A million people lined the route Pope Saint John Paul II took into the city of Liverpool following his helicopter journey from Coventry to Liverpool Speke Airport in 1982.
He briefly visited Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral to say The Lord’s Prayer before making his way to celebrate Mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King. At this venue the importance of the Sacrament of Penance (Confession) and forgiveness was emphasised during his homily: “There is no sin that cannot be forgiven, if we approach the throne of mercy with humble and contrite hearts. No evil is more powerful than the infinite mercy of God. In becoming man, Jesus entered completely into our human experience, even to the point of suffering the final and most cruel effect of the power of sin – death on a cross.”
Our motorcade will be passing along Hope Street. This name struck me immediately as an expression of the aspirations of the people who live here, an expression of their hope for the future, especially for the future of their children and their children’s children.
There is no sin which cannot be forgiven, if we approach the throne of mercy with humble and contrite hearts. No evil is more powerful than the infinite mercy of God.
