh – Chúa Nhật Kính Lòng Thương Xót”
  Hôm nay Chúa Nhật Thứ Hai Phục sinh cũng là ngày mà Giáo Hoàng Gioan Phaolồ II đã đề nghị cả Giáo hội mừng Lễ Lòng Chúa Thương Xót. Khi Chúa Giêsu khi hiện ra với Nữ Tu Faustina Kowalska người Balan ở đầu thế kỷ 21, Ngài đã đã nói với vị nữ tu này hãy nên quảng bá lòng Thương Xót của Chúa, và năm 2000 Giáo Hoàng Gioan Phaolồ 2 đã dùng ngày Chúa Nhật thứ Hai sau Chúa Phục sinh để kính nhớ Lòng Thương Xót Chúa cách riêng. "Ta muốn hình ảnh Lòng Thương xót được trang trọng dâng kính  vào ngày chủ nhật đầu tiên sau lễ Phục Sinh và ta muốn Lòng Thương Xót của ta  được tôn kính công khai để mọi linh hồn sẽ được biết đến."
            Chúng ta tôn kính và cầu xin cho lòng thương xót của Thiên Chúa. Lòng Thương Xót được ban cho chúng ta qua sự Thương Khó, Cái Chết và sự Phục Sinh của Chúa Kitô. Thiên Chúa luôn sẵn sàng để mở rộng lòng thương xót của Ngài cho bất cứ những ai cầu xin Chúa. 
Chúng ta cũng  nhận ra cái giá của Lòng Thương Xót mà Chúa trả cho tội lỗi của chúng ta qua cây Thập Giá. Lòng thương xót của Thiên Chúa  đã sắp sẵn cho chúng ta tất cả  thời gian, 24 giờ một ngày, 365 ngày mỗi năm. Phía dưới cùng tấm ảnh của Lòng Chúa Thương Xót đã tỏ lộ ra cho Thánh Faustina là những lời, "Lạy Chúa Giêsu, con xin tín thác."  Đây là những gì đó mà chúng ta không thể  làm được. 
Trong cuộc sống hàng ngày của chúng ta. Chúng ta có xu hướng tin tưởng vào chính bản thân của chúng ta, hay tin vào người khác và thậm chí con tin cả vào tiền của, vật chất hơn là chúng ta tin vào Thiên Chúa.  Thật là buồn khi chúng ta xem nhẹ những lời hứa của Thiên Chúa về sự tha thứ và lòng thương xót, cũng như về cuộc sống vĩnh cửu với Ngài trên thiên đàng. Nhiều người trong chúng ta vẫn còn thiếu đức tin nơi Thiên Chúa. 
Trong bài  Tin Mừng, chúng ta nghe ông Tôma tuyên bố, "Nếu tôi không thấy dấu đinh ở tay Người, nếu tôi không xỏ ngón tay vào lỗ đinh và không đặt bàn tay vào cạnh sườn Người, tôi chẳng có tin". ^{(Jn 20:26)}  
Với lòng Thương Xót của Ngài, Chúa Kitô đã hiện ra một lần nữa với các môn đệ và có cả ông Thôma: "Ðặt ngón tay vào đây, và hãy nhìn xem tay Thầy. Ðưa tay ra mà đặt vào cạnh sườn Thầy. Ðừng cứng lòng nữa, nhưng hãy tin". ^{(Jn 20:28)}Ông Thôma đã  'thú nhận, "Lạy Chúa của con, lạy Thiên Chúa của con!" ^(Jn.20:29) " 
Chúa Giêsu nói với tất cả chúng ta, "Phước cho những ai đã không thấy mà tin".
Chúng ta thấy và sống trong “lòng thương xót” và sự tha thứ của Thiên Chúa trong Bí tích Hòa Giải. Vào Chiều Chúa Nhật Phục Sinh Chúa Giêsu đã hiện ra với các môn đệ của Ngài và nói: "Anh em hãy nhận lấy Thánh Thần⁾ Anh em tha tội cho ai, thì người ấy được tha; anh em cầm giữ ai, thì người ấy bị cầm giữ" (Jn 20: 22 b - 23) Tội lỗi của chúng ta, với sự  ăn năn và thống hối qua Bí Tích Hoà giải, chúng ta được tha thứ mà Chúa Kitô qua Giáo hội ban cho các linh mục được đặc quyền đó, giống như Ngài đã hứa với các môn đệ vào Chúa Nhật Phục Sinh.
       Chúa đòi hỏi chúng ta phải tin tưởng vào lời Giáo Huấn và những lời hứa của Thiên Chúa. Mặc dù chúng ta không có gì để chứng minh, nhưng chúng ta tin tưởng vào lời Chúa vì Chúa Kitô đã nói như vậy: chúng ta nhìn vào Chúa Giêsu với Lòng Chúa Thương Xót và nói trong đức tin, "Lạy Chúa Giêsu, chúng con tín thác nơi Ngài."  Tình yêu vô điều kiện của Thiên Chúa, Lòng Thương Xót của Ngài, được đưa ra, và luôn luôn sẵn sàng và chờ đón chúng ta đến với Lòng Chúa Thương Xót đó.  
