Divine Mercy Sunday -- A Perspective On The Blessed Sacrament

There is a great connection between Divine Mercy and the Resurrection. Jesus Christ specifically requested that the Feast of Divine Mercy be celebrated on the Second Sunday of Easter.

Here we have the culmination and conclusion of salvation history; Divine Mercy which is Eucharistically  connected with Easter Sunday which is the Resurrection. This is because the final act, the greatest act, of God's Mercy will be the manifestation of his glory from the Blessed Sacrament.

Now, he is hidden in the Blessed Sacrament. One Day he will manifest his glory and all nations and all peoples will see it. This will not be "His Second Coming". His second coming will be like the sunrise.

What I mean is the revelation of his Eucharistic Glory will be like the first streaks of dawn.

The light of His glory will be his love and mercy.

These are the two rays Saint Faustina saw radiating from the Blessed Sacrament. The white rays representing His "Divine Love" while the pink rays represent His "Divine Mercy".

These are the rays all humanity will one day see.

As Saul, was converted by "A Light that suddenly flashed around him" (Acts 9:3), so will the whole world be converted by the glorious light coming from the Blessed Sacrament. This is what Saint Peter calls "the coming of the great and splendid day of the Lord and everyone shall be saved who calls on the name of the Lord." (Acts 2:20).

Archbishop Pearce, is a Holy Catholic Bishop who lives in Providence, Rhode Island. After he retired as Bishop of Suva, Fiji he was asked to translate the Diary of Saint Faustina from Polish to English.

According to Archbishop Pearce, the most outstanding vision of Saint Faustina was before the Blessed Sacrament.

With each Holy Hour, made Rays would emanate from the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus Christ and encircle the entire world. Every Man, Woman, and Child experiences a new effect of  God's Love and Mercy for every "Holy Hour" made.

This is how much Jesus Christ appreciates your Holy Hour !! You so touch the Heart of Jesus Christ by coming to him in the Blessed Sacrament that you touch the "Heart of all Humanity"'.

You win countless graces for many who are far away from God to be converted and come back to the Heart of their God. Your Holy Hour saves souls and brings many people to Heaven who otherwise would have been lost and who would have gone to Hell.

This is called "REPARATION"!! You make up for what is lacking in the members of the "Mystical Body of Christ" by satisfying God's Divine Justice and opening up the floodgates of his Divine Mercy on the whole world.

Jesus Christ wants everyone to be saved and to go to Heaven. He said "When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to myself. (John 12:32).

In our prayers before Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament we lift up all humanity to his "Merciful Heart" and beg him to have mercy on all.

Conclusion :

A Chapel of "Perpetual Adoration" is a powerhouse of prayer exploding in graces benefiting all mankind. The effect and influence of a single holy hour of prayer is the best for the good of all mankind.

Happy and Holy Feast of Divine Mercy Sunday to one and all.

Credits and References :

1)  "Divine Mercy"
      Could you not watch one hour with me.
      April 1998 Newsletter N0- 6
     By Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament

2)  "Come to Me" in the Blessed Sacrament.
      An Excellent Book in more ways than one that consists of 10 Eucharistic Holy Hours.

Apostles Of Divine Mercy

Apostles of Divine Mercy :

What is an Apostle of Divine Mercy ??

APOSTLE -- is derived from the Greek meaning one who is sent or MESSENGER.

OF DIVINE -- meaning of course of God.

MERCY -- or misericordia  in Latin which is made up of 3 smaller words.

MISERIS -- miserable.

COR -- heart or love.

DARE -- to give.

So, an Apostle of Divine Mercy is one who brings the message of God's Love to the miserable. For, no one that is aware of God's existence and love could ever be miserable. Unfortunately, the world is full of miserable people.

The Message of Merciful Love :

Formerly, in the Old Testament the Holy Spirit spoke through the Prophets, today he speaks continuously. Jesus Christ to the Mystic Carmela Carabelli, Milan, May 1968.

The Messages are in the words of "Jesus" himself in the form of conversations with Mamma Carmela profound words of wisdom, words of counsel, and tremendous comfort and answers to questions we never ask because we don't know who to ask.

"I ask your help, as a beggar asks alms, will you help me ?? Jesus Christ Milan, 1969".

Jesus Christ asks for New Apostles :

My beloved daughter, I wish you to find new apostles to make a wide distribution of my message. I want to enter into each family to convert the hardest hearts. Take my Image to Hospitals, Hospices, Schools, Homes, and to the ends of the earth if you can.

Speak now to the whole world of my message of "Merciful Love". I will help you find new apostles. They will be my new elect and the beloved ones of my Heart and they will have a special place therein.

I will bless their families and I will deputise for them in directing their affairs if they give time to me. I will carry out in full that which I have told you in the Gospel. To him who seeks first the Kingdom of God and His Justice all the rest will be given in abundance.

