Divine Mercy Sunday (2nd Sunday of Easter)Office of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | MassDivine Mercy Sunday Since 2000, the second Sunday of Easter has also been known as Divine Mercy Sunday.Here are some extracts from a sermon given by Pope John Paul II on the occasion of the canonization of Sister Faustina Kowalska on 30 April 2000 (Vatican web site):Today my joy is truly great in presenting the life and witness of Sr Faustina Kowalska to the whole Church as a gift of God for our time. By divine Providence, the life of this humble daughter of Poland was completely linked with the history of the 20th century, the century we have just left behind. In fact, it was between the First and Second World Wars that Christ entrusted his message of mercy to her. Those who remember, who were witnesses and participants in the events of those years and the horrible sufferings they caused for millions of people, know well how necessary was the message of mercy. Jesus told Sr Faustina: “Humanity will not find peace until it turns trustfully to divine mercy.” Through the work of the Polish religious, this message has become linked for ever to the 20th century, the last of the second millennium and the bridge to the third. It is not a new message but can be considered a gift of special enlightenment that helps us to relive the Gospel of Easter more intensely, to offer it as a ray of light to the men and women of our time. What will the years ahead bring us? What will man’s future on earth be like? We are not given to know. However, it is certain that in addition to new progress there will unfortunately be no lack of painful experiences. But the light of divine mercy, which the Lord in a way wished to return to the world through Sr Faustina’s charism, will illumine the way for the men and women of the third millennium. It is important then that we accept the whole message that comes to us from the word of God on this Second Sunday of Easter, which from now on throughout the Church will be called “Divine Mercy Sunday.” In the various readings, the liturgy seems to indicate the path of mercy which, while re-establishing the relationship of each person with God, also creates new relations of fraternal solidarity among human beings. Christ has taught us that man not only receives and experiences the mercy of God, but is also called to practise mercy towards others: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” He also showed us the many paths of mercy, which not only forgives sins but reaches out to all human needs. Jesus bent over every kind of human poverty, material and spiritual. It is not easy to love with a deep love, which lies in the authentic gift of self. This love can only be learned by penetrating the mystery of God’s love. Looking at him, being one with his fatherly heart, we are able to look with new eyes at our brothers and sisters, with an attitude of unselfishness and solidarity, of generosity and forgiveness. All this is mercy! Sr Faustina Kowalska wrote in her Diary: “I feel tremendous pain when I see the sufferings of my neighbours. All my neighbours’ sufferings reverberate in my own heart; I carry their anguish in my heart in such a way that it even physically destroys me. I would like all their sorrows to fall upon me, in order to relieve my neighbour.” This is the degree of compassion to which love leads, when it takes the love of God as its measure! It is this love which must inspire humanity today, if it is to face the crisis of the meaning of life, the challenges of the most diverse needs and, especially, the duty to defend the dignity of every human person. Thus the message of divine mercy is also implicitly a message about the value of every human being. Each person is precious in God’s eyes; Christ gave his life for each one; to everyone the Father gives his Spirit and offers intimacy. This consoling message is addressed above all to those who, afflicted by a particularly harsh trial or crushed by the weight of the sins they committed, have lost all confidence in life and are tempted to give in to despair. To them the gentle face of Christ is offered; those rays from his heart touch them and shine upon them, warm them, show them the way and fill them with hope. How many souls have been consoled by the prayer “Jesus, I trust in you,” which Providence intimated through Sr Faustina!And you, Faustina, a gift of God to our time, a gift from the land of Poland to the whole Church, obtain for us an awareness of the depth of divine mercy; help us to have a living experience of it and to bear witness to it among our brothers and sisters. May your message of light and hope spread throughout the world, spurring sinners to conversion, calming rivalries and hatred and opening individuals and nations to the practice of brotherhood. Today, fixing our gaze with you on the face of the risen Christ, let us make our own your prayer of trusting abandonment and say with firm hope: Christ Jesus, I trust in you!(St Zeno of Verona (d. 371)) Zeno, a native of North Africa, was appointed bishop of Verona (Northern Italy) in 362. He ministered to his people for about nine years, distinguishing himself for his leadership skills and good pastoral approach. He was close to his people and cared for the poor. In his writings he described many liturgical practices of his Church especially during Holy Week. He preached much against Arianism and fostered the growth of missionary activity in his area. He died in 371. See the article in Wikipedia.(Saint Guthlac of Crowland, Hermit)

Easter SaturdayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St Stanisław (1036 - 1079)) He was born in Szczepanów in Poland in about 1036. He studied at Liège, was ordained, and in 1072 became bishop of Kraków. He ruled the church as a good shepherd, gave help to the poor, and performed annual visitations to supervise the clergy. He reproached King Bolesław II for his crimes and vices and at length excommunicated him. Bolesław sought him out, and murdered him as he was celebrating Mass on 11 April 1079.