Một trong những tội mà không thể tha thứ được đó là khi chúng ta tự nghĩ rằng tội lỗi của chúng ta quá lớn so với lòng thương xót của Thiên Chúa: như Giuđa đã phản bội Chúa Giêsu và đã mất linh hồn vì  đã không tin tưởng vào lòng thương xót của Chúa. Nhưng ngược lại, còn Phêrô mặc dù đã chối Chúa ba lần, nhưng ông biết ăn năn và được tha thứ vi ông biết phó thác vào lòng Thương Xót của Chúa.    
Qua các dụ ngôn người con hoang đàng, Chúa Chiên Lành và đồng tiền bị mất là tất cả những bảo đảm cho chúng ta thấy rõ được Lòng Thương Xót của Thiên Chúa: "Lạy Chúa Giêsu, con xin tín thác nơi Chúa."
 
Reflection 2^nd Sunday of Easter
Today, the Octave of Easter Sunday, the Church celebrates Divine Mercy Sunday. From instructions in apparitions of the Jesus to Polish nun St. Faustina Kowalska (1905 - 1938), St. Pope John Paul II designated the Octave of Easter as Sunday of the Divine Mercy in 2000: "I want the image solemnly blessed on the first Sunday after Easter and I want it to be venerated publicly so that every soul will know about it." 
     We honor and beg for God's mercy.  Mercy is given to us through the passion, death and resurrection of Christ.  God is ready to extend his mercy to anyone who asks. We recognize the cost of mercy: it comes at the cost of the Cross.
     God's mercy is available to us all the time, 24 hours a day, 365 days each year.  At the bottom of the picture of Divine Mercy revealed to St. Faustina are the words, "Jesus, I trust in you."  This is something we do not do very well. In daily life we tend to trust more in ourselves, in other people and even in money and material things than we do in God. This is sad when we consider the promises God has made to us about forgiveness and mercy, about eternal life with him in heaven.
     The problem for many of us is our lack of faith in God. In our Gospel reading we hear Thomas, "Until I have seen in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."  In his mercy Christ appears again to his disciples with Thomas present, "Put your finger here and see my hands; stretch your hand and put it in my side. Resist no longer and be a believer." At Thomas' confession, "You are my Lord and my God," Jesus speaks to all of us, " Happy are those who have not seen and believe."
     We see and live God's mercy and forgiveness in the Sacrament of Penance. On Easter Sunday evening at Jesus' appearance to his disciples he said, "Receive the Holy Spirit; for those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained." (Jn 20: 22b - 23) Our sins, repented and confessed in the Sacrament of Penance, are forgiven by Christ through the Church and its authorized priest, just as he had promised to his disciples on Easter Sunday.
     The Lord asks us to trust in his word and his promises.  We do not have proof but we believe and trust because Christ said so: we look at Jesus of the Divine Mercy and say in faith, "Jesus, I trust in you."
     The unconditional love of God, his Divine Mercy, is given, always available and waiting for us. The one unforgivable sin is to think that our sin is too great for the mercy of God: Judas who betrayed Jesus did not trust in his mercy; Peter denied Jesus three times, repented and was forgiven.
     The parables of the Prodigal Son, the Good Shepherd and the lost coin are all assurances of God's Divine Mercy: "Jesus, I trust in you."
 
Sunday of the Second Week of Easter B 2024
“My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity. Everything that exists has come forth from the very depths of My most tender mercy. Every soul in its relation to Me will contemplate My love and mercy throughout eternity. The Feast of Mercy emerged from My very depths of tenderness. It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the First Sunday after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy” (Diary #699).
What will it be like to contemplate the love and mercy of God for all eternity? To some, this might not at first seem that appealing. Won’t it become boring if all we do for all eternity is contemplate God’s mercy? If that is a question that resonates with you, then the reason this idea initially lacks appeal is because you cannot fathom how fulfilling and glorious this will be. Jesus said, “My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity.”
God willed that this Sunday, the eighth day of the Octave of Easter, be celebrated as the Feast of Mercy. By placing this Feast on the last day of the Octave of Easter, God is telling us that the message of this Feast reveals the ultimate purpose of our lives. Easter is the culmination of the perfect plan of redemption. And Divine Mercy Sunday is the culmination of that perfect plan. Therefore, nothing is more important than trying to understand the message this Feast presents.
By analogy, if you were given a new car but never drove it, the car would be of no use. Or if you won the lottery and the money simply sat in your account unused, what’s the benefit? Or if you were gravely ill and were given a medicine that would cure that illness but you never took it, then you would remain ill. So also, if we believe in the death and resurrection of Jesus, but never allow the Mercy that is given by that act to transform us, then we have missed the point. The Divine Mercy is the point of life. It’s the only thing worth seeking. It’s the only source of satisfaction and fulfillment. It’s the only cure for our ills. It’s the only source of true riches. In three short words: It Is Everything!
