1. The Door of Mercy (The Holy Door) Translated from a presentation prepared by Suzanne Foisy-Moquin of Conseil Scolaire Centre-Nord

2. In this presentation, we will see The meaning of the door The door of the house Jesus the door The door of our hearts The Holy Door The Door of Mercy

3. What is a door? And what does it mean to pass through a doorway? A door: a space opened within a frame that can be closed by a panel. In your opinion, which is more important, the space that is opened or the panel. Why? What does it mean to pass through a doorway? It means taking a chance – you might find a beautiful surprise on the other side. You also run the risk of discovering something disagreeable or scary on the other side.

4. Isn’t life a passage through a long series of doors Name the door that we go through When we are born When we are baptized On our first day of school On our first day at middle school or junior high On our first day of high school On our first day of post-secondary studies When we start our first job When we are married When we are sick… and are there other doors? We pass through many doors in our lives. Some are large and welcoming, some are narrow and hard to get through. Sooner or later, we know that we will need to pass through the door of this life that leads to Eternal Life.

5. The door of the house We all enter our homes through doors. Have you ever thought about the purpose of these doors? Think about the door of your home. How would you describe it?

6. We might say that a door protects us from danger. It keeps robbers and storms out, for example. We like to reinforce this protection by locking our doors to insure our family’s safety and privacy.

7. However, a locked door can also exclude us or cut us off from others…

8. In the old days, the front porch of a house was the place to share news and memories… It can still be a place of connection for families and neighbours

9. An open door welcomes others. Please come in… You are welcome as my guest!

10. Once we cross the doorway of our houses, we are in familiar surrounding s, we feel at home. The door is the passage from the exterior to the interior, from outside to the privacy of our personal belongings and our family relationships.

11. Jesus compares himself to a type of door, a gate. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. John 10. 9-10

12. Jesus is … The door of salvation The narrow door The door of safety The door of abundant life

13. Jesus doesn’t exclude anyone. He says,

14. The door to our hearts Our hearts are doors that can exclude or welcome, close or open. Jesus want to be closer to us. He is knocking at the doors of our hearts. He is knocking at the door of your heart. Do you want to open it for him?

15. Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me. Revelation 3.20

17. A heart that is open is welcoming, tender, compassionate, joyful, and very contagious! It is a heart that loves!!

18. The Holy Door According to an ancient tradition in the Church, every 25 years we celebrate a Year of Jubilee, when the Pope declares a Holy Year, a Year of Jubilee. A Year of Jubilee is inaugurated by the opening of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

19. During the entire Jubilee year, pilgrims walk through this Holy Door as they pray, asking God’s forgiveness for their sins. The Holy Door actually represents Jesus Christ, the True Gate (or Door) who welcomes us and purifies us of our faults.

20. The last time this Holy Door was opened was during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000, which marked 2,000 years since the coming of Christ. Last March, Pope Francis announced a Jubilee Year of Mercy to begin December 8, 2015 and continue through November 20, 2016. Outside the pattern of every 25 years, this is an Extraordinary Year of Mercy.

21. Do you know how many Holy Doors there are in the world? a.One b.Seven c.Ten d.Twenty-five

22. The answer is b. There are seven. There are four in Rome, one in France (in the City of Ars), one at St. James Cathedral in Compostella, Spain, and one in Quebec. Yes, we have a holy door in Canada! It is at the Cathedral-Basilica of Notre Dame de Québec, which celebrated the 350 th anniversary of its opening on December 8, 2013. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EM2pb4HTK0 Reporting on the Holy Door at Notre-Dame de Quebec.

23. During the entire Jubilee Year of Mercy, the seven Holy Doors of the world will be open, including the one in Quebec. “The theme of the door is one of spiritual history. From a human point of view, we are always crossing thresholds. Sometimes, they are happy; other times, they are more difficult. Our own history is one made of doors, said Monsignor Belanger. By the Holy Door, “we invite people to come to Notre-Dame de Quebec to bring their present lived experience to this place of faith to make a happy marriage between their past and their present”. Translated from Le Soleil, November 2013

24. What do you see on a Holy Door? Sculpted on the Holy Door, we see Images of the great moments in the Gospel Images of people whose stories are told in the Bible Images from the life of the saints Symbols related to the sacraments

25. The Door of Mercy What is mercy? From the Latin, Misericordia, Miseri = suffering and Cordia = heart So mercy is suffering with the heart of another, being gentle and compassionate to the wounded person, one who is caught in an ocean of indifference or judgement. Pope Francis tells us that we live in a cruel world and that we counter cruelty with tenderness, with love for our brothers and sisters, and with forgiveness. Pope Francis also said that it is urgent that the Church model this mercy because we are all sinners. During the Year of Mercy, the Pope invites us to discover the joy of offering mercy to all those before us who need it.

26. Is my school an oasis of mercy? During the Year of Mercy a special door at your school could be designated as the Door of Mercy: a passageway between the outside world and the inside world of your school, a welcoming place where we see many examples of tenderness, of kindness, of compassion, and of forgiveness. All these are part of the way that Jesus showed us.

27. This door would be a reminder to everyone who walks through it that Jesus Christ, the true Door, is present and active in the hearts of the staff and students. The door will be decorated with symbols that are meaningful to you.

28. What works of mercy can we do? Feed the hungry. Give drink to those who are thirsty.

29. Clothe the naked. Give shelter to strangers. Visit those who are in prison. Visit the sick.

30. Counsel the doubtful. Instruct the ignorant. Admonish sinners.

31. Bear wrongs patiently Forgive offenses willingly. Comfort the afflicted. Pray for the living and the dead.

32. Prayer of Pope Francis for the Year of Mercy Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us to be merciful like the heavenly Father, and have told us that whoever sees you sees Him. Show us your face and we will be saved. Your loving gaze freed Zacchaeus and Matthew from being enslaved by money; the adulteress and Magdalene from seeking happiness only in created things; made Peter weep after his betrayal, and assured Paradise to the repentant thief. Let us hear, as if addressed to each one of us, the words that you spoke to the Samaritan woman: "If you knew the gift of God!"

33. You are the visible face of the invisible Father, of the God who manifests his power above all by forgiveness and mercy: let the Church be your visible face in the world, its Lord risen and glorified. You willed that your ministers would also be clothed in weakness in order that they may feel compassion for those in ignorance and error: let everyone who approaches them feel sought after, loved, and forgiven by God. Send your Spirit and consecrate every one of us with its anointing, so that the Jubilee of Mercy may be a year of grace from the Lord, and your Church, with renewed enthusiasm, may bring good news to the poor, proclaim liberty to captives and the oppressed, and restore sight to the blind. We ask this through the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy, you who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.