Easter FridayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(Bl. Anthony Neyrot OP (1425 - 1460)) Dominican Friar, Priest and Martyr.Blessed Anthony was born at Rivoli in Piedmont, Italy, in 1425 and entered the Dominican Order at San Marco in Florence where he lived under the direction of Saint Antoninus. Desiring to visit Sicily he set sail for there and was captured en route by pirates who took him to Tunis. There he apostasized and married. The news of the death of Saint Antoninus brought him to his senses and, touched by the grace of God, he resumed the religious habit, proclaimed his faith and suffered death by stoning. He died on Holy Thursday in the year 1460.

Holy SaturdayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St Isidore of Seville (560 - 636)) He was born in Seville in about 560 and after his father’s death he was educated by his brother Leander, Archbishop of Seville. He was instrumental in converting the Visigothic kings from the Arian heresy; he was made Archbishop of Seville after his brother’s death; and he took a prominent part in councils at Toledo and Seville. The Council of Toledo, in particular, laid great emphasis on learning, with all bishops in the kingdom commanded to establish seminaries and to encourage the teaching of Greek and Hebrew, law and medicine. He promoted the study of Aristotle, long before the Arabs discovered him and centuries before 13th-century Christian philosophers discovered him through the Arabs. He embarked on the project of writing an encyclopaedia of universal knowledge but did not live to complete it. See the articles in the Catholic Encyclopaedia and Wikipedia.(St Benedict 'The Black' (1526 - 1589)) Benedict was born in 1526, the son of Christopher and Diana, an Ethiopian couple who were kept as slaves in Sicily. When Benedict reached the age of 18, he was set free and after a while he joined a hermit called Jerome. His reputation for holiness was spread throughout the area and people flocked to him all the time. Eventually he moved to a Franciscan monastery where he spent the rest of his life serving his brothers as a cook. Even though he was a lay brother and without education, he was chosen to be their Superior and, at the end of his term of 6 years, he went back to the kitchen. People kept on visiting him seeking his advice and the help of his prayers. He died on 4 April, 1589. Humility, spirit of service, wisdom and powerful intercession were the special gifts bestowed on Benedict “The Black”. See the articles in the Catholic Encyclopaedia and Wikipedia.

Easter ThursdayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass

Easter WednesdayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass

Easter TuesdayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St John Baptist de la Salle (1651 - 1719)) He was born in Rheims in France in 1651. He became a priest and devoted himself wholeheartedly to the education of children, founding schools for the poor. He and his colleagues formed a congregation called the Brothers of the Christian Schools, in whose cause he suffered many tribulations. He died in Rouen in 1719. See the articles in the Catholic Encyclopaedia and Wikipedia.(St Henry Walpole (1558-1595)) Henry Walpole was born at Docking (Norfolk) in 1558, the eldest son of Christopher and Margery Walpole. He was educated at Norwich Grammar School, at Peterhouse, Cambridge, and at Gray’s Inn. He is said to have become a Catholic as a consequence of the martyrdom of Edmund Campion. In 1582 he went abroad to study, first to Reims and then to the English College, Rome. Shortly afterwards he joined the Society of Jesus. In spite of poor health he was ordained priest at Paris in 1588, served as chaplain to the Spanish army in the Netherlands, and then taught in the English seminaries of Seville and Valladolid. In 1593 he returned to England, landing at Bridlington on 6 December, but was arrested the very next day on suspicion of being a priest. He was interrogated at York, transferred to the Tower of London where he was frequently tortured. He was indicted on a charge of high treason because he was ordained abroad to minister in England; he was condemned to death. He was executed at York on 7 April 1595, by being hanged, drawn and quartered.DK

Easter MondayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass

Easter SundayOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St Vincent Ferrer (1350 - 1419)) He was born in Valencia and joined the Dominicans at the age of 17. In 1399, with the approval of the Pope, he set out on his mission as a preacher. For twenty years he travelled through western Europe, with thousands flocking to hear him wherever he was. From 1408 he worked mostly south of the Pyrenees. Among others, he preached to the Jews, of whom some 25,000 were converted to Christianity; and in the Kingdom of Granada he converted thousands of Moors. In 1417 he moved on to Brittany and continued his work there: he died in Vannes in Brittany on 5 April 1419. See the articles in Wikipedia and the Catholic Encyclopaedia.

Pope Francis' top diplomats met with U.S. Vice President JD Vance on April 19, where the two sides discussed migrants and refugees following months of clashes between U.S. church leaders and the Trump administration over immigration policy and foreign aid.