# Jubilee Year Prayer
*2016-04-25*

> Bill Young shares a striking story of mercy from World War II and leads a prayer for the Holy Year of Mercy, asking God to pour out forgiveness and grace on the Church and the world.

## A Story of Unexpected Mercy

Bill recounts a remarkable episode from a World II concentration camp in Poland. The camp commander, a man named Hess, was notorious for his cruelty, almost on the same level as Adolf Hitler. When the priests in the nearby town were taken away, Hess, moved by their fate, asked to be with them. The guards, expecting his death, instead allowed him to enter the camp. Later, after the war, Rudolf Hess was captured, tried, and sentenced to death. While awaiting execution, he requested a priest for absolution. To everyone’s surprise, the bishop Hess had previously freed agreed to hear his confession and later gave him Holy Communion. The story illustrates that even the gravest sinner can receive God’s mercy through a sincere confession.

## Why Mercy Matters

Bill reflects that we must not rush to judge whether anyone is beyond salvation. Only God knows the state of a person’s heart, and the sacrament of confession can bring forgiveness even to those who have committed the worst crimes. This humility is at the heart of the Jubilee Year, a special time when the Church emphasizes God’s boundless mercy.

## The Jubilee Year Prayer

Bill leads the prayer:

Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us to be merciful as the Heavenly Father. You promised that whoever looks upon you will be saved. You freed Zacharias and Matthew, showed compassion to the adulteress, and gave hope to the Samaritan woman. You turned Peter’s tears after his betrayal into the promise of paradise for the repentant thief. May we hear your words as you spoke to the Samaritan woman, the living water that quenches our thirst.

You are the visible face of the invisible Father, manifesting power through forgiveness and mercy. Let the Church be that visible face in the world, risen and glorified. May our ministries, even when weak, be instruments of compassion for those in ignorance and error. Let all who approach feel loved, sought after, and forgiven by God.

Send your Holy Spirit to consecrate each of us, that this Jubilee of Mercy may be a year of grace. May the Church, renewed in enthusiasm, bring good news to the poor, proclaim liberty to the captive, and restore sight to the blind. Through the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we pray. Amen.

## Closing Thought

Bill reminds listeners that this is the Year of Mercy—an invitation to turn to God, receive forgiveness, and extend that mercy to others.

*Even the most condemned soul can be reconciled through a sincere confession, reminding us to trust in God’s limitless mercy.*