From the first sentence of the Bull of Indiction ("Jesus Christ is the face of the Father's mercy.") I was entranced by the pope's vision for this year. This is the first jubilee which is not tied to the every-25-year pattern (or to anniversaries of the death and resurrection of Christ, as celebrated in 1933 and 1983).
This special year will begin on Tuesday, December 8, 2015, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, and run until Sunday, November 20, 2016, the Solemnity of Christ the King. With this starting date, the pope is not only honoring Mary, he is reminding the church about the Second Vatican Council, which ended on that date 50 years earlier. On that day Pope Francis will open a "Holy Door of Mercy" at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. But this Jubilee Year is different. The pope wants all Catholics, and Christians everywhere, to do works of mercy locally. So in another first the pope asks every local bishop to also have a "Holy Door of Mercy" opened in their cathedral. Bishop David Zubik will ceremonially open this door at St. Paul Cathedral, Oakland, on Sunday, December 13, with a Mass at 2:30 p.m.
Second, the pope is calling for all of us to carry out corporal and spiritual works of mercy.
The corporal works of mercy:
- feed the hungry
- give drink to the thirsty
- clothe the naked
- welcome the stranger
- heal the sick
- visit the imprisoned
- bury the dead
The spiritual works of mercy:
- counsel the doubtful
- instruct the ignorant
- admonish sinners
- comfort the afflicted
- forgive offences
- bear patiently those who do us ill
- pray for the living and the dead
Each of us, in our own ways, can perform these works of mercy in our families, neighborhoods and parishes.
Third, the pope suggests that we carry out pilgrimages. No necessarily to faraway places, like Rome or the Holy Land or Marian shrines such as Fatima (Portugal) or Guadalupe (Mexico), but locally. It's certainly possible to visit another church other than your own parish. In our neck of the woods, these are beautiful and nearby buildings: St. Paul Cathedral, Pittsburgh; St. Paul, Butler; St. Ferdinand, Cranberry; St. Anthony Chapel (where there are 5,000 relics of saints), Troy Hill/North Side; Sacred Heart, Shadyside; St. Mary of Mercy, Downtown Pittsburgh. Outside of our diocese there are St. Columba Cathedral and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel basilica in Youngstown, and St. Joseph Cathedral in Wheeling.
In this year of mercy the pope urges all to receive the sacrament of confession (reconciliation). Certainly our parishes offer many opportunities to receive this sacrament, whether on the weekends at regularly scheduled times or penance services with individual confession during the seasons of Advent and Lent. We priests are also happy to hear any confession of a person who is home-bound, in a nursing facility or hospital at a time beneficial to them.
Another new wrinkle the pope proposes is sending out "missionaries of mercy." These are papally designated priests known for the preaching skills and compassionate embrace of mercy. Nobody is real sure how these are designated or what ministry they will carry out, but they are to be sent out in Lent 2016.
Most of all this Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy give all of us encouragement to reflect on how important mercy is in the ministry of Jesus. We can reflect on these bible passages: Psalm 136 ("For his mercy endures forever"); Luke 15:1-32 (parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the loving father with two sons); Matthew 18:22 ("forgive 70 times seven times"); and 1 John 4:8 ("God is love"). As disciples of Jesus, we are asked to examine our consciences to see how we can grow in being merciful to ourselves, to others, and to the structures and cultures of our times.
Let me invite you to go on the Vatican's special website ( www.im.va ) for the Jubilee Year of Mercy resources. Here you can read the papal bull "Misericordiae Vultus," which is truly rich spiritual reading from the pope. Pray that all of us can be "merciful like our heavenly Father."
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