And I say to you : " To anyone who propagates confidence and love towards my Mercy, I will give a hundred fold in this life and the next."

From the message of Merciful Love, Milan 27th April 1969.

History behind the message of Merciful Love :

The Message of Merciful Love, was received by Carmela Carabelli during a period which lasted some ten years from 1968 to 1978. It began in the Year that Rome had at last accepted new information on the "Revelations to the Servant of God" Sister Helena Faustina  Kowalska and issued the first of two Decrees by which the Process of Beatification was formally opened on her behalf. The date was 31st January 1968. This was thirty years after the death of Sister Faustina.

In this same year in the north of Italy in the City of Milan, a widow with a large family who had given her whole life to works of mercy and charity in her city was praying one evening when she heard a voice, it said "You will be another witness to my Divine Mercy, I will bless you and give you special graces.

I ask your help as a beggar asks alms, Will you help me ?? I want you to find new Apostles, and once again spread my message of "Merciful Love" to the ends of this Earth."

Mankind keeps losing sight of the meaning of life. On the 12th of April 1969, the eve of Low Sunday, Jesus Christ spoke to her of the Feast of Mercy "a day of great forgiveness and reconciliation".

On the 22nd of March 1970, Sister Faustina herself gave a message to Carmela and her Prayer Group. (The Mother of Divine Love Prayer Group), she said it is not the first time that I come among you but it is the first time that I wish to speak, I am Sister Faustina and I ask you to make with particular devotion the Novena of Divine Mercy, so that all Men will begin to believe in the mystery of salvation, which is contained in the Devotion to the Divine Mercy.

Credits and References :

Divine Mercy Publications
P.O. Box 2005
Dublin 13, Ireland

Apostles Prayer :

Merciful Jesus Christ, We believe in thee and we trust in thee. Come to the aid of our weakness and our incapacity. Grant that we may be able to make thee known and loved by all men, and that confident in the immensity of thy love we may be able to combat the evil which is in us and in all the world, for thy Glory and our salvation Amen.

Nihil Obstat

Pietro Santoro

Bishop of Termoli

This beautiful prayer was inspired by Jesus Christ himself to Mamma Carmela on 22nd of April 1969 in Milan.

Apparitions of Jesus Christ to Saint Faustina

Introduction :

Everywhere you turn, people are talking about Divine Mercy !!  Hurricanes, Floods, Tsunamis, Global Warming, Earthquakes, and Fires.

Hardly an article can be written about any of these events without the thought of the second coming of Jesus Christ.

Today, marks a significant date for all mankind.

87 years ago on February 22nd 1931 Jesus Christ appeared to Saint Faustina as "The Divine Mercy" with a special mission for her. He told her to paint an image as she witnessed him with two rays of light streaming from his heart, one red and the other pale like water and to sign it "Jesus, I trust in You".

Jesus Christ spent the next seven years speaking to her about his mercy and asked her to record his words in a diary, which she aptly named "Divine Mercy in my Soul". He made known to her that it was her job to prepare the world for his final coming.

Saint Pope John Paul the Great, by Divine Providence was immersed in the message of Divine Mercy at an early age and commented that it was "His Job given to him by God to bring this message to the world".

He later said "I give thanks to Divine Providence that I have been enabled to fulfil the will of the Merciful Christ by instituting the Feast of Divine Mercy". ( This was said on a visit to Poland in the 21st Century.)

Saint Pope John Paul the Great is also known as the "Divine Mercy Pope" simply because of what he did to promote the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion all over the world from 1985 - 2005.

Pope John Paul the Great lifted the ban on dissemination of the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion in 1978/1979. 14-15 years later, precisely in 1993 he beatified Sister Faustina and in the year 2000 he canonized her. He was a pioneer as far as promotion of the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion is concerned.

The Divine Mercy Diary has more than 14 entries where Jesus Christ had requested that a Feast of Mercy be established in the church as a "Last Hope of Salvation".

Saint Pope John Paul the Great established the Feast as Divine Mercy Sunday during the canonization in Rome of Saint Faustina in the Jubilee Year 2000 as the First Saint in the new millennium !!

Saint Pope John Paul the Great personally championed the cause of the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion for 20 long years.

Jesus Christ told Saint Faustina that "From Poland will come forth a spark that will prepare the world for my final coming" ( Diary 1732). No doubt, this was Pope John Paul who not only established the Feast requested by Jesus Christ, but issued an "unprecedented special plenary indulgence and specified; as the duties of priests, the proclamation of that plenary indulgence to all humanity".

If this wasn't proof enough of God's Providence in the matter, Our Beloved Pope Saint John Paul the Great passed into heaven on the "Vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday" after celebrating that feast and participating in the requirements of obtaining the plenary indulgence !!

