Divine Mercy Sunday

This is Jacob Niemand, college senior at St. John Vianney Seminary in St. Paul, MN.
Today is Divine Mercy Sunday. I was back home in Montevideo, serving for the confirmation mass for our area faith community. What a great mass! Bishop Nienstedt gave a wonderful homily. A real touching point came in a story that he told. An older couple was driving somewhere, when they met an on coming car. The older couple could see in the other car, that there was a young couple sitting so close to each other, that they couldn't tell who was driving. That prompted the older lady to ask her husband, "Do you remember when we used to do that? We were so in love that you couldn't tell us a part. I wonder why we're not sitting that close today." Her husband gave her a chide answer, "I didn't move." Bishop then connected that story to our lives. In the sacraments of baptism and confirmation, we are sitting so close to Jesus that we can't tell who is driving. Through sinning we move away from Jesus. We are called to the same closeness with Jesus as the young had for each other. When we sin, we move away from that intimacy, but we can regain it and move forward in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The truth is, the closer we get to Jesus, the more we are one in Him. Everyday we need to take steps, they can be small, but we need to take steps towards that intimacy. Congratulations to all of the newly Confirmed.