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My Homily for Divine Mercy Sunday 2008

Of all of the words that the Lord Jesus speaks – after His holy resurrection, he always begins with peace! Peace be with you…

But in our world, we hear about peace from environmentalists, rock stars, Miss America, and the president – but the peace they’re talking about is, really and truly, meaningless. They’re talking about the end to this or that war. They’re talking about global warming or the end of animal testing or some warm and fuzzy idea of a world where everyone just loves everyone else… But we know that when Adam and eve sinned, this world was damaged by original sin and will forever be stained by sin.

The kind of peace John Lennon sang about is not true peace… My spiritual director used to say “these people talk about peace as if they want God to be some kind of cosmic teddy bear passing out lolly pops. ” But we know that God is not a teddy bear, God is a man who died a bloody and torturous death so that we might be saved – not from this world, but for the next.

True peace is the security that comes from the sure and certain trust that God’s mercy will protect us from harm. It’s the Christian Hope that reminds me that God can bring good from any situation and that, if I follow Him humbly, I can be saved. True peace is the freedom from fear and the freedom from slavery to sin and to the human condition. True peace is a fruit that grows in the heart of every true Christian disciple.

Just like the flowers are in bloom right now, we judge the quality and health of that tree or bush by the fruit it produces… That fruit might be a rose, a lilly, an orange or an apple… The same is true of our Christian lives… St. Paul says the fruit of the spirit is love , peace, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, and many more. If we are living the Christian life, these will grow within us as a result. They are the sign of health.

The true peace that we all long for – that security, trust, hope, and rest – come from the Christian life and the Christian life is no more complicated that prayer and virtue.

Practically, there are three things to think about on this Divine Mercy Sunday…

First, knowledge… We have to know how to pray and we have to know right from wrong… If I don’t know those things, than I need to find out. Call the priest, read the Catechism and the scriptures… Find out at any cost… so first, knowledge

Second, we’ve got to keep ourselves from temptations. Our Lord says if our eye causes us to sin, throw it out… We’ve got to keep ourselves away from the near occasions of sin.

Finally, we’ve got to surround ourselves with virtue and with holiness. Christian images, the lives of the saints, faithful Christian friends…

In the end, peace is not holding up two fingers, it’s not wishful thinking, and it’s not a pipe dream, it’s a free gift of God to those who want to let Jesus be the Messiah and who want as share in his resurrection. When the soldier’s lance pierced Our Lord’s heart, blood and water flowed out – mercy and salvation – free, but not cheap… Let us make every effort to make this gift our heart’s cry and our lives work… Alleluia!