The Image of the Divine Mercy is central to the entire message of Divine Mercy and has a special importance by being displayed in churches, specially on the Feast of Divine Mercy.

Jesus Christ related several times the importance of the image on the feast. He said "I desire that there be a Feast of Mercy. I want this image, which you will paint with a brush, to be solemnly blessed on the First Sunday after Easter; that Sunday is to be the Feast of Mercy". ( Diary 49)

One day Saint Faustina said to Our Lord "They tell me that there is already such a feast and so why should I talk about it ??".

Jesus Christ answered "And who knows anything about this feast ?? No one !! Even those who should be proclaiming my mercy and teaching people about it often do not know about it themselves.

That is why I want the Image to be solemnly blessed on the First Sunday after Easter, and want it to be venerated  "Publicly" so that every soul may know about it". ( Diary 340).

Conclusion :

Catholic Churches throughout the world that have permanently installed "Divine Mercy Images" are benefiting greatly. Jesus Christ surely knew what he was doing when he gave us this image. It is exactly what mankind will need to maintain its hope in the years ahead with natural disasters that are inevitable.

If it is true that a picture has a thousand words or more, then this one has untold millions.

Jesus Christ said "The two rays denote Blood and Water, The pale ray stands for water which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for the life of souls.

These two rays issued forth from the very depths of my tender mercy when my agonized heart was opened by a lance on the cross. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him" ( Diary 299).

Credits :

Robert R. Allard
Director
Apostles of Divine Mercy

The Story Behind The Painting Of The Merciful Jesus Christ In Vilnius

This is an inside look at how the image of the  Merciful Jesus in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius was depicted by Artist Eugeniusz Kazimirowski in secret under the supervision of Saint Faustina and Blessed Father Michael Sopocko.

Born in Poland in 1905, Maria Faustina Kowalska belonged to the Order of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy. After the Polish Nun received the Message of Divine Mercy from the Lord on various occasions in the 1930s, she spearheaded this project.

Given that Jesus wanted everyone to have access to this “well” of mercy, as he communicated to Sister Faustina, the church is open 24/7 every day of the week and there is a webcam to access from the whole world. 

Here, we would like to share some details you may not have known about this image’s history.

Sr. Faustina went twice a week to the painter for six months. The painter’s workshop was under the living space of Father Sopocko (Sr. Faustina’s spiritual director) who lived in a house in the Visitation monastery because he was the chaplain there.

It was all done in secret, as who would have ever believed that Jesus had appeared to her and wanted to be really painted. However, Sr. Faustina’s first confessor confirmed to her that yes indeed, the Lord wished to be depicted. Sr. Faustina was always accompanied into the workshop by either a reliable parishioner or another sister.

Today, the painter’s workshop has been transformed into a chapel.

Still living in the house, at the Lord’s request, are the order of nuns founded by Fr. Sopocko. They are also taking care of the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Vilnius.

Jesus had told Sr. Faustina that what matters is that thanks to this picture, “everyone will come to receive my mercy.”

The brightest point in the picture is the heart. The light on the forehead signifies the presence of the Father.

The right hand is not raised in the painting as it is in Krakow: it is before the Lord, in a gesture of blessing.

The first time the painting was presented to the worship of the faithful was when the Jubilee of Redemption was to end (1933-1934): it was exposed in the chapel of the Madonna Porta dell’Aurora venerated by Lithuanians to the extent that the Soviets never dared to close it.

On that day, Fr. Sopocko gave a homily on Divine Mercy, as the Lord requested, and Sr. Faustina was there, very happy.

During the Soviet occupation, the image was hidden in Belarus.

Later, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Cardinal Audrys Backis (Archbishop of Vilnius, now emeritus) restored and put it in the Church of the Trinity, where Fr. Sopocko was once a priest. The church was restored too.

On the Feast of the Divine Mercy, April 18, 2004, Cardinal Audrys Juozas Backis, Metropolitan of Vilnius, reconsecrated the renovated church of the Holy Trinity in Vilnius into the Shrine of the Divine Mercy.

At the same time, he assigned a prayer service to be carried out by the Congregation of the Sisters of Merciful Jesus.

In September 2005, the first image of Merciful Jesus was placed in this Shrine.

The picture has generated “miracles” in people’s lives.

In 2000 at St. Peter’s in Vatican City, Pope John Paul II canonized Sr. Faustina and officially proclaimed the Feast of Divine Mercy.

Credits : Zenit News from Rome 

The Eucharist In The Life Of Saint Faustina

During the celebration of Corpus Christi in Rome in 2004, the Pope announced the Year of the Holy Eucharist. Saint Faustina’s full religious name was Sister Maria Faustina of the Most Blessed Sacrament and her whole life revolved around the Holy Eucharist. If you read her diary almost every page makes reference to the Eucharist.

