What is Divine Mercy?

                                  
The Divine Mercy Message and Devotion:

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.

This message and devotion to Jesus as The Divine Mercy is based on the writings of Saint Faustina Kowalska, an uneducated Polish nun who, is 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.

The message and devotional practices propose in the Diary of Saint Faustina and set forth in this website and other publications of 
the Marians of the Immaculate Conception are completely in accordance with the teachings of church and are firmly rooted in the
Gospel message of our Merciful Savour.  Properly understoond and implemented, they will grow as genuine followers of Christ.

Spend time to learn more about the mercy of God, learn to trust in Jesus, and live your life as merciful to others, as Christ is merciful
to you.


                   


How to pray the Divine Mercy

  
1.  Make the sign of the Cross

In the name of the Father, and of the son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2.  Optional Opening Prayers

You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls, and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.
O fount of life unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.

3.  Our Father 

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead 
us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, Amen.

4.  Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee.  Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary,  Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death,  Amen.

5.  The apostles Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator  of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His Son our Lord, Who was conceived
by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified; died, and was buried.  He descended
into Hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, seated at the right hand of God, the Father
Almighty; from there he shall come to judge the living and the dead.  I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the
communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

6.  The Eternal Father

Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of your Dearly Beloved Son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, in
atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.

7.  On the Ten Small Bead 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

Saying the "Eternal Father" (6) on the "Our Father" bead and then 10 " For the sake of his sorrowful passtion" (7) on the
following "Hail Mary" beads

9.  Conclude with Holy God 

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and the whole word.    (Repeat three times)

10.Optional Closing Prayer

Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and treasury of compassion - inexhaustable, look kindly upon us and increase Your 
mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves
to your holy will, which is love and mercy itself.




Forms of Devotion

The Image of the Divine Mercy

In 1931, Our Lord  appeard to St. Faustina in a vision.  She saw Jesus clothed in a white garment with his right had raised in 
Blessing.  His left hand was touching His garment in the area of the Heart, from where two large rays came forth, one red and the  
other pale.  She gazed intently at the Lord in silence, her soul filled with awe, but also with great joy.  Jesus said to her:

Paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the signature:  Jesus, I trust in you.  I promise that the soul 
that will venerate this image will not perish.  I also promise victory over [it's] enemies already here on earth, 
especially at the hour of death.  I Myself will defend it as My own glory (Diary,47,48).  I am offering people a vessel 
with which they are to keep coming with graces to the fountain of mercy.  That vessel is this image with the signature:
Jesus, I Trust in You.  I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel and then throughout the world.





       At the request of her spiritual director, St. Faustina asked the Lord about the meaning of the rays in the image.  She heard these
words in reply:

The two rays denote blood and water.  The pale rays stand for the water which makes souls righteous.  The red ray
stands for the blood which is the life of souls.  These two rays issued forth from the 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.  By means of this image I shall grant my graces to souls.  It is to be a reminder
of the demands of my mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works.

       These words indicate that the image represents the graces of Divine Mercy poured out upon the world, especially through
Baptism and the Eucharist.

Many different versions of this image have been painted, but our Lord made it clear that the painting itself is not what is important.
When St. Faustina first saw the original image that was being painted under her direction, she wept in disappointment and 
complained to Jesus: " Who will paint You as beautiful as You are?"

In answer, she heard these words: "Not in the beauty of the color, nor of the blush lies the greatness of this image, but in
my grace."

      So no matter which version of the image we prefer, we can be assured that it is a vehicle of God's grace if it is revered with 
trust in His mercy. 


The History of the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy 



     In 1935 St. Faustina, received a vision of an angel sent by God to chastise a certain city.  She began to pray for mercy, but her
prayers were powerless.  Suddenly she saw the Holy Trinity and felt the power of Jesus' grace within her.  At the same time she
found herself pleading with God for mercy with words she heard interiorly:


Enternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, 
in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world; for the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us.

       As she continued saying this inspired prayer, the angel became helpless and could not carry out the deserved punishment.  The
next day, as she was entering the chapel, she again heard this interior voice, instructing her to recite the prayer that our Lord
later called " The Chaplet."  This time, after "have mercy on us" were added the words "and on the whole word".  From then on,
she recited this form of prayer almost constantly, offering it especially for the dying. 

In subsequent revelations, the Lord made it clear that the Chaplet was not just for her, but for the whole world.  He also attached
extraordinary promises to its recitation.

Encourage souls to say the Chaplet which I have given you.  Whoever will recite it will receive great mercy at the 
hour of death.  When they say this Chaplet in the presence of the dying, I will stand between My Father and the dying
person, not as the just judge but as the Merciful Saviour.  Priests will recommend it to sinners as their last hop of
salvation.  Even if there were a sinner most hardened, if they were to recite this Chaplet only once, he would receive
grace from My infinite mercy.  I desire to grant unimaginable graces to those souls who trust in My mercy .  Through
the Chaplet you will obtain everything, if what you ask for is compatible to My will. 

       Prayed on ordinary rosary beads, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy is an intercessory prayer that extends the offering of the Eucharist,
so it is especially appropriate to use it after having received the Holy Communion at Holy Mass.  It may be said at anytime, but
our Lord specifically told St. Faustina to recite it during the nine days before the feast of Mercy (the first Sunday after Easter).
He then added:  "By this Novena, [of Chaplets] I will grant every possible grace to souls."

       It is likewise appropriate to pray the Chaplet during the "Hour of Great Mercy" - three o'clock each afternoon (recalling the time
of Christ's death on the cross).  In His revelations to St. Faustina, our Lord asked for a special rememberance of His Passion
at that hour.