Pope: Missionaries of Mercy bear witness to fatherly love of God
By Devin Watkins
As Missionaries of Mercy hold their 2025 Jubilee in Rome, Pope Francis has reaffirmed his prayerful support for their mission to bring God’s forgiveness to our broken world.
In a message released on Saturday, the Pope expressed his “gratitude and encouragement” for their work as confessors.
During the 2016 Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, Pope Francis commissioned priests from dioceses around the globe to hear confessions and grant absolution for several sins which are normally reserved to the Holy See.
As they return to Rome, the Holy Father said Missionaries of Mercy offer people enduring the weight of sin the gift of God’s forgiveness, calling it a source of hope.
“Through your service,” he said, “you bear witness to the paternal face of God, infinitely great in love, who calls everyone to conversion and constantly renews us with His forgiveness.”
Pope Francis said Jesus opens the path in every sinner’s heart to walk with the Church toward reconciliation.
“Conversion and forgiveness are the two caresses with which the Lord wipes every tear from our eyes,” he said. “They are the hands with which the Church embraces us sinners; they are the feet on which we walk in our earthly pilgrimage.”
The Pope encouraged Missionaries of Mercy to be “attentive in listening, ready in welcoming, and steadfast in accompanying those who desire to renew their lives and return to the Lord.”
God’s mercy, he added, changes our hearts and can reach us in every situation, since we can always trust in God.
“I wholeheartedly bless your apostolate, asking Mary Immaculate to watch over you as Mother of Mercy,” he concluded. “Please, do not forget to pray for me.”
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