Dear Parish Family,

We celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday on this Second Sunday of Easter. We see the mercy of our risen Lord Jesus on full display in the Gospel today. As the Apostles are hidden in the upper room behind locked doors, Jesus comes and proclaims to them, "Peace be with you." 

Now, if you betrayed, denied, and abandoned a friend in the hour of their greatest need for friendship, you would not expect the first thing out of their mouths when they saw you again being "peace be with you." You may imagine your friend rather having some harsh words to say to you. Yet our all-merciful Jesus forgives their abandonment and denial and offers them a fresh start. He doesn't ask for apologies or tell them how terrible their actions were. He simply forgives, lets go of the hurt they caused, and calls them back to Himself.

This is the pattern of Divine Mercy. God is always ready to forgive completely and immediately. Reconciliation, however, only happens when we accept His offer of forgiveness and come back to Him. This Divine Mercy Sunday, consider where you need to be reconciled to God and to others. It may mean making a sincere examination of your conscience and coming back to confession. It may entail forgiving those who have hurt you or asking for forgiveness from those whom you have hurt. Model your life after God's mercy.

I've thought recently about mercy and forgiveness and the struggle we face in forgiving others. The hardest part about forgiveness, in my opinion, is not offering an act of forgiveness in and of itself, but living in the aftermath of the decision to forgive. We must change when we choose to forgive someone, and this change often frightens us. What will my life look like when I finally let go of my anger, hurt, pain, jealousy, and desire for retribution? What kind of conversations with others does my act of forgiveness entail so that a path to reconciliation may be opened? What kind of boundaries (safeguards for my heart...not walls of resentment) do I need to keep in place so as to communicate my act of forgiveness while maintaining a level of protection from being hurt again? Forgiveness can seem impossible unless we have thoroughly reflected on who Christ calls me to be, a man or a woman after His own Sacred Heart, in offering forgiveness to others.

We are creating a Tribute Book for Fr. Fabian. This is a chance to share your memories of Fr. Fabian, what he taught you during his time with us, and to send him your best wishes and prayers as he heads back to Korea at the end of June. Please visit our web page for information related to Fr. Fabian's Farewell that we will plan, and for the Tribute book link https://stmarychardon.org/fr-fabian-farewell or visit https://account.alifeuntold.com/contributor/tribute-for-fr-fabian-han for the direct link to the Tribute Book.

We will celebrate a Farewell Mass and Reception for Fr. Fabian at St. Patrick's on Sunday, June 21 at the 9:30 am Mass with a reception in the lower hall to follow, and at St. Mary's on Sunday, June 28 at the 12 pm Mass with a reception in the Banquet Room to follow. More information will follow, but save the date for now!

I am yours in Christ,

Fr. Scott Goodfellow