In talking about her life to a friend she said, “The most solemn moment of my life is the moment when I receive Holy Communion and for every Holy Communion I give thanks to the Most Holy Trinity” (Diary 1804).

The sisters had a tradition that each sister drew a choice of patron for the year at the beginning of each New Year. Sister Faustina was overjoyed year after year when she drew  "The Holy Eucharist"  (Diary 360).

She had a special relationship to the Holy Eucharist, because Jesus gave her a clear understanding of this mystery. She describes it “as the wonderful gift of His presence on earth”. During Mass, “I thanked the Lord Jesus for having redeemed us and for having given us the greatest of all gifts, the Holy Eucharist”. “You wanted to stay with us, and so you left us yourself in the Sacrament of the Altar, and you opened wide your mercy to us. You opened an inexhaustible spring of mercy for us, giving us your dearest possession, the Blood and Water, that gushed forth from Your Heart” (Diary 1747).

During a Holy Hour, in a vision of the cenacle, Sr. Faustina saw the institution of the Holy Eucharist. She came to understand that, "At the moment of consecration...the sacrifice was fully consummated.

Hereafter, only the external ceremony of death will be carried out. Never in my whole life had I understood this mystery so profoundly as during that hour of adoration" (Diary 684, 757, 832).
She devoted a lot of her prayers to asking God to let the world understand more the unfathomable mystery and mercy of the Eucharist.  She said, “Who will ever conceive and understand the depth of mercy that gushed forth from His Heart”?

It is only in eternity that we shall know the great mystery given to us in Holy Communion. One day we will know what God is doing for us in each Mass, and what sort of gift He is preparing through it for us.

“All the tongues of men and angels united could not find words adequate to describe this mystery of Your love and mercy”. “Transform me in Yourself, 0 Jesus, that I may be a living sacrifice and pleasing to You. I desire to atone at each moment of my life for poor sinners.“

Jesus answered her prayers telling her: “You are a living host, pleasing to the Heavenly Father” (Diary 1826). She said: All the good that is in me is due to the Holy Communion. I owe everything to it.

St. Faustina lived fully the prayer of the Church: “Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love“.

Her experience of being like a living host, hidden, broken, and given, was to be the experience of her life - Her greatest desire was: to be hidden, like Jesus in the Eucharist; to be broken, like Jesus, in the passion; to be totally given, like Jesus, in the salvation of souls.

But, this experience was based on the union of love with the living God and this union was most profoundly experienced in conjunction with the Holy Eucharist, either during Mass and Holy Communion, or during adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

Her union with the Lord was, in His words, as a bride: Here, I am entirely yours, soul, body and divinity as Your Bridegroom. You know what love demands, one thing only, reciprocity. (Diary 1770) What she experienced during Holy Communion was a complete union with the Holy Trinity, “At that moment, I was drawn into the bosom of the Most Holy Trinity, and I was immersed in the love of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit“. (Diary 1670, 1121,1129)

These times of union are a taste of Eternity she said. (Diary 969). Holy Communion was the strength and support of St. Faustina in her every day struggle of life. The Lord told her: In the Host is the power; it will defend you always. (Diary 616)

Throughout her diary, she recorded the strength she received from the Eucharist  Throughout the day she adored Jesus, praising and asking Him for graces, especially for suffering children (Diary 1821).

A regular experience for St. Faustina was the vision of the Lord during Holy Mass. Over sixty such visions are recorded in her diary, mostly of the infant Jesus, a few occasions with the Blessed Mother, and at other times, Jesus during His passion and some of His majesty.

Some dozen times she records seeing the rays of mercy as in the image of the Merciful Savior coming from the Holy Eucharist, at times covering the world. (See Diary 420, 441, 1046)

These profound experiences during the Holy Eucharist were closely associated with the vessels of mercy, namely the Feast, the Image, the Chaplet, and the Three O'Clock prayer.

Holy Communion is the most important part of the celebration of the Feast of Divine Mercy. On a number of occasions, St. Faustina saw the Eucharist radiate red and white rays, like in the Image of Divine Mercy.

The Chaplet of Divine Mercy is Eucharistic. It is an offering of the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the Father, in atonement for the sins of the world.

If you wanted to summarise the Diary of St. Faustina, you would have to come to the conclusion that all the vessels the Lord gave us through St. Faustina are Eucharistic. There was a very special place for the Holy Eucharist in the life of Sister Maria Faustina of the Most Blessed Sacrament.

