Divine Mercy and the Warning

We have come across St Faustina in these pages before (here, here and here). But really these have been tangential references. What was the central thrust of her message for the Church and the world? It was a teaching that the Catholic Church of her day desperately needed to be reminded of: a very ancient Christian theme, that of the centrality of God’s Mercy. Recall that well-known passage in the Gospel:

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Lk 18:9-14

St Faustina’s message was that we can be saved by calling upon God’s Divine Mercy in sincere repentance for our misdeeds, whereas those who rely on justifying themselves before God will instead provoke God’s Divine Justice, a Justice which demands recompense for even the slightest sin. Jesus told her:

Let the greatest sinners place their trust in My mercy. They have the right before others to trust in the abyss of My mercy. My daughter, write about My mercy towards tormented souls. Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me. To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask. I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion, but on the contrary, I justify him in My unfathomable and inscrutable mercy. Write: before I come as a just Judge, I first open wide the door of My mercy. He who refuses to pass through the door of My mercy must pass through the door of My justice…

St Maria Helena Faustina Kowalska, Divine Mercy in My Soul, Notebook III, paragraph 1146

Perhaps the most important legacy of St Faustina was the Divine Mercy Chaplet, which was revealed to her from heaven in a moment of great drama: (my emphasis)

The following day, Friday, September 13, 1935.

In the evening, when I was in my cell, I saw an Angel, the executor of divine wrath. He was clothed in a dazzling robe, his face gloriously bright, a cloud beneath his feet. From the cloud, bolts of thunder and flashes of lightning were springing into his hands; and from his hand they were going forth, and only then were they striking the earth. When I saw this sign of divine wrath which was about to strike the earth, and in particular a certain place, which for good reasons I cannot name, I began to implore the Angel to hold off for a few moments, and the world would do penance. But my plea was a mere nothing in the face of the divine anger. Just then I saw the Most Holy Trinity. The greatness of Its majesty pierced me deeply, and I did not dare to repeat my entreaties. At that very moment I felt in my soul the power of Jesus’s grace, which dwells in my soul. When I became conscious of this grace, I was instantly snatched up before the Throne of God. Oh, how great is our Lord and God and how incomprehensible His holiness! I will make no attempt to describe this greatness, because before long we shall all see Him as He is. I found myself pleading with God for the world with words heard interiorly.

As I was praying in this manner, I saw the Angel’s helplessness: he could not carry out the just punishment which was rightly due for sins. Never before had I prayed with such inner power as I did then.

The words with which I entreated God are these: Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved son, Our Lord Jesus Christ for our sