This Sunday is Divine Mercy Sunday. The Feast of Divine Mercy, celebrated on the Octave of Easter (the Sunday after Easter Sunday), is a relatively new addition to the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar. Celebrating the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ, as revealed by Christ Himself to Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, this feast was extended to the entire Catholic Church by Pope John Paul II on April 30, 2000, the day that he canonized Saint Faustina.
During his life, Pope John Paul II had actively promoted the message of St. Faustina. In his 1980 encyclical on God’s mercy, Rich in Mercy, Pope John Paul II developed a scriptural and doctrinal basis for our faith in the mercy of God. In linking the revealed truth about God’s mercy to the Sunday after Easter, The Holy Father illumined the fact that the liturgy already proclaimed the divine mercy. Pope John Paul II goes to says that “The truth has been embedded for two millennia in the worship of the Church: The law of faith is the law of prayer.”
On this Divine Mercy Sunday we see that Christ is alive and shares that risen life with each one of us. Now is our time to encounter the risen Jesus in new ways so that we can continue throughout our lives to be that risen presence for the good of others. People see the risen Christ in our everyday acts of kindness, sensitivity, generosity, patience forgiveness and mercy During the eight Sundays of Easter the first readings are selected from the Acts of the Apostles and deals with the Easter Faith of the early Christian community. Theses selections from the Acts of the Apostles record how those first Christians received the spirit of Jesus and carried the mission of Christ forward. These writings help us move forward with our mission to show love and mercy to the world in light of the risen Christ.
For 2022, Cardinal DiNardo has assessed our parish DSF goal at $84,000. DSF supports more than 60 ministries and programs that serve the faithful of the Archdiocese and us here at St. Hyacinth. As an incentive to give to DSF, there will be a 50% rebate on the total amount given by first time DSF donors. For example, if a first time donor (someone who have never given to DSF before) makes a gift to our parish of $50, the parish will receive a rebate of $25. Envelopes are in the narthex or you can go online and give at : https://www.archgh.org/ways-to-give/diocesan-services-fund-dsf/donate-to-dsf/ Thank you in your generosity in supporting DSF 2022.
One of our goals for 2022 is to increase the number of people using our electronic formats for the dissemination of information from our parish. We have our website: Sthyaicnth.org, which is updated almost daily with information about the activities that go on in the parish. There is Flocknotes, which is our information delivery service for the parish, in which we email and or text information about the activities of the parish. Go to Flocknote.com/sthyhouston and join the group “Parishioners”. We are on Facebook, go and ‘like’ our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/StHyacinthchurch . Next we have our YouTube channel in which all of our Masses and special liturgies are available for view, so please go and subscribe.
Finally, 2022 makes 10 years of my being pastor here at St. Hyacinth. It has been a wonderful challenge serving the people of St. Hyacinth. Over the last 10 years, I have done my best to make sure that everyone who steps into the doors of our parish know of God's love and are welcome into His house. I know along the way there have been challenges and that some people have walked away because of me. However, I have not let the negativity effect me in my mission to be a priests and pastor. As we move forward, I want everyone to know that as pastor, I will continue to seek the best for St. Hyacinth and promote the love of Christ, until I am called to share the love of Christ with another community.