Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The Year of Mercy has begun and Pope Francis opened the Holy Doors in Rome. Archbishop Sartain will be opening the Holy Doors at St. James Cathedral this weekend. We have a special opportunity to seek the Lord’s mercy and help others experience it during this year.

Here is an important paragraph from Pope Francis’ homily or the opening Mass for the Year of Mercy:

• This Extraordinary Year is itself a gift of grace.  To pass through the Holy Door means to rediscover the infinite mercy of the Father who welcomes everyone and goes out personally to encounter each of them.  It is he who seeks us!  It is he who comes to encounter us!  This will be a year in which we grow ever more convinced of God’s mercy.  How much wrong we do to God and his grace when we speak of sins being punished by his judgment before we speak of their being forgiven by his mercy (cf. Saint Augustine, De Praedestinatione Sanctorum, 12, 24)!  But that is the truth.  We have to put mercy before judgment, and in any event God’s judgement will always be in the light of his mercy.  In passing through the Holy Door, then, may we feel that we ourselves are part of this mystery of love, of tenderness.  Let us set aside all fear and dread, for these do not befit men and women who are loved.  Instead, let us experience the joy of encountering that grace which transforms all things.

God is indeed seeking us out and desires that everyone come to a saving knowledge of the truth (cf. 1 Timothy 2:4).

Let’s make a commitment to show forth God’s mercy and our gratitude that we have been found.

in Christ,
Fr. James Northrop