By Tami S. Scott, associate editor
The sweet smell of incense began to permeate the Parish of Divine Mercy & the Mission of St. Bernadette in Central Square at the start of the 3 o’ clock Holy Hour of Mercy on Divine Mercy Sunday – a feast day that is each year held on the second Sunday of Easter.
Bishop Lucia presides over the Holy Hour of Mercy on Divine Mercy Sunday (April 7) at the Parish of Divine Mercy & the Mission of St. Bernadette in Central Square. Kneeling are Fr. Seibt (left) and Fr. Celentano, pastor of St. Rose of Lima in North Syracuse.
Its origins date back to the 1930s, when in a vision to St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, the Lord Jesus Christ revealed a powerful prayer that He wanted everyone to say: the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. He promised extraordinary graces to those who recite it.
“It’s really the Lord’s invitation to us to come and experience the feast of His mercy. The Lord wants us to know God’s infinite love and mercy for each one of us,” said Bishop Douglas J. Lucia, who presided over the hour of Adoration.
The chaplet may be said at any time, but Jesus specifically requested that it be used as a novena on the nine days before the Feast of Divine Mercy Sunday.
Faithful from the parish, and many from other diocesan churches filled the pews for the solemn hour, which was preceded by a Celebration of the Sacrament of Penance and followed by a reception filled with lots of food, faith, gratitude and fellowship.
“It’s the feast day of our parish … so [this day] is very special to us,” said Rev. Christopher Seibt, pastor of Divine Mercy Parish & The Mission of Saint Bernadette, and Sacred Heart Church in Cicero. Worthy of note, this is the only church in the seven-county diocese named Divine Mercy. Fr. Seibt said he welcomes people from across the diocese to consider making it “almost like a pilgrimage” to partake in the daylong gathering.
Brewerton resident and active Divine Mercy parishioner Lecia Riccelli said she first learned about Divine Mercy while attending a class through Dc. Daniel Reynolds of St. Margaret Church, Homer. A parishioner gave her a copy of St. Faustina’s diary to read and she “fell in love with it.”
“The Divine Mercy is something that the church has always taught – that God is mercy – and it’s available to all of us,” Riccelli said. “It’s just a reminder, it’s a way for us to experience his love and then bring it into our own lives to send out to others.”
Fellow parishioner Ellen Holst, of Bernhards Bay, admitted that for a long time, she hadn’t even known what the Divine Mercy chaplet was. Now, when she participates in the novena and Divine Mercy Sunday, she said she feels like she has a deeper connection and knowledge [with and of Christ].
When asked to describe her faith, Holst’s response might surprise some while others might well relate: “Sometimes I feel like I’m in my infant stages.”
Holst said that at one point, she fell away from the church, but returned several years ago. She has since become an active church trustee, the coordinator of funeral ministry, a Eucharistic minister and part of the grief support group.
In relation to Divine Mercy Sunday and Catholics who struggle with their faith, Fr. Seibt said the first step is to “go back to the basics.” In other words, to come back to church and celebrate the sacraments: “Because it’s in and through all those things that God has given to us, that we experience His grace and mercy.”
He referenced the apostle dubbed “doubting Thomas” and how he was not with the others in the church when the risen Lord appeared.
“And so he is cast into doubt. He’s not in a good place in his own faith,” he said. “It’s only when he goes back to the 11 and he becomes part of them again in the church, that the Lord appears to him there and he begins to live with them the Christian life.
“It’s all about being here,” Fr. Seibt continued. “It’s all about going back to the basics and just allowing the Lord to shower us with His mercy and love by just being present here.”
To learn more about Divine Mercy, visit thedivinemercy.org.
