The first Sunday after Easter is the day set aside by Blessed Pope John Paul II, as Divine Mercy Sunday, in order that we celebrate our Lord's greatest gift to sinners, His Divine Mercy, and some may say, His Divine Love.
Sr. Maria Faustina Kowalska became a nun during the 1930's after World War I. Although she was not a highly educated person, she was graced with visions of Christ which she wrote in her daily prayer Diary, along with the messages that Christ gave her to pass on to the rest of the world.
Despite being banned by the church for a short while, (due to a very bad interpretation of her writing) and with help from a future Pope, her writings became recognized as authentic revelation and her writings were approved for general reading and devotion.
I have not yet had the opportunity to read the complete diary, only pieces, I have it in my to be read list of books. it would be great if an Audio version was recorded for people with failing eye site like my own. That sounds like a challenge for my future! Maybe I'll record it. Hmmm. let's pray on that one!
(After further investigation, sure enough, there is a audio version, but it is $69.00! Not in my budget just yet.)
I have spent many hours in a local 24 hr adoration chapel dedicated to the Divine Mercy and find it to be one of my favorite prayers. About a year ago when I first heard of it, I was fostering an elderly dog that liked to go for walks instead of using the backyard facility, and so I began saying the divine mercy chaplet on the walk. I found that it was perfect for the length of the walk, finishing just as we arrived back home. Eventually, I was saying the chaplet two to three times a day. Hey, there's no such thing as too much prayer, God loves it when we pray!
One of the best places to learn about the Divine Mercy Devotion is at the Marians of the Immaculate Conception website dedicated to Divine Mercy, http://thedivinemercy.org/index.php.
There they have the Novena, the Chaplet, all the prayers, and so much material it will take me months to read it all with my busy schedule.
One of the messages given to Sr. Faustina by Jesus was that we honor his hour of 3 o'clock PM, the hour of his passing from the human life, back to the completely divine life in Heaven. It is at that hour that His Mercy was poured out for us. This is a prayer from her Diaries that you can memorize and say internally, for Jesus' Mercy:
At 3:00 o'clock we can pray:
You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fountain of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. (Diary, 1319).O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of mercy for us, I trust in You. (Diary, 84).
I'm sorry it took me so long to publish this but I was delayed unavoidably. I will complete this at a later time and re-publish, but please visit the website I listed above.
Blessings,
The Catholic Lady
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