Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska

Information taken from the website: thedivinemercy.org

The message of The Divine Mercy is simple. It is that God loves us — all of us.  And, he wants us to recognize that 

His mercy is greater than our sins, so that we will call upon Him with trust, receive His mercy, and 

let it flow through us to others. Thus, all will come to share His joy.

The Divine Mercy message is one we can call to mind simply by remembering ABC:

A - Ask for His Mercy. God wants us to approach Him in prayer constantly, repenting of our sins and asking Him to pour His mercy out upon us and upon the whole world.

B - Be merciful. God wants us to receive His mercy and let it flow through us to others. He wants us to extend love and forgiveness to others just as He does to us.

C - Completely trust in Jesus. God wants us to know that the graces of His mercy are dependent upon our trust. The more we trust in Jesus, the more we will receive.

The Divine Mercy message and devotion is based on the writings of Saint Faustina

Kowalska, an uneducated Polish nun who, in obedience to her spiritual director, wrote a

diary of about 600 pages recording the revelations she received about God's mercy. Even before her death in 1938, the devotion to The Divine Mercy had begun to spread.

On August 25, 1905

Helena Kowalska was born in Poland; the third of ten children living off a small farm and her father's carpentry work.

She would become known to the world as St. Faustina

Through St. Faustina, Jesus gave the world new channels for obtaining the outpouring of His grace. 

The Image of The Divine Mercy

The Feast of Mercy (Divine Mercy Sunday)

The Chaplet

The Novena to The Divine Mercy

The Hour of Great Mercy.

February 22, 1931

Sr. Faustina sees a vision of Jesus who tells her

 “Paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the inscription:  

‘Jesus, I trust in You.’” 

THE RED RAY

Stands for the Blood which is the life of souls

THE PALE RAY

Stands for the Water which

makes souls righteous

“These two rays issued forth from the depths of My most tender Mercy at that time when

My agonizing Heart was opened by a lance on the Cross…

Fortunate is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him.”

“My daughter, tell the whole world about My inconceivable mercy. I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sinners. I pour out a whole ocean 

of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy”

(Diary, 699).

The Feast“I want this image to be solemnly blessed

on the first Sunday after Easter; that Sunday is to be the Feast of Mercy. On that day, the depths of My Mercy will be

open to all. Whoever will go to confession and Holy Communion on that day will receive complete forgiveness of

sin and punishment.”

A Vision of God’s MercyIn 1933, God gave Sister Faustina a striking vision of His Mercy, Sister tells us:

“I saw a great light, with God the Father in the midst of it. Between this light and the earth, I saw Jesus nailed to the Cross and in such a way that God, wanting to look upon the earth, had to look through Our Lord’s wounds. And I understood that God blessed the earth for the sake of Jesus.”

THE THREE O’CLOCK HOUR THE HOUR OF DIVINE MERCY   

“At three o’clock, implore My mercy, especially for sinners; and, if only for a brief moment, immerse yourself in My Passion, particularly in My abandonment at the moment of agony. This is the hour of great mercy. In this hour, I will refuse nothing to the soul that makes a request of Me in virtue of My Passion” (Diary, 1320).

“…for at that moment mercy was opened wide for every soul… it was the hour of grace for the whole world — mercy triumphed over justice.” (1572)

1935 - A Vision of God’s Wrath

“I saw an Angel, the executor of God’s wrath… about to strike the earth… I began to beg God earnestly for the world with words which I heard interiorly. As I prayed in this way, I saw the Angel’s helplessness, and he could not carry out the just punishment…”

The following day, an inner voice taught her to say the prayer she had prayed… The Chaplet of Divine Mercy

The Chaplet of Divine Mercy“Say unceasingly this chaplet that I have taught

you. Anyone who says it will receive great Mercy at the hour of death.”

“Even the most hardened sinner, if he recites

this Chaplet even once, will receive grace from My Infinite Mercy.

I want the whole world to know My Infinite

Mercy. I want to give unimaginable graces to those who trust in My Mercy….”

HOW TO PRAY THE CHAPLET

1. Make the sign of the Cross2. Optional Opening Prayer3. Our Father4. Hail Mary5. The Apostles Creed6. The Eternal Father7. On the 10 small beads of each decade:

“For the sake of His sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.”

8. Repeat for the remaining decades: “Eternal Father” (6) on the Our Father bead and “For the sake of His sorrowful passion” (7) prayer on each of the 10 Hail Mary beads.

9. Conclude with “Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, Have mercy on us and on the whole world.” (repeat 3 times)

Jesus asked that the Feast of Divine Mercy be preceded by a Novena to the Divine Mercy which would begin on Good Friday.

Jesus gave Sr. Faustina an intention to pray for on each day of the Novena.

Day 1 (Good Friday) All mankind, especially sinners

Day 2 (Holy Saturday) The Souls of priests and religious

Day 3 (Easter Sunday) All devout and faithful souls

Day 4 (Easter Monday) Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him

Day 5 (Easter Tuesday) The souls of separated brethren

Day 6 (Easter Wednesday) The meek and humble souls

and the souls of childrenDay 7 (Easter Thursday)

The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus’ mercy

Day 8 (Easter Friday)The souls who are detained in purgatory

Day 9 (Easter Saturday) The souls who have become lukewarm

1935 – Sr. Faustina writes to her Spiritual Director, “The time will come when this work, which God so commends, [will be] as though in complete ruin, and suddenly the action of God will come upon the scene with great power which will bear witness to the truth. It will be as a new splendor for the church, though it has been dormant in it from long ago.”

March 6, 1959 – Holy See – acting on misinformation – prohibited the spreading of this devotion which led to 20 years of total silence

April 15, 1978 – Holy See – after thorough examination –reverses its decision. The one man primarily responsible – Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, the Archbishop of the Diocese of Cracow, Poland.

October 16, 1978 - Cardinal Woityla declared Pope John Paul II.

April 30, 2000 - Blessed Faustina is canonized in Rome on Divine Mercy Sunday and Divine Mercy Sunday is proclaimed.

August 18, 2002 - John Paul II consecrates the whole world to the Divine Mercy from The Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Krakow at the site of St. Faustina's tomb.

April 3, Vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday - Pope John Paul II dies, leaving us a message for Divine Mercy Sunday.

Be Merciful as Your Father is MercifulWe are called both to receive God’s Mercy and to use it to be merciful to others. Even the strongest faith is of no use without works.

Jesus' Call to Mercy “I am giving you three ways of exercising mercy toward your neighbor…”:

By deed By wordBy prayer

Corporal Works

Feed the hungryGive drink to the thirstyClothe the nakedShelter the homelessComfort the prisonersVisit the sickBury the dead

Spiritual Works

Teach the ignorantPray for the living & deadCorrect sinnersCounsel those in doubtConsole the sorrowfulBear wrongs patientlyForgive wrongs willingly

WHAT ARE THE WORKS OF MERCY?

Discussion and Closing PrayerSaint Faustina,

You told us that your mission would continue after your death and that you would not forget us. Our Lord also granted you a great privilege, telling you to "distribute graces as you will, to who you will, and when you will." Relying on this, we ask your

intercession for the graces we need, especially for the intentions just mentioned. Help us, above all, to trust in Jesus as you did

and thus to glorify His mercy every moment of our lives. Amen