Michael KellyPope Francis opens the ‘Holy Door’ to the Year of Mercy for Catholics all over the world, writes Michael Kelly
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Pope Francis has declared an extraordinary Jubilee Year to begin this coming December 8. A jubilee is an appointed time – a theologian might say a Kairos – to proclaim the Lord’s favour. The concept is deeply rooted in the Old Testament and for the Jews represented a time of unparalleled forgiveness. It is fitting therefore that Pope Francis’ first jubilee year – in fact, the first since 2000 – is dedicated to mercy. |
During the year dedicated to God’s mercy, a special ‘Holy Door’ will be opened in every Catholic cathedral in the world. Pilgrims will symbolically be able to cross what we might call the ‘threshold of mercy’ – to enter in to that intimate moment with God when one knows oneself to be valued, loved and forgiven.
Why single out mercy? It has been a consistent theme of Pope Francis since his election. In his first Angelus address, he proclaimed that God never tires of forgiving, it is we who tire of asking for forgiveness.
Austen Ivereigh, in his authoritative biography of the Pope, The Great Reformer, puts it like this: “Francis’ proclamation of a kairos of mercy stems from his discernment that a world being transformed by technology and wealth is prone, above all, to the illusion that human beings, not God, are sovereign. Mercy is the great antidote to progressive optimism as well as conservative pessimism, for it grounds its hope in God’s forgiveness of our sins, rather than our belief in our own resources. That is why the poor are quicker to grasp Francis than the rich and the educated – and why the opposition to Francis has come from elite groups invested in particular narratives.”
The Pope’s repeated emphasis on the Sacrament of Penance means that Confession will be a key theme of the ‘Year of Mercy’. In many parishes in Ireland Confession has virtually died out. Many Massgoing Catholics now don’t feel the need to confess their sins and receive absolution.
Complex reasons
However, penance services, where they occur, are still popular. There are complex reasons why individual Confession is not as popular as it once was: some people will have had bad experiences. Instead of mercy they will have felt harshly judged. Instead of being restored, they will have felt overburdened.
The loss of a sense of sin is also a factor. Some weekly Massgoers will protest that they don’t really sin, as if to believe that they are sometimes preserved from the weakness that is inherent in the human condition.
Pope Francis will want parishes to be creative in finding new ways of making individual Confession more attractive to Catholics, especially though who have been away from the sacrament for a long time: Confession – symbolically represented by the door of mercy – should be the gateway to a new life.
Some will ask why a ‘holy door’ and why one in every cathedral? I suspect Pope Francis knows – particularly in the self-absorbed culture of western Europe – many people have lost the sense of the power of symbol. Francis recognises that human beings are creatures that are drawn by sensuousness.
People can identify with what appeals to their senses. Parishes and faith communities should think of this concrete reality when planning outreach for the ‘year of mercy’.
Pope Francis is unshakable in his conviction that mercy is God’s antidote to a cynical world and a tired Church.
Richard West RIP
It was with sadness that I learnt at the weekend that Richard West, the husband of our columnist and friend Mary Kenny, has died aged 84.
Dick was a renowned journalist and essayist who was best known for his writing on Africa and South-East Asia. I only had the pleasure of meeting Dick once in September 2009 when Mary launched her wonderful book Crown and Shamrock in Dublin. I regret that I didn’t get to know him, particularly since everyone I met spoke well of him.
The couple married in 1974 and have two sons, Ed and Patrick, who are both journalists. Dick suffered a stroke in 1996 and Mary has been a devoted carer ever since. I know from my conversations with Mary how difficult this period has been for her and amidst her loss and pain, it will surely be some consolation that Dick is now at eternal rest. She has written movingly about the ageing process in words that will resonate with many: “Old age is loss. Little by little, you let go of what once you had. A stroke creeps over the body in a physical illustration of that process. Richard’s own attitude was admirably stoical.”
On behalf of all at The Irish Catholic, I extend my deepest sympathy to Mary, Ed, Patrick and all who mourn Dick. Anima eius et animae omnium fidelium defunctorum per Dei misericordiam requiescant in pace.