Dear Friends,
Alleluia! Jesus is risen! Indeed, He is truly risen! Alleluia!
Happy Quasimodo Sunday! Wait, what? Isn’t it Divine Mercy Sunday? Isn’t this the Second Sunday of Easter? Aren’t we still in the Octave of Easter, meaning that it’s still Easter? All of those are true, but Quasimodo Sunday is no typo. When Victor Hugo wrote The Hunchback of Notre Dame, he did not create the name Quasimodo from his imagination—he got that name, really simply a word, from the Catholic Church. For a long time, the Sunday after Easter Sunday had been called Quasimodo Sunday. Just as is the case with Gaudete Sunday or Laetare Sunday, Quasimodo Sunday comes from the Introit, or Entrance Antiphon used for this Sunday after Easter: “Like newborn infants, you must long for the pure, spiritual milk, that in him you may grow to salvation, alleluia.” The Latin version of this antiphon begins, “Quasi modo geniti infantes…” As you may infer, quasi modo means “like,” or more specifically, “in a similar mode, manner, or way.” This Sunday is in a similar mode as Easter Sunday. Today is the last day of the Octave of Easter. Easter is so tremendous that it cannot be limited to a single day; rather, it lasts eight days, and therefore, this Sunday is like last Sunday: a full celebration of Easter!
As mentioned earlier, this is also referred to as Divine Mercy Sunday. In 2000, Pope St. John Paul II canonized St. Faustina Kowalska, a Polish nun who received from Jesus the message and devotion to Divine Mercy, and with her canonization, Pope John Paul II also designated the Sunday after Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday. Much, much more could be discussed in the Divine Mercy devotion, but I’ll mention only a few facets.
– The Divine Mercy image with the specific inscription “Jesus, I trust in You.” Coming from the Heart of Jesus are red and white rays, the rays of His grace and infinite mercy; these red and white rays remind us of the blood and water flowing from His pierced side, signs of Baptism and the Eucharist.
– The celebration of the Solemnity of Divine Mercy Sunday
– The recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. It is similar to the Rosary, but there are differences. On the Our Father beads, one prays, “Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.” On the decade beads, one prays, “For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.” There are some other prayers, but those are the bulk of the Chaplet.
– The recitation of the Divine Mercy novena. Over nine days, Jesus requests that we bring in our prayers different groups of people to His mercy. The intentions over those nine days are: all mankind, especially all sinners; the souls of priests and religious; all devout and faithful souls; those who do not believe in God and those who do not yet know Him; those separated from the Catholic Church; the meek and humble of heart, and children; those who especially venerate and glorify Christ’s mercy; the souls in Purgatory; and the souls of those who have become lukewarm.
– The designation of 3pm as the Hour of Mercy
– Spreading mercy by word, deed, and prayer
– The practice of the works of mercy—both the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.
We are saints under construction, celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and receiving and sharing God’s mercy. Happy Easter! Alleluia! Have a great week!
In Christ,
Fr. Matt