Get Ready for Divine Mercy!

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” This short sentence is known as the Jesus Prayer. While popular among Eastern Catholics, it’s a powerful prayer for all believing Christians when it’s prayed sincerely from the heart. The emphasis is on mercy, and it is the Divine Mercy of Jesus we trust in as we are encouraged to seek it out in the Sacrament of Reconciliation after we sin.

Speaking of sin, King David committed the double sin of murder and adultery and recognized his sinful offenses against God. After being confronted by the prophet Nathan (2 Sam. 12:7), David responded with a plea to God for mercy as he prayed, “Have mercy on me, God, in accord with your merciful love; in your abundant compassion blot out my transgressions” (Ps. 51:3). We too are called to respond with a plea for mercy after we sin. What is God’s response to our plea for mercy? God, the Father doesn’t just wait for us. He runs after us with his abundant mercy as was so powerfully illustrated by Jesus when he shared the Parable of the Prodigal Son (from Lk. 15) that was proclaimed at Mass two Sundays ago on March 6th.

In a special and formal way Jesus’ Divine Mercy is celebrated on the Sunday that follows Easter, which has become known in recent years as Divine Mercy Sunday. How did this come about? It has to do with the story of an early 20th century, Polish, contemplative nun named Sr. Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938) as well as a familiar, Polish priest by the name of Karol Wojtyla, who later became the future Pontiff, Pope John Paul II (1920-2005).

Beginning on February 22nd, 1931, Sr. Faustina started to receive visions and had conversations with Jesus in which she was instructed to write down messages in a diary. She was also instructed by Jesus to have an artist paint an image of the Divine Mercy, which is seen in the above photo with a red and white ray that symbolize the blood and water that flowed from Jesus’ side after he was pierced with a lance on the cross (Jn. 19:34). The red ray symbolizes the Precious Blood of Jesus in the Eucharist, and the white ray symbolizes the cleansing and purifying waters of baptism, both of which emanate forth from Jesus’ Sacred Heart. The message of St. Faustina’s diary as well as the image is one of Divine Mercy and a call on our part to trust in Jesus’ mercy, which we find in the message at the bottom of the painting that reads, “Jesus, I trust in you.”

Jesus said to Sr. Faustina, “I want the image solemnly blessed on the first Sunday after Easter, and I want it to be venerated publicly so that every soul may know about it.” (Diary, 341). You may or may not know of the treasured gift that the Catholic Church offers on Divine Mercy Sunday. A plenary indulgence (the remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sin whose guilt has already been forgiven Catechism 1471) is offered to the whole Church and is associated with this special day of Divine Mercy provided one fulfills the following requirements:

• Sacramental confession (20 days before or after the indulgenced act),
• Eucharistic communion,
• Prayer for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff (i.e. Hail Mary) to the faithful who, on Divine Mercy Sunday, in a spirit that is…
• Completely detached from the affection for a sin, even a venial sin and therefore
• That he/she be in a state of grace,
• Recite the Our Father & the Creed, and also…
• Add a devout prayer (e.g. Merciful Jesus, I trust in you!).

In addition, the Divine Mercy Novena (nine consecutive days of prayer that includes the Chaplet of Divine Mercy) starts this Friday, March 25th, which is Good Friday and concludes on the Sunday following Easter known as Divine Mercy Sunday, April 3rd. If your parish does not celebrate Divine Mercy, then find a neighboring parish that does. For more information on the plenary indulgence or the Novena, please go to thedivinemercy.org.

One of the main instruments to establish Divine Mercy Sunday was Pope John Paul II. He canonized Sr. Faustina on April 30th, 2000 making her the “first saint of the new millennium” and subsequently established Divine Mercy Sunday to be the first Sunday after Easter. The pope called St. Faustina “the great apostle of Divine Mercy in our time.” Pope John Paul II later died in April, 2005 on the vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday, was himself beatified (or made Blessed) on Divine Mercy Sunday, May 1, 2011, by his successor, Pope Benedict XVI and was canonized on Divine Mercy Sunday, April 27, 2014, by Pope Francis.

We have heard much about mercy lately. Pope Francis has declared this year as a Year of Mercy. Two weekends ago, we heard how Jesus offered mercy to the woman caught in adultery. This past weekend on Palm Sunday, we heard in the Passion account how Jesus offered mercy to the two thieves at his side (Lk. 23:32-43), and yet at the beginning of every Mass we pray the Kyrie, which is Greek for “Lord have mercy!” We are currently in a time of mercy, the time between Jesus’ first and second coming. May we all ask Jesus for mercy and know that our sins, if confessed, can be swallowed up into the infinite ocean of his mercy. Jesus said to Sr. Faustina one day: ‘Humanity will never find peace until it turns with trust to the Divine Mercy.’” May we turn to our merciful Savior and say, “Jesus, I trust in You!”

In Our Merciful Jesus,
Fr. Jeff
Resources:
Bible: Ps. 145:8, Mt. 5:7
Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul (600 pages)

Author: Fr. Jeff Allan

Biography - Fr. Jeff Allan, was ordained a Catholic priest on June 7th, 2014 for the Archdiocese of Detroit (AOD). He graduated from Adrian College in 2001 with a degree in Business Administration and a minor in Criminal Justice. After working in the pharmaceutical sales industry for almost three years, he felt called to discern the priesthood. Before being ordained a priest, Fr. Jeff was blessed to receive three degrees from Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit. They include a Bachelor of Philosophy, Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology (STB), and a Master of Divinity (Theology). His assignments in the U.S. have included serving at multiple parishes in the Archdiocese of Detroit as an associate pastor and currently as a weekend assistant. Fr. Jeff is certified as a hospital chaplain through ACPE (Association for Clinical Pastoral Education). He has had the opportunity of serving at three Metro-Detroit Area Hospitals since 2017 where he serves in full-time ministry as a Catholic Priest and Hospital Chaplain. View all posts by Fr. Jeff Allan