Christ’s Purifying Light and Divine Mercy

Christ’s Purifying Light by Laura Tesdahl

Sitting before the presence of Jesus in the Tabernacle is always a source of peace, consolation, and strength. On one occasion while praying in St. Malachy’s Blessed Sacrament Chapel, Laura looked up and noticed light streaming from a stained glass window behind the altar. The path of light aligned with the crucifix and appeared to be pouring out of the wound from the Christ’s side.  Christ’s Purifying Light was inspired this moment in silence before the tabernacle. The rays of light reminded Laura of the Divine Mercy Image which led her to read the diary of St. Faustina and begin praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet. The message of Divine Mercy, the promises of the chaplet, novena, and Divine Mercy Sunday can be found here http://www.thedivinemercy.org/hour/

The original Divine Mercy image pictured below was painted by Eugene Kazimierowski under the direction of Jesus through Saint Faustina. Saint Faustina’s conversations with Jesus are recorded in The Diary of St. Faustina. 

 

Suffering with the Crown of Thorns

Words of Our Lord to Sr Mary Martha Chambon

During an apparition of Our Lord to Sr Mary Martha Chambon, He appeared in a pitiful state, wearing the Crown of Thorns. Appealing for compassion, He said: “Behold Him whom you seek, and the condition in which He is! Look…withdraw the thorns from My head by offering to My Father the merits of My Wounds for sinners… Go, seek for souls!” While Sr Mary Martha was contemplating the holy Crown, she saw rays of glory darting from each thorn.

Venerable Mary of Agreda, The Mystical City of God, Bk. 6. chap. 20

The grief that I experienced after the loss of my husband created an excruciating pressure in my head that was unbearable.  I endured this suffering for quite some time and could not find relief so I began praying, writing and reflecting. I began to imagine wearing Jesus’s crown of thorns and begged him to release the pressure in my head through the his wounds created by the thorns.

I began to offer my suffering to Him through the crown of thorns as I begged for the Holy Spirit to come and help me endure my own suffering. I truly felt that I did not deserve what was happening to me, but part of me believed that I must have. Through all the tears and prayers I questioned what I had done to deserve the way I was being treated, the pain that I was stricken with, and continued to pray to  Jesus to heal me, help me and guide me. As I began healing doors began to open and guide me out of the darkness. I had many people praying for me and helping me to carry my cross. I began to see my own journey through the way of the cross and reflect on it with each station of the cross.

The experience of uniting my suffering to the wounds created by the crown of thorns led me to explore what I had heard about the Novena to the five wounds of Jesus. Since they did not include the Crown of Thorns I searched for the crown of thorns as well.  What I found was quite profound. I encourage you to click on the links below deepen your connection to the wounds of Jesus and the graces that can come from uniting the suffering of our own wounded hearts and minds to His. May God Bless You Indeed!!!

The Crown of Thorns Prayer

Devotion to the Holy Wounds

The Crown of Thorns in the lives of saints

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Seed on Fertile Ground

 The Seed on Fertile Ground

The call to write personal stories of living my faith has been weighing upon my shoulders. As I grieve the loss of what I thought my life was supposed to be, I embrace what God is calling me to be. It is seems so difficult to let go and let God, but sometimes God sees our suffering and our offerings and says enough is enough. Sometimes God takes away everything that keeps us from carrying out His will so that we indeed have no other choice but to do it. I think I may finally be ready to say “No” to all the distractions that keep me from creating what I am called to create. I am ready to die to my own will and say “Yes” to God.

Yesterday was the feast of St. Francis DeSales, the patron saint of writers.  As I peruse and reflect on the journal entries and sketches created over last 7 years, I know, now is the time! Each morning I listen to the word of God through the USCCB Bible Readings it takes only a couple of minutes and I reflect on it through my day. If I am able, I write and reflect upon it. Yesterday’s gospel was one of my favorites, the Parable of the Sower. I have been through all stages of this parable in my life. Where do you find your seed in this parable? Are you on the path, rocky ground, in the thorns, or rich soil? I find that all of my trials and sufferings over the last year have really decomposed to create a rich, fertile ground. What areas in your life need to die and decompose to create the fertile ground to produce the fruit that God desires from you?

Excerpts from the The Sower and the Seed. The full reading is listed below it.

The sower sows the word.

