Stories of Mercy
For the Year of Mercy parishioners are sharing how they experienced God's mercy:
January 24, 2016
Even in the Ordinary—God’s Mercy
Can God’s mercy be applied to our daily difficulties? I share this story:
My out-of-state sister’s husband was going to retire in December. My sister wanted to do something to mark this special occasion for her husband and surprise him with a little retirement gathering. She called for my advice.
“Yes,” I confidently told her, “a gathering in his office with cake and coffee” would fit the bill nicely. As the office staff was very small, it seemed like a good idea to ask his “boss” if the clients they serviced in the “field” could be invited to share the afternoon. I knew my sister and her husband were not comfortable with entertaining or hosting parties, but I thought this idea was a “safe bet.”
Well, it wasn’t! My sister’s husband found out about her “interference” and felt he had been put in an embarrassing and uncomfortable position with the boss and his clients. The tension in the household only increased as the retirement date approached.
I prayed for God’s mercy to bring healing (and guests!) to this gathering. I asked my other sisters also to ask for God’s mercy. The day finally arrived. We all held our breath and pleaded that God would mercifully bring this to a good ending.
God’s mercy flowed into the room that afternoon. People stopped in for cake and well-wishes. It was a relaxed and pleasant time, leaving my sister and her husband with pleasant memories and a gentle closure to his career. God’s mercy is there for us even in our ordinary day-to-day struggles.
Colleen Bassett
January 17, 2016
Fr. Solanus Casey
I experienced God’s mercy through Fr. Solanus Casey and my mother.
When I was eight years old, I had the chance to meet Fr. Solanus Casey. It was during World War II and mother went to see Fr. Solanus to ask for prayers for my oldest brother who was in the Normandy Invasion. Before mother could tell Fr. Solanus why we were there, he told her when she got home, there would be a letter from my brother that he won’t need the sweater because he’s in a different, warmer place. And so it was.
We prayed the rosary daily. Mom always said it was the best medicine and very powerful.
Joan Machuta
January 10, 2016
Two Hallmark Moments
I think we get a chance to see God’s mercy at work when we visit his people in nursing homes. They are often lonely and may feel forgotten. It is kind of fun to be chosen to distribute all that mercy which Jesus wants strewn around.
I told Mike and Kay Sweeney that I thought we had our own little Hallmark moment on December 21 st at the regular monthly Mass at Franklin Care Center. It was the biggest crowd all year, the happy reading from the Song of Songs about the leaping gazelle, the personalized and loving Mass, the robust singing of “Joy to the World” after Mass and the excitement over the little gifts we thought up. Now was that not a truly Hallmark moment of mercy?
Colleen Bassett
Do you remember back in the first weekend of December, when you stopped by the table in the Gathering Room and picked out a card for the Lahser Hills Christmas Party? And the care with which you later picked out that purple sweater, or brown polo shirt for someone you didn’t even know?
The Christmas Party on December 17 th was a wonderful and somewhat noisy gathering, and the guests were delighted with the festivities. The thought of Santa coming was enough to keep some of the residents on the edge of their chairs; and the talented fingers of John at the piano, playing Christmas carols for a sing-a-long, brought smiles of joy and twinkling of eyes as these same residents sang long-remembered carols. All 150 residents received a gift from Santa or one of his elves, whether they were able to be at the party itself, or had to stay in their rooms. Most of these residents have little , if any, family to visit them, and spend many long hours in loneliness and sadness; the Christmas gifts, and the fact that so many people from Transfiguration worked together to bring a little bit of joy into their Christmas season meant that these faces lit up with a bit of happiness at being remembered. The "thank you" that so many of the residents voiced meant that our work had, indeed, done what we had intended it to do.
Jane Loiselle
December 6, 2015
The Rake
Sean was tall and his large quilted flannel jacket masked his this frame. He asked us if we could buy him some food. As we waited for his fish sandwich and fries we conversed. Sean was happy. He was homeless, but tomorrow, through poverty assistance, he was to receive an apartment in Southfield. During the course of the conversation he lamented that he had no rake. He wanted to earn some money raking leaves. His meal came and we said our goodbyes.
“Come on,” I said to the kids, “Sean needs a rake.” We hurried to the ACO Hardware next door and quickly decided on a metal rake with a wood handle. Taking our purchase with us we went back to the fast food restaurant and joined Sean at the small table where he was finishing his meal. Tears filled his eyes as he thanked us profusely and gave me a hug. I asked him for a favor: to say a prayer for our family. This he did immediately, in our presence, working his way carefully through the Lord’s Prayer. I wished him well and we went on our way.