When Jesus says that our eternity will be spent contemplating His Mercy, He doesn’t only mean that this is something we will do after we die. True, the fullness of the revelation of His Mercy will be set before us when we enter into the Beatific Vision and contemplate God forever. But “eternity” includes today. It includes the here and now. Therefore, our contemplation of The Divine Mercy must be the single most important goal in our life today. When it is, everything else in life will fall into place in support of this goal.
In order to make the contemplation of The Divine Mercy the most important goal of your life, you must begin to understand it. That’s why we were given this special day, this most solemn Feast of Mercy. Therefore, use this day as an opportunity to deepen your contemplation of this Gift. Begin by reading about God’s Mercy as it was revealed to us through Saint Faustina. Try to spend time reading Jesus’ words, His explanations, descriptions and revelations about His Mercy. As you do, if you find that it remains incomprehensible, don’t worry. It is incomprehensible! However, since Jesus promised us that our eternity would be spent in contemplation of His Mercy, then we must believe that the more deeply we enter into that contemplation now, the more glorious our lives will become. If we can truly taste of this Mercy, gain a small glimpse of its grandeur, and comprehend even a small aspect of its meaning, then we will truly find much satisfaction in this endeavor.
Reflect, today, upon The Divine Mercy. As you do, humble yourself through prayer by admitting to God and to yourself that His Mercy is beyond what you will ever comprehend. Do this in prayer. Reading about God’s Mercy is important, but it will only be through prayer that we begin our contemplation. And it will only be through this contemplation that we will begin to live the central purpose of our lives.
Glorious Divine Mercy, pour down upon me; open my mind to Your depth and breadth. Help me to begin to contemplate You in Your fullness so that I can begin my eternity with You now. My loving Savior, You have revealed so much about Your Mercy. May I not only learn about this Gift but also receive it into my life. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Sunday of the Second Week of Easter B 2024
Opening Prayer: Lord God, I truly desire eternal life in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ. As I make my way through this passing world, keep my eyes fixed on heaven so that I may be an instrument of your merciful love. I believe, Lord, help my unbelief!
Encountering the Word of God
Wounds of Love: In the Gospel, John tells us about the first and second appearances of the risen Jesus. The first appearance took place on Sunday, the day of the Resurrection. The second also took place on Sunday, exactly one week later. For some reason, Thomas the Apostle was not present at the first appearance and said that he would not believe until he saw the risen Jesus and verified the wounds of his passion. Because of this, Thomas is called “doubting Thomas.” But, in truth, all of the apostles, except maybe for John, were slow to believe or doubted. In fact, the Gospel of Mark tells us that Jesus rebuked the eleven for their unbelief. The Eleven didn’t believe Mary Magdalene when she told them that she had seen the risen Lord. And, although some disciples believed that Jesus had appeared to Simon Peter (Luke 24:33-35), some of the other disciples didn’t believe the two disciples who met Jesus on the way to Emmaus and recognized him in the breaking of the bread (Mark 16:12-13). Thomas does not believe until he sees what the other apostles and disciples saw. When Jesus appears for the second time, Jesus shows his hands and his side to Thomas and invites him to verify his wounds. This is important because the body of the risen Christ was different. Showing the nail holes and the opened side gives evidence of continuity. The risen Jesus is different but is the same person who was with them during his public ministry. The fact that the glorified body of the risen Jesus still bears the wounds of his crucifixion is a testimony to the depth of his love for us.
Two Gifts: When Jesus appears to his disciples, he gives them two gifts. The first is the gift of peace, which is a fruit of the New Covenant. At every eucharistic celebration, we recall this peace right before communion: “Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your apostles: peace I leave you, my peace I give you; look not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church, and graciously grant her peace and unity in accordance with your will.” Through faith and Baptism we enter into the New Covenant with Jesus and are reconciled with God. The second gift the risen Jesus gives his disciples is the gift of the Holy Spirit and the authority to forgive sins. The Holy Spirit will guide the apostles to the fullness of truth about Jesus and his saving work. Jesus’ work of salvation is continued in the Church and in her Sacraments. Through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we are reconciled with God again and the Church is renewed in holiness.
True Solidarity in the Early Christian Community: In the First Reading, we see the effects of Jesus’ gifts. The early Church was of one heart and mind. They lived in peace and harmony and shared their wealth and possessions with each other. This is true solidarity. Those who had shared generously with those in the community who were in need. No one was selfish but took on the care of their brothers and sisters, especially those in need.
 Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, pour out your gifts of peace and the Holy Spirit into my heart. Fill me with your love and charity so that I may care for my brothers and sisters in need today. Inspire me to be generous and use my time and resources well.
 Living the Word of God: Seeing the Apostle Thomas overcome his doubt with great faith comforts us in our insecurity. The words Jesus addresses to Thomas remind us of the true meaning of mature faith and encourage us to persevere in our journey of faith. Are there any doubts I need to overcome in my life of faith? Has my faith been rocked or weakened by the sins and crimes of members of the Church’s hierarchy? How is God calling me today to deepen in my faith and work to eradicate evil from our society and the Church?