These are the ones on the path where the word is sown.
As soon as they hear, Satan comes at once 
and takes away the word sown in them.
And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who, 
when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy.
But they have no roots; they last only for a time.
Then when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, 
they quickly fall away.
Those sown among thorns are another sort.
They are the people who hear the word, 
but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches, 
and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, 
and it bears no fruit.
But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it
and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”

Alleluia
R.  Alleluia, alleluia.
The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower;
all who come to him will live forever.
R.  Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel MK 4:1-20
On another occasion, Jesus began to teach by the sea.
A very large crowd gathered around him
so that he got into a boat on the sea and sat down.
And the whole crowd was beside the sea on land.
And he taught them at length in parables,
and in the course of his instruction he said to them,
“Hear this! A sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path,
and the birds came and ate it up.
Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil.
It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep.
And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots.
Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it
and it produced no grain.
And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit.
It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”
He added, “Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.”

And when he was alone,
those present along with the Twelve
questioned him about the parables.
He answered them,
“The mystery of the Kingdom of God has been granted to you.
But to those outside everything comes in parables, so that
they may look and see but not perceive,
and hear and listen but not understand,
in order that they may not be converted and be forgiven.”

Jesus said to them, “Do you not understand this parable?
Then how will you understand any of the parables?
The sower sows the word.
These are the ones on the path where the word is sown.
As soon as they hear, Satan comes at once
and takes away the word sown in them.
And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who,
when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy.
But they have no roots; they last only for a time.
Then when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word,
they quickly fall away.
Those sown among thorns are another sort.
They are the people who hear the word,
but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches,
and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word,
and it bears no fruit.
But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it
and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”

via January 24, 2018

Prayer Plain and Simple

Pictured here is the silhouette of a Hummel figurine of a young boy kneeling in prayer.I had bought this figurine for  my son for his first communion. Earlier this January I opened the blinds for some sunshine and this beautiful image was cast on the wall behind the shelf where I keep a few prayer cards and and found objects that remind me of the power and importance of prayer. Apparently my reminders had been looked over  for too long and God decided to shed some light on them. Prayer need not be complicated. It is simply a conversation between you and the Lord. Here is a lovely  reflection from St. Faustina’s Diary. You can subscribe to them daily by clicking on the link below. God Bless You!

Beg Mercy for Loved Ones Meditation: On one occasion, after a person had asked me for prayer, when I met the Lord I said to Him, “Jesus, I especially love those souls whom You love.” And Jesus answered, And as for Me, I bestow special graces on those souls for whom you intercede (Diary, 599). After Holy Communion today, I spoke at length to the Lord Jesus about people who are special to me. Then I heard these words: My daughter, don’t be exerting yourself so much with words. Those whom you love in a special way, I too love in a special way, and for your sake, I shower My graces upon them. I am pleased when you tell Me about them, but don’tbe doing so with such excessive effort (Diary, 739). My Prayer Response: Lord Jesus, shower with mercy all the people that we love in a special way as we intercede for them and for the whole world. Lord, I especially remember my family members and close friends. *Diary passages with bolded words are Jesus speaking Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul © 1987 Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M. Excerpted from Divine Mercy Minutes with Jesus: Praying Daily on Jesus’ Words from the Diary of St. Faustina by Rev. George W. Kosicki, CSB © 2010 Marian Press

Invite your friends and family to receive these daily messages with this link: lighthousecatholicmedia.org/DivineMercy

Not Black Friday, Mercy Friday?

What if today were Mercy Friday? What if God’s great mercy  and the Divine Mercy image and chaplet were promoted like Black Friday Sales. My mother had a new student in her class from India last year. He asked her, “What is this Black Friday? Is it BAD? Is it really BAD?”  She explained it to ease his fear. Is it bad? I don’t need to answer that. I just happened to ponder Divine Mercy this morning and thought “WOW what if it were Mercy Friday today and it was promoted as much as Black Friday.

Everyone’s journey to Christ and His sacred heart is unique. There isn’t a formula, but yet there is. He gave it to us. Keep your heart clean, Love one another, treat others as you would yourself, take My body it was giving up for you…  Only we don’t treat ourselves so well these days. Many of us intend to pray but get too busy. Many of us pray only we we desperately need it. Not all, but many. Many of us pray unceasingly. There is an 80 20  rule in business. Let me tell you there is and unlimited to 1 rule with God. Take one step in His direction, give Him honest time alone and He will give you so much more in return, more than you could every imagine.

So what if instead of heading out for that great deal on Black Friday we turned inward to our God in prayer. What if we gave Him the 7 minutes it takes to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet. What if we walked into a church instead and sat silently in prayer, praying for those in most need of God’s Mercy. We do have a Divine Mercy Sunday celebration every year during the Easter Season, and I am always amazed how little people know about it. God’s Mercy, Divine Mercy needs to be promoted like Black Friday. Thank God for Pope Francis declaring the next year the year of Mercy. Pope Francis’ Encyclical on Year of Mercy.  Let’s get a head start today in prayer. May God Bless You!

For  more of my reflections on Divine Mercy click here

On the Horizon

acrylic painting by Laura Tesdahl

What is on the horizon for you this Lent? Remember it’s not about what you give up. It’s about growing closer to God.

If you are already beating yourself up for not realizing today is Ash Wednesday let it go. Did you know that Ash Wednesday is not actually a holy day of obligation for Catholics in the United States.  Now if you ate meat today I can’t help you sorry. But don’t let that blow your whole lent. There is still time to make a small commitment just for you and it is so easy. Check out this link to Matthew Kelly’s message for your BEST LENT EVER

Thank you Donna Boboch for the first Matthew Kelly book that you sent to me nearly 6 years ago when Adam was hospitalized and thank you for forwarding this link to me today. I am looking forward to my best lent ever and sharing it with you as I go. God Bless You!

Reverent Communion with the Lord

Crucifix at St. Mary of the Woods Cemetery

Prior to communion, Monday morning, a tear came down my cheek. What is it that I have to offer our Lord? What can I give that He can multiply?  I thought of Greg Wasinski’s presentation on Sunday and how he explained it like this. We are living tabernacles when we have received the body of Christ.  We all have gifts that we can give the Lord to multiply. In the miracle of the loaves and fish, Jesus told his disciples to gather what they had, Jesus blessed it and multiplied it to feed thousands, with plenty leftover.

We are all living tabernacles of Christ. We take the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ out into the world. What gifts can we offer Him prior to the consecration of the host that He can bless and multiply. What can we put on the altar in our hearts? And then what?

Are we fully aware that we are receiving our Lord’s body, blood, soul, and divinity into our hearts when we receive the consecrated host? Do we receive Him lovingly and reverently?

Wasinski put it like this. Close your eyes and picture Jesus’ crucified body, which has been given up for you. Imagine yourself standing there at the foot of the cross, physically removing the nails from his hands and feet. You lift the weight of His body off of the cross. With His crucified body in your hands what would you do in that moment? Would you ponder Christ’s body, His Passion, His sacrifice. Would you stay with Him awhile and pray, or simply walk away and leave without a thought or a word of thanksgiving. Take the time to put yourself there, at the foot of the cross and truly ponder what had transpired.

Walking away after communion without taking the time to be with our Lord dwelling within our body, leaves him thirsting. Thirsting as he did on the cross. He was not thirsting for water, He was thirsting for our souls. In the sacrament of Holy Communion we are receiving His body, blood, soul and divinity in to our hearts. He died so that that we could all gain access to heaven, so that He could unite Himself to all of our hearts. He is alive within the body of Christ, the body of His believers and those that follow His teachings. This is the mystery of our faith.

St. Faustina records Jesus’s message to her in her Diary entry 1447

“Oh how painful it is to Me that souls so seldom unite themselves to Me in Holy Communion. I wait for souls and they are indifferent toward Me. I love them tenderly and sincerely and they distrust me. I want to lavish My graces on them, and they do not want to accept them. They treat me as a dead object, whereas My Heart is full of love and mercy. In order that you may know at least some of my pain, imagine the most tender of Mothers who has great love for her children, while those children spurn her love. Consider her pain. No one is in a position to console her. This is but a feeble image and likeness of My love.”

Consider your offering before communion. Stay with Jesus awhile after receiving Him into your heart. Remember that you are a living tabernacle of Christ. Carry Him out to those you encounter. BE  responsible with this sacrament.  BE like Christ to others: in your thoughts, in your words, in your in our actions.  Above all love and show mercy as Jesus did. May God Bless You.

Divine Mercy Novena Day 1

For those of you that are not familiar with this image, St. Faustina was asked by Jesus to have this specific image painted. It was commissioned by Jesus Christ himself. Faustina went through quite struggle to actually follow through with God’s will for her and the Lord’s request to have this image painted.

