Easter is only two weeks away and next Sunday we begin Holy Week on Palm Sunday, a day on which we bless the Palms and proclaim the Passion of the Lord.
On Palm Sunday we celebrate Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. At St. Anthony’s we will have the blessing of the palms in the gym before Mass and at Our Lady of the Hills palms will be blessed in the gathering space before Mass. I hope that you will be able to participate in the Holy Week services which prepare us to celebrate Jesus’ victory over sin and death. The Holy Week schedule will be in next Sunday’s bulletin.
We are making plans for Divine Mercy Sunday which is the Second Sunday of Easter (April 27). We will have a Holy Hour, the Hour of Mercy, from 3-4 PM in St. Anthony Church on that day. The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed on the altar, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy will be prayed and Confessions will be heard during the Holy Hour. Devotion to the Divine Mercy can transform our lives by drawing us ever closer to Jesus. With the help of God’s grace we can place our confidence in Jesus and show more patience, compassion and mercy to everyone we meet. Also on Divine Mercy Sunday, two Popes will be canonized in Rome by Pope Francis. Blessed John XXIII and Blessed John Paul II will be recognized as Saints. On Divine Mercy Sunday we begin to refer to them as St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II.