Credits : Divine Mercy Scotland 

We Can Be Transformed By Holy Communion

In her Diary, St. Faustina wrote, “I find myself so weak that were it not for Holy Communion I would fall continually. One thing alone sustains me, and that is Holy Communion. From it I draw my strength; in it is all my comfort. I fear life on days when I do not receive Holy Communion. I fear my own self. Jesus concealed in the Host is everything to me. From the tabernacle I draw strength, power, courage and light. Here, I seek consolation in time of anguish. I would not know how to give glory to God if I did not have the Eucharist in my heart”. (Diary 1037)

 

“My Peace I Give You”

The central message of the Devotion to Divine Mercy is to trust in the Lord and be merciful to others. It is a continuation of the Communion Rite, in the celebration of the Eucharist, beginning with the Lord's Prayer. In the celebration of the Eucharist, the priest asks God for a blessing of peace for all present. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit, a peace and mercy that will keep us free from sin, protects us from all anxiety, as we wait in joyful hope, for the glorious return of Jesus.


In the celebration of the Eucharist, the priest prays the words Jesus spoke at the Last Supper, “My Peace I give you, My Peace I leave you”. On that first Low Sunday, now called the Feast of Mercy, Jesus also said, “Peace be with you”. In her Dairy, St. Faustina recorded the words of Our Lord regarding peace. Jesus said, “Mankind will have no peace until it turns with trust to My mercy. Tell aching mankind to come close to My Merciful Heart, and I will fill it with peace”. (Diary 1074)

 

The Lamb of God

When we call upon the "Lamb of God", we call upon Jesus, Who is both Priest and Victim and is the source of all mercy. From the pierced side of the risen Lamb of God, flows the blood and water, the sacramental life of the Church. This is the Lamb of God, lifted up before our eyes by the priest.
We are all unworthy to receive this Lamb, but God, in His great mercy, humbled Himself to be the Lamb, that we receive and consume, and so be transformed. We should not just receive Him, but we should enter into communion with Him. We are to become the very image of God, living icons of His trust and mercy.

 

Transformed by His Mercy

True devotion leads us to an inner conversion to become like what we are devoted to. By our devotion to Divine Mercy, we are to become living icons of Mercy, living witnesses of trust and mercy. Like St. Faustina, we should become living images of the Merciful Saviour.
St. Faustina prayed, “I want to be completely transformed into Your mercy and to be Your living reflection, O Lord. May the greatest of all divine attributes, that of Your unfathomable mercy, pass through my heart and soul, to my neighbour. (Diary 163)


Like St. Faustina, each of us should become a living Eucharist. In this way, we truly extend the Mass to each other. Like St. Faustina, we should become a living Chaplet of Divine Mercy, by offering all our sufferings in union with the Passion of Jesus, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world. Our offerings alone are a mere nothing, but united with Christ, they can be a powerful plea for mercy for ourselves, our families, and for the whole world.

 

Radiating Christ’s Mercy to Others

Our Lord told St. Faustina that we are to radiate His mercy to others, “Tell (all people), My daughter, that I am Love and Mercy itself. When a soul approaches Me with trust, I will fill it with such an abundance of graces, that it cannot contain them within itself, but radiates them to others” (Diary 1074)


In other words, we are to radiate His mercy, His peace and His forgiveness. We are to become what the priest expresses in the prayer after the Lord's Prayer, “Delivered from evil and filled with peace and mercy, freed from sin and anxiety, as we joyfully wait for the coming of Jesus Christ our Lord”.
This is the peace and mercy Jesus gives us on Easter Sunday and proclaimed also on the Feast of Mercy.


This is the peace the priest blesses us with and which we exchange with one another. This is the peace and mercy we receive and enter into communion with. This is the peace and mercy we are to radiate and share with others. We should turn to Jesus with trust, receive His mercy with thanksgiving and share His trust and mercy with great joy.


Both the Divine Mercy Message, of Trust and Mercy, and the devotions to the Divine Mercy repeat, extend, and continue the offering of the Immaculate Victim of the altar, and the whole of the Communion Rite of Mass.

 

Living Mercy

We are to imitate what we celebrate and become what we consume. We are to be living icons of mercy, here on earth, glorifying the name of the Eternal Father, fulfilling His will and striving to have mercy on all. Thus we make mercy present and make His kingdom among us present, by our trust in Jesus and by our lives of mercy toward one another. In this way we defeat the kingdom of Evil and give all glory to God the Father, for the kingdom, the power and the glory are His, now and forever.

Credits : Divine Mercy Scotland 

Complete Confidence In Jesus Christ

To have complete confidence in Jesus is to truly know Him. This confidence in Jesus comes from deeply contemplating the ‘works of His hands’ during His earthly life and His many gifts of grace during ours. It comes from knowing that Jesus is infinite goodness.

It is knowing that such goodness is also infinitely merciful. To have complete confidence in Jesus is to know that He has the power to change any situation and perform any miracle, He need only wish it and it will be done. He is not bound by any law of nature or science. To trust in Jesus is to know that He is watching each and every moment of your life as if you were the only person in the world and that He desires to help you in all your difficulties because He loves you with a love that is difficult for humans to fully appreciate.

He is goodness personified in a way that is almost impossible for humans to understand. St. Paul referred to this when he wrote that, “the eye has not seen nor the ear heard what God has in store for those who love Him”. We quiet simply have no idea what Heaven will be like. Complete confidence in Jesus is also an act of faith.

It comes from recognising the work of God in one’s life and trusting in His goodness, even during difficult phases of our life. It is knowing that God allows suffering for the benefit of the soul, even if that is a hard concept to fully understand, but this is definitely true.

We must trust that Jesus is honest and truthful. If He tells us that His mercy is infinite, then we must believe Him. When He tells us that He will forgive us each and every time we ask for mercy, we must believe Him because it would be totally and completely impossible for Jesus to tell a lie. Jesus once told St. Faustina, “Who God is in His Essence, no one will fathom, neither the mind of Angels nor of man. Get to know God by contemplating His attributes”. (Diary No. 30).

God is love, mercy, goodness and truth. God is gentle, compassionate, patient and without any limits or restrictions of power. Every saint who has ever lived has spoke about God using these terms. They arose out of their personal insights into the nature of God either through prayer or experience.
Unfortunately, there are so many who just cannot believe that God could love them or forgive them. This is absolutely wrong.

As Jesus told St. Faustina, “Even if there were a sinner most hardened, if he were to recite this chaplet only once, he would receive grace from My infinite mercy. I desire that the whole world know My infinite mercy. I desire to grant unimaginable graces to those souls who trust in My mercy”. (Diary 687).

Jesus is actually hurt when we don’t trust in His goodness and His love and mercy. He told St. Faustina, “Oh, how much I am hurt by a soul’s distrust! Such a soul professes that I am Holy and Just, but does not believe that I am Mercy and does not trust in My Goodness. Even the devils glorify My Justice but do not believe in My Goodness” (Diary 300). In order to have complete confidence in Jesus we must believe that He is goodness, love and mercy and He has no desire to harm us in any way, even if He permits suffering in our lives.

Unfortunately suffering is a part of life and no-one ever escaped this no matter how hard they tried. But this does not mean that we should doubt God’s love for us.

 We must overcome these obstacles in our spiritual life and attain the greatest treasure the earth offers, union with God. Our lives offer many entertainments but it is only God who can satisfy the longings of the soul and make life truly special.

Only God has the power to turn evil into good and arrange a soul’s affairs in a way that makes life exciting and special for them, for God is the only person who truly knows us. There is something so thrilling about knowing with certainty that some event that has taken place in our life was a gift from God. Knowledge of God and having faith and trust in His goodness, love and mercy are the greatest gifts this world has to offer. And the best of God’s gifts is yet to come!

Credits : Divine Mercy Scotland 

The Living Image Of Divine Mercy

 

Christ’s Revelations about the Image of Divine Mercy

In the revelation of 1934, Jesus said the Image is a vessel to which we should keep coming to receive graces. He called it the very source of God's Mercy. In the vision of December 1935, He described it as an instrument, by which He will always grant graces.

If this is the case and Jesus always keeps His promises, then the Divine Mercy Image must be a most important presence in our lives, a living gift Jesus has given to a world, so in need of God’s Mercy.

But seeking mercy through the image, without being compassionate and merciful in our own lives may have a negative effect. Jesus said: “This Image is also to be a reminder of the demands of My mercy, because even the strongest faith, is of no avail without works” (Diary 742) This is also confirmed by Gospel "Take the case my brothers, of someone who has never done a single good act but claims he has faith. Will his faith save him"? (James 2.14)

 

Vessel of Mercy

Jesus requires Devotion to His Divine Mercy to be a renewal of Christian life and therefore we must be sure our devotion to His Mercy is sincere. Thus the Image points clearly to a duty of being merciful in our own lives, knowing if we live true to our Christian faith we can receive His mercy at will.

 

The Night of the Vision of Divine Mercy

The first Image of Jesus as Divine Mercy appeared to Helen Kowalska, a 25 year old Polish girl who had taken the name Faustina when she joined the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in August 1925, we know her today as Saint Faustina. She was in her room sometime late on the evening of 22nd February 1931. Her description of this momentous event is recorded in her diary of that day.

 

Describing the Vision

She said in the evening she was suddenly aware of a figure appearing out of the darkness. She immediately recognised the figure of Jesus, dressed in a white garment. (Diary No.47) His right hand was raised in the gesture of a blessing. His left hand was touching His breast where two bright rays emanated from His heart spread out as they descended to the floor - one ray was red, the other pale.