Not only did Christ give Faustina a directive for this image, He also gave her the instructions for the Chaplet and the Novena. Her diary is something amazing to read. It takes about a year to get through it all. The chaplet itself only take 10 minutes to pray. Your commitment is 10 minutes a day for 9 consecutive day should you choose to participate. Do you have 10 minutes to reflect on the Lord’s passion?

As Jesus told St. Faustina:

My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners…[I]t is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the tabernacle as King of Mercy. (Diary, 367)

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 ray stands 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 (299). By means of this image I shall grant many 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 (742).
via The Divine Mercy Message from the Marians of the Immaculate Conception.

First Day of the Novena:

Today bring to Me ALL MANKIND, ESPECIALLY ALL SINNERS, and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy. In this way you will console Me in the bitter grief into which the loss of souls plunges Me.

Pray:

Most Merciful Jesus, whose very nature it is to have compassion on us and to forgive us, do not look upon our sins but upon our trust which we place in Your infinite goodness. Receive us all into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart, and never let us escape from It. We beg this of You by Your love which unites You to the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon all mankind and especially upon poor sinners, all enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion show us Your mercy, that we may praise the omnipotence of Your mercy for ever and ever. Amen.

 

The Chaplet of The Divine Mercy

How to Recite the Chaplet

The Chaplet of Mercy is recited using ordinary rosary beads of five decades. The Chaplet is preceded by two opening prayers from the Diary of Saint Faustina and followed by a closing prayer.

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.

(Repeat three times)
O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of Mercy for us, I trust in You!

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 Apostle’s Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only 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; on the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there He will 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 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 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

Saying the “Eternal Father” (6) on the “Our Father” bead and then 10 “For the sake of His sorrowful Passion” (7) on the following “Hail Mary” beads.

9. Conclude with Holy God (Repeat three times)

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

10. Optional Closing Prayer

Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion — inexhaustible, 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.

 

via The Divine Mercy Message from the Marians of the Immaculate Conception.

Divine Mercy Novena and Canonization of Blessed John Paul II

Divine Mercy Sunday is celebrated the Sunday following Easter. This year, Blessed John Paul II will be canonized on Divine Mercy Sunday.

Three years ago on May 1, 2011 Pope John Paul II was beatified and I attended my first Divine Mercy Service. In my journal in front of the Blessed Sacrament I wrote the following.

“Totus Tutus. All yours. I am ready to bear fruit in your Holy name. I offer this to the souls of…Above all I offer it to you Lord for without your love and mercy I would be forever lost. Lord I love thee, help me to love others.”

Prior to attending this service I was only familiar with the Divine Mercy Chaplet. I learned of the Divine Mercy Novena days after it began. Oh how I wished I had learned of it earlier. It would be another year before I could participate in this Novena. There are very special graces attached to this Novena provided that you are in a state of grace and loving others as Jesus loved. Here are some facts about Divine Mercy and a link to the chaplet. You can pray the chaplet anywhere anytime. This year I will be leading the Novena in the St. Malachy Blessed Sacrament Chaplet on Green Street in Brownsburg if you would like to attend.

Good Friday at 5pm and the 8 consecutive days following at 3pm, the hour of great mercy.

If you choose to pray the Novena this year I would ask that you pray that God’s will be done for dear Will Copeland. Will is a very talented young artist that I have had the pleasure of teaching for 5 years. He has been undergoing chemotherapy for a spinal astrocytoma since last summer. If you would like to support Will in the relay for life please click here. Hope for Cope

Divine Mercy ChapletDivine Mercy Novena

The Great Mercy Pope

Pope John Paul II, both in his teaching and personal life, strove to live and teach the message of Divine Mercy. As the great Mercy Pope, he wrote an encyclical on Divine Mercy:

“The Message of Divine Mercy has always been near and dear to me… which I took with me to the See of Peter and which it in a sense forms the image of this Pontificate.”

In his writings and homilies, he has described Divine Mercy as the answer to the world’s problems and the message of the third millennium. He beatified and canonized Sr. Maria Faustina Kowalska, the nun associated with the message, and he did it in Rome and not in Poland to underscore that Divine Mercy is for the whole world.

