Divine Mercy, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, and Divine Mercy Sunday all hold profound significance in our Catholic tradition.
Nativity of Our Savior in Portage began a daily prayer devotion during the COVID-19 lockdowns and made praying together online as a reason to reach a broad audience at the same time every day. This Divine Mercy devotion is still being prayed via live stream every weekday at 3 p.m. on Nativity's Facebook page.
Divine Mercy is God’s infinite love and compassion, emphasizing His readiness to forgive sins and extend grace to those who seek it. This devotion stems from St. Faustina Kowalska’s visions in the 1930s, where Jesus revealed His desire for humanity to trust in His mercy.
The Divine Mercy Chaplet is a prayer given to St. Faustina by Jesus to invoke His mercy for sinners, the suffering and the world. Prayed on rosary beads, the devotion includes the Our Father, Hail Mary, and petitions like “For the sake of His sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.” It’s a beautiful way to address personal intentions, seek forgiveness or pray for global needs.
Divine Mercy Sunday is the feast day dedicated to this devotion, celebrated on the Second Sunday of Easter (the Sunday after Easter). Instituted by Pope John Paul II in 2000, it’s based on Jesus’ promise to St. Faustina that souls who go to confession and receive Holy Communion on this day receive complete forgiveness of sins and punishment.
The day emphasizes trust in God’s mercy and includes special Masses, veneration of the Divine Mercy image and praying the Chaplet. It’s a focal point for the devotion, offering spiritual renewal and grace. While a fairly recent institution, it has found a large following among the faithful.
The Divine Mercy image shows Jesus with red and white rays (symbolizing blood and water) and the words “Jesus, I trust in You.”
This is our “siren call,” one week after Easter, to show the same love to each other that Christ showed through His death on the cross. This perspective highlights the feast’s call to receive God’s mercy and extend it to others, mirroring Christ’s sacrificial love. Christ’s love overcomes human failings, urging us to extend that mercy to others.
I encourage you to use the feast day as a reason to reflect on how His mercy empowers you to love more fully. Use it as a spiritual reset, freeing you to love others without the burden of past grudges or sins, as Christ did on the cross.
Deacon Anthony Bondi is a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Gary who is assigned to Nativity of Our Savior parish in Portage. He was ordained in June 2024.
