It is with great sorrow that I learned of the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. The Pope Emeritus was born and grew up in some of the most turbulent years of the twentieth century. Despite this, he fostered a life of prayer that would be consistent throughout his life. The Pope Emeritus channeled his God-given gifts into writing, and the Church universal gives thanks for his extensive theological writings.

While differences set us apart, the Society of Mercy and the Old Roman Catholic Church maintain filial devotion to the Papal office and its holders. I ask our members to join with me in praying for the repose of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's soul and for the current Holy Father, Pope Francis, as he mourns his predecessor.

+William
Superior General - The Priestly Society of Mercy
Archbishop-Metropolitan - The Old Roman Catholic Church

Click here to read the Fall/Winter edition of Misericordiae.

Click here to view the Spring/Summer edition of Misericordiae.

In union with Pope Francis and bishops and priests throughout the world, clergy and companions of the Society are invited to offer prayer for peace and the consecration and entrustment of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on March 25, 2022 at 5 PM Rome Time. The text is below courtesy of Catholic News Agency:

O Mary, Mother of God and our Mother, in this time of trial we turn to you. As our Mother, you love us and know us: no concern of our hearts is hidden from you. Mother of mercy, how often we have experienced your watchful care and your peaceful presence! You never cease to guide us to Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
Yet we have strayed from that path of peace. We have forgotten the lesson learned from the tragedies of the last century, the sacrifice of the millions who fell in two world wars. We have disregarded the commitments we made as a community of nations. We have betrayed peoples’ dreams of peace and the hopes of the young. We grew sick with greed, we thought only of our own nations and their interests, we grew indifferent and caught up in our selfish needs and concerns. We chose to ignore God, to be satisfied with our illusions, to grow arrogant and aggressive, to suppress innocent lives and to stockpile weapons. We stopped being our neighbour’s keepers and stewards of our common home. We have ravaged the garden of the earth with war and by our sins we have broken the heart of our heavenly Father, who desires us to be brothers and sisters. We grew indifferent to everyone and everything except ourselves. Now with shame we cry out: Forgive us, Lord!

Holy Mother, amid the misery of our sinfulness, amid our struggles and weaknesses, amid the mystery of iniquity that is evil and war, you remind us that God never abandons us, but continues to look upon us with love, ever ready to forgive us and raise us up to new life. He has given you to us and made your Immaculate Heart a refuge for the Church and for all humanity. By God’s gracious will, you are ever with us; even in the most troubled moments of our history, you are there to guide us with tender love.
We now turn to you and knock at the door of your heart. We are your beloved children. In every age you make yourself known to us, calling us to conversion. At this dark hour, help us and grant us your comfort. Say to us once more: “Am I not here, I who am your Mother?” You are able to untie the knots of our hearts and of our times. In you we place our trust. We are confident that, especially in moments of trial, you will not be deaf to our supplication and will come to our aid.
That is what you did at Cana in Galilee, when you interceded with Jesus and he worked the first of his signs. To preserve the joy of the wedding feast, you said to him: “They have no wine” (Jn 2:3). Now, O Mother, repeat those words and that prayer, for in our own day we have run out of the wine of hope, joy has fled, fraternity has faded. We have forgotten our humanity and squandered the gift of peace. We opened our hearts to violence and destructiveness. How greatly we need your maternal help!
Therefore, O Mother, hear our prayer.
Star of the Sea, do not let us be shipwrecked in the tempest of war.
Ark of the New Covenant, inspire projects and paths of reconciliation.
Queen of Heaven, restore God’s peace to the world.
Eliminate hatred and the thirst for revenge, and teach us forgiveness.
Free us from war, protect our world from the menace of nuclear weapons.
Queen of the Rosary, make us realize our need to pray and to love.
Queen of the Human Family, show people the path of fraternity.
Queen of Peace, obtain peace for our world.
O Mother, may your sorrowful plea stir our hardened hearts. May the tears you shed for us make this valley parched by our hatred blossom anew. Amid the thunder of weapons, may your prayer turn our thoughts to peace. May your maternal touch soothe those who suffer and flee from the rain of bombs. May your motherly embrace comfort those forced to leave their homes and their native land. May your Sorrowful Heart move us to compassion and inspire us to open our doors and to care for our brothers and sisters who are injured and cast aside.
Holy Mother of God, as you stood beneath the cross, Jesus, seeing the disciple at your side, said: “Behold your son” (Jn 19:26.) In this way he entrusted each of us to you. To the disciple, and to each of us, he said: “Behold, your Mother” (v. 27). Mother Mary, we now desire to welcome you into our lives and our history. At this hour, a weary and distraught humanity stands with you beneath the cross, needing to entrust itself to you and, through you, to consecrate itself to Christ. The people of Ukraine and Russia, who venerate you with great love, now turn to you, even as your heart beats with compassion for them and for all those peoples decimated by war, hunger, injustice and poverty.
Therefore, Mother of God and our Mother, to your Immaculate Heart we solemnly entrust and consecrate ourselves, the Church and all humanity, especially Russia and Ukraine. Accept this act that we carry out with confidence and love. Grant that war may end and peace spread throughout the world. The “Fiat” that arose from your heart opened the doors of history to the Prince of Peace. We trust that, through your heart, peace will dawn once more. To you we consecrate the future of the whole human family, the needs and expectations of every people, the anxieties and hopes of the world.
Through your intercession, may God’s mercy be poured out on the earth and the gentle rhythm of peace return to mark our days. Our Lady of the “Fiat," on whom the Holy Spirit descended, restore among us the harmony that comes from God. May you, our “living fountain of hope,” water the dryness of our hearts. In your womb Jesus took flesh; help us to foster the growth of communion. You once trod the streets of our world; lead us now on the paths of peace. Amen.

To the Clergy and Faithful of the Old Roman Catholic Church and the Priestly Society of Mercy:
 
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all.
 
With many of you, I watched the invasion of Ukraine with horror and deep sadness. This action of aggression against the people and nation of Ukraine is unacceptable. Now, more than ever, our Ukrainian brothers and sisters need our prayers and support as they face overwhelming Russian forces.
 
I ask you to join the appeal of Pope Francis and make Ash Wednesday, March 2, a day of fasting and prayer for peace in Ukraine. As Christians, we are called to dwell in unity and to solve differences amicably. Please continue to pray that peace will be achieved, and that bloodshed will cease.
 
Our Mother of Mercy, pray for us!

Yours in Christ,

+William

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Christ is Born! Today we rejoice after a period of penance and waiting. We are exuberant because Christ is in our midst and because His birth signifies God's great love for us. While celebrating, we cannot forget the plight of those who have had a difficult year. We remember those who have died, those who have lost a loved one, those who have suffered economically, and those who find it difficult to rejoice for many reasons. May this holy season draw us nearer to the newborn Christ and help us to care for those who need us as a visible presence of God's love. Finally, may we continue to seek Him always, especially in the Most Holy Eucharist, as so beautifully described by Sir John Betjeman in his poem "Christmas:"

"...No love that in a family dwells,
No carolling in frosty air,
Nor all the steeple-shaking bells
Can with this single Truth compare -
That God was man in Palestine
And lives today in Bread and Wine."

God bless you now and always.

Sincerely in Christ,

+William, SSM
Superior General