Establishing Divine Mercy Sunday for the Entire Church

When Pope John Paul canonized Sr. Faustina (making her St. Faustina), he also, on the same day, surprised the entire world by establishing Divine Mercy Sunday (the feast day associated with the message) as a feast day for the entire Church. The feast day falls on the Second Sunday of the Easter season. On that day, Pope John Paul II declared, “This is the happiest day of my life.”

Entrusting the World to Divine Mercy

In 2002, the Pope entrusted the whole world to Divine Mercy when he consecrated the International Shrine of The Divine Mercy in Lagiewniki, a suburb of Krakow in Poland. This is where St. Faustina’s mortal remains are entombed. The saint lived in a convent nearby. The Pope himself remembers as a young man working in the Solvay Quarry, just a few meters from the present-day Shrine. He also says that he had been thinking about Sr. Faustina for a long time when he wrote his encyclical on Divine Mercy. Further, the Holy Father has frequently quoted from the Diary of St. Faustina and has prayed The Chaplet of The Divine Mercy at the saint’s tomb.

Beyond the Life of John Paul II

Given all these connections to Divine Mercy and St. Faustina, is it any wonder that Pope John Paul II died on the Vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday (the evening before the feast day), which fell that year on April 3. It is also no surprise that the Great Mercy Pope left us a message for Divine Mercy Sunday, which was read on the feast day by a Vatican official to the faithful in St. Peter’s after a Mass that had been celebrated for the repose of the soul of the Pope.

Repeatedly Pope John Paul II has written and spoken about the need for us to turn to the mercy of God as the answer to the specific problems of our times. He has placed a strong and significant focus on the Divine Mercy message and devotion throughout his pontificate that will carry the Church long after his death.

via The Divine Mercy Message from the Marians of the Immaculate Conception.

Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska

The Mission of St. Faustina

The mission of St. Faustina was recorded in her Diary which she kept at the specific request of the Lord Jesus and her confessors. In it, she recorded faithfully all of the Lord Jesus’ wishes and also described the encounters between her soul and Him.

“Secretary of My most profound mystery,” the Lord Jesus said to Sr. Faustina, “know that your task is to write down everything that I make known to you about My mercy, for the benefit of those who by reading these things will be comforted in their souls and will have the courage to approach Me.” (Diary 1693)

Task One

Reminding the world of the truth of our faith revealed in the Holy Scripture about the merciful love of God toward every human being.

Task Two

Entreating God’s mercy for the whole world and particularly for sinners, among others through the practice of new forms of devotion to the Divine Mercy presented by the Lord Jesus, such as: the veneration of the image of the Divine Mercy with the inscription: “Jesus, I Trust in You,” the feast of the Divine Mercy celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter, chaplet to the Divine Mercy and prayer at the Hour of Mercy (3 pm). The Lord Jesus attached great promises to the above forms of devotion, provided one entrusted one’s life to God and practiced active love of one’s neighbor.

Task Three

The third task in Sr. Mary Faustina’s mission consists in initiating the apostolic movement of the Divine Mercy which undertakes the task of proclaiming and entreating God’s mercy for the world and strives for Christian perfection, following the precepts laid down by the Blessed Sr. Mary Faustina. The precepts in question require the faithful to display an attitude of child-like trust in God which expresses itself in fulfilling His will, as well as in the attitude of mercy toward one’s neighbors. Today, this movement within the Church involves millions of people throughout the world; it comprises religious congregations, lay institutes, religious, brotherhoods, associations, various communities of apostles of the Divine Mercy, as well as individual people who take up the tasks which the Lord Jesus communicated to them through Sr. Mary Faustina.

via The Divine Mercy Message from the Marians of the Immaculate Conception.

 

Forms of Devotion

Through St. Faustina, the Merciful Savior has given the aching world new channels for the outpouring of His grace. These new channels include the Image of The Divine Mercy, the Feast of Mercy (Divine Mercy Sunday), the Chaplet, the Novena to The Divine Mercy, and prayer at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, the Hour of Great Mercy.

Although these means of receiving God’s mercy are new in form, they all proclaim the timeless message of God’s merciful love. They also draw us back to the great Sacrament of Mercy, the Holy Eucharist, where the living Lord, who suffered and died on the Cross and whose Heart was pierced with a lance, pours forth His mercy on all mankind, and grants pardon to all who draw near and honor Him. As Jesus told St. Faustina:

My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners…[I]t is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the tabernacle as King of Mercy. (Diary, 367)

via The Divine Mercy Message from the Marians of the Immaculate Conception.