 

Source of Graces

On this first of His many appearances to St.Faustina as Divine Mercy, He asked her to have a painting made of this image. This image He told her would be a means of great graces bestowed on all who prayed before it for mercy for themselves or for others. He told her the Image should have the signature "Jesus I trust in You" which also implied that these words should be spoken after you pray in front of the image, to obtain the grace you ask for.

 

Honouring the Image

Jesus wanted this image which He called the fount of His Mercy to be exposed throughout the world. The importance of this was repeated again and again during the revelations about God’s Mercy and He emphasised the extraordinary promises connected with the worship of Jesus as Divine Mercy.

 

Confusion because of Apparition

Some days later St. Faustina told her confessor about this revelation but he did not understand her and interpreted the Saviour's wish differently. He told Faustina he thought Jesus meant to paint this image in her mind which would inspire her to deeds of mercy. But immediately afterwards Jesus addressed her again, emphasising His wish to have the Image of Divine Mercy painted on canvas and exposed first in her chapel and then throughout the world.(Diary 491).

When she told this to her Superior, her Superior asked for proof that this request came from Jesus and was not just her imagination. As a result the Saint asked Jesus for a proof to show the superior but Jesus replied that the extraordinary graces which He would grant through this image would be the proof. (Diary 511)

 

Painting the Image

In Lent 1933 Jesus emphasised the importance of painting the Image, as it would be a means to save many souls. He told St. Faustina that she would be responsible for many souls if she neglected having the Image painted. When the work on the painting started, Jesus told her he wanted it displayed in public on the first Sunday after Easter. (Diary 88)

St. Faustina's spiritual director, Blessed Fr. Michael Sopocko asked about the inscription required on the painting. St. Faustina answered that Christ wanted the words, "Jesus I trust in You" which had been given to her in the first apparition on 22nd February 1931. She also emphasised to Fr. Sopocko that Jesus also explained that the Image was to be a vessel through which all souls would receive graces as if from a flowing fountain. [Diary 327].

 

My gaze from the cross

At the same time another revelation took place when Jesus explained the meaning of His gaze or facial expression in the image. He said “My gaze from this Image is like My gaze from the Cross,” [Diary 326]. Jesus also said to her that the greatness of the Image was not in the expertise of the artist but in the graces that flowed from it to those who prayed in front of it and trusted in His promise. (Diary 313)

 

What the Rays stand for

Blessed Fr. Sopocko also asked St. Faustina to explain the meaning of the rays. During prayer Jesus told her that the two streams of rays denoted the Blood and Water which ran from His side when it was opened by a lance on the cross.

The pale rays stand for the Water which cleanses the soul of past sins, and the red rays represent the Blood which He shed for the renewal of souls. (Diary 299) In her Diary St. Faustina records that on the 26th of October 1934, a very special vision of the Image took place. It happened in the convent gardens in Vilnius at 5.50 pm and lasted about four minutes.

She saw Jesus in the sky above the Convent looking as He did in the original Image in 1931. The rays of love and mercy emanating from His heart were covering the Convent in Vilnius and then spreading out over the whole world. (Diary 87)

On the 5th of November 1934 Jesus confirmed the importance of the Image being solemnly blessed and venerated on the first Sunday after Easter as part of the conditions to allow Him grant complete cleansing of the soul on this special day. (Diary 341)

 

The Image and the Eucharist:

 

The First Vision

In November 1934, St. Faustina experienced a revelation which connected the Image to the Eucharist for the first time. During Holy Mass, when the Blessed Sacrament was exposed before Communion, St. Faustina saw the red and pale rays, as depicted in the Image coming out of the Sacred Host.

 

The Second Vision

One month later, on the 20th of December, she had a vision where she saw Jesus exposed in the Blessed Sacrament being venerated by Father Sopocko with many other priests and religious and great crowds of lay people. The same rays came out of the Host and then passed through the hands of Fr. Sopocko and then through the hands of the clergy and from their hands to the people, and then they returned to the Host (Diary 344). This is a clear indication of the onus Christ put on priests to help Him dispense God’s mercy.

 

The Third Vision

At the end of January 1935, while waiting for confession, St. Faustina saw the rays coming out from the monstrance and spreading throughout the Church. Their appearance was bright and transparent like crystal. The revelation lasted the whole service [Diary 370].

 

The Fourth Vision

On Good Friday, the 19th of April 1935, at 3pm, when St. Faustina entered the chapel she heard the words, “I desire that the Image be publicly honoured and venerated” (Diary 414). In her diary she described how she saw Jesus dying on the cross, suffering greatly and the rays spreading out over the world.

 

The Display of the Image for the First Time

The Image of the Divine Mercy was publicly displayed for the first time at Ostra Brama the ‘Mother of Mercy’ Shrine in Vilnius on 26-28 April 1935 during the celebrations concluding the Jubilee Year on the anniversary of the Redemption of the World. The Divine Mercy Image of Jesus was placed beside the image of Our Lady the Mother of Mercy.


To Fr .Sopocko it seemed as if the Mother was giving her risen Son to the world once again on the anniversary of His death on the Cross, where His suffering and death won Divine Mercy from the Father and redeemed the world, all graphically displayed in this painting.

 

The First Vision of this weekend

At the beginning of this historic weekend, while Fr. Sopocko was giving the homily on Divine Mercy, St. Faustina saw the painting come alive and the rays going out over the whole congregation and piercing the hearts of all the people there (Diary 417) which it now does in the church on the Feast of Mercy.

 

The Second Vision of this weekend

Then on the Sunday, which was Low Sunday (now called the Feast of Mercy), as the Mass ended, Fr. Sopocko took the Blessed Sacrament and blessed the congregation. But what St. Faustina saw was Christ as He is represented in the Image of Divine Mercy, blessing all the people present. The rays once again spread out over them and then she saw the rays continue to spread out over the whole world. The importance of mercy Sunday was once again demonstrated here.


On the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, 20th June 1935, the painting of the Divine Mercy Image was placed in front of the altar. When the Blessed Sacrament was put on the altar, the rays from the Image went through the Sacred Host and spread out over the congregation. At that moment Faustina heard Jesus say that the rays of mercy would one day pass through her to the world. [Diary 441].


On the 29 June 1935, St. Faustina saw Jesus again, as He is represented in the picture. He expressed a desire that a new religious congregation should be founded to help make the image and devotion to His Divine Mercy known (Diary 437).

 

Vision on the Feast of Christ the King

On the 27th October 1935, during the celebrations of the feast of Christ the King, St. Faustina saw Jesus again in the same way as He is represented in the Divine Mercy Image. It happened during Holy Mass while she was praying that He might be beloved by all the world and that His Divine Mercy would reach every soul. (Diary 500)


In the last quarter of 1935 three more revelations concerning the Image of the Divine Mercy took place. In December 1935, Fr. Sopocko got a message from Jesus through St. Faustina telling him to move the painting from the privacy of the convent (where he had left it) to be displayed in his church to enable the public to have access to His mercy by veneration of the image and the graces that would flow from it. (Diary 570) This was the message that convinced Fr. Sopocko of the authenticity of the revelations.

Divine Mercy Devotion in Goa

The Divine Mercy Devotion in Goa is actively promoted by the Discalced Carmelite Friars of the Karnataka - Goa Province.

A Name synonmous with the Propagation of the Divine Mercy Devotion in Goa throughout his Life was Father Anastasio Gomes O.C.D. He was truly an Apostle of Divine Mercy in Goa.

He saw to it that Divine Mercy Literature both in Konkani -- The State Language of Goa as well as in English was printed and disseminated among the faithful.

My Family specially my Father Dr. Joe D'sa M.D. and my late Mother Mrs Lena D'sa as well as myself helped Father Anastasio Gomes to raise money for the building of an Altar dedicated to the Divine Mercy.

We did this by visiting Catholic Families in various parts of Mumbai and asking for Donations towards the building of this Divine Mercy Altar and Divine Mercy Chapel as it exists now.

A Certain Discalced Carmelite Friar by the name of Father Michael Morris Shenoy was a good friend of my Parents when He was stationed at Carmelite Seminary, Peddem -- Mapusa -Goa. 

Read all about the Propagation of the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion in Goa here.

http://www.carmelgoa.com/DivineMercyDevotion.html

Divine Mercy In My Life

From the age of 17 in 1988, I was attracted to the Divine Mercy Image because of the two rays that emanate from it.

One Ray stands for the Sacrament of Baptism and the other Ray stands for the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

The Motto below the Image, Jesus, I trust in You has brought Blessings and Miracles in my Life.

While, I was studying for my Degree in Commercial Studies -- I was harassed no end by Anti-Socials.

I had to endure terrible evil at their hands.

If Today, I am not a Heroin Addict or Cocaine Addict -- It is only because of Jesus Christ The Divine Mercy.

While living in Philadelphia in the United States -- The Divine Mercy actively protected me from Criminals, Robbers, and Drug Dealers.

Jesus Christ is the Divine Mercy present Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity in the Holy Eucharist.

He is Your Friend and Brother in more ways than one.

Say the 3.00 Prayer and Divine Mercy Chaplet at least once a week.

It brings great and untold Blessings and Miracles in one's life.

Try It ------- It Works.

Introduction

This is a Blog dedicated to the Glory and Power of the Divine Mercy in My Life.

Jesus Christ who is Divine Mercy Incarnate has performed Outstanding Miracles in my Life.

Right from Birth, He has protected me from all evil as a Mother protects Her Child.

As a Grown Up Man, He has taught me to love him Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.

He has healed me from so many illnesses from the age of 12 that they are too many to enumerate.