A Franciscan Year of Mercy
Pope Francis has proclaimed an Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy from December 8, 2015 to November 20, 2016
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One of our obligations as Franciscans is to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. Each morning, part of that prayer is the Canticle of Zechariah, the prayer that John the Baptist’s father prayed at his son’s birth, as recorded in Luke’s Gospel. During the prayer Zechariah says, “He promised to show mercy to our fathers, and to remember His holy Covenant.” He also prays, “In the tender compassion of our Lord, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness, and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” An older translation translated the word “compassion” as “mercy.” You can find the whole prayer at Luke 1: 67-79.
Each evening we pray the Canticle of Mary, the prayer Mary prayed while visiting her cousin Elizabeth, also found in Luke (1:46-55). Like Zechariah, Mary recalls God’s great mercy when she recalls that “He has mercy on those who fear Him In every generation,” and “He has come to the help of His servant Israel, for He has remembered His promise of mercy, the promise He made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever.
It has often struck me as I prayed these daily prayers how fitting it is that we begin and end each day remembering God’s great mercy. Mercy is what God desires to share with us, from beginning to end. We are surrounded by and sustained by mercy. Pope Francis has now invited the whole church to ponder God’s mercy for a whole year. He has proclaimed an Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy from December 8, 2015 to November 20, 2016. The faithful are invited to make pilgrimages, celebrate reconciliation, can received indulgences, but most importantly to experience God’s mercy and share it with others. We are invited to go deeply into this most important gift of God, and to experience anew the compassion and mercy of our God.
Mercy is very dear to Franciscans, in fact in some ways, it is our vocation. An early life of St. Francis, called the Legend of the Three Companions, described our way of life this way: This is our vocation: to heal wounds, to bind what is broken, to bring home those who are lost. In other words to be merciful.
We friars thank you for your many expressions of kindness and mercy toward us, and we pray that this year will be a time when you come to know once again the mercy of God. We thank you for helping us proclaim this great gift, and for providing the support to continue healing, binding wounds, and welcoming people home. May God give you peace!
Provincial Minister Fr. Jeff Scheeler, OFM, greets Pope Francis. Photo: ©L'Osservatore Romano
Posted in: Events, Missions, Year of Mercy
