Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy

On Divine Mercy Sunday, April 19, join the Supreme Chaplain at 2:00 pm EDT, for a celebration of Holy Mass from the Baltimore Basilica, where Father McGivney was ordained a priest, followed by the praying of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy with the archbishop and members of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, St. Faustina’s religious community.

During the 1930s, Jesus revealed the depths of his merciful love for mankind to a Polish nun, St. Faustina Kowalska. Among his messages, Our Lord asked for a special feast to be celebrated on the Sunday after Easter.

In her Diary, St. Faustina recorded Jesus’ request: “My daughter, tell the whole world about My inconceivable mercy. I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and a shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sinners. On that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy…. It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter” (699).

Pope John Paul II fulfilled this directive and established the first Sunday after Easter as the Feast of Divine Mercy on April 30, 2000, when he canonized of St. Faustina. In his homily the Holy Father said: “It is important then that we accept the whole message that comes to us from the word of God on this Second Sunday of Easter, which from now on throughout the Church will be called ‘Divine Mercy Sunday.’ In the various readings, the liturgy seems to indicate the path of mercy which, while re-establishing the relationship of each person with God, also creates new relations of fraternal solidarity among human beings. Christ has taught us that ‘man not only receives and experiences the mercy of God, but is also called’ to practice mercy towards others: ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy’ (Mt 5: 7).”

As Knights and their families share this mercy through the Order’s “Leave No Neighbor Behind” initiative, join Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori April 19, 2020, at 2:00 pm EDT, for a celebration of Holy Mass on Divine Mercy Sunday from the Baltimore Basilica, where Father Michael McGivney was ordained a priest. Following Mass, Archbishop Lori will pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy with members of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, St. Faustina’s religious community, who proclaim the message of Divine Mercy at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C.

The Mass and Chaplet will be streamed on the Knights of Columbus and Saint John Paul II National Shrine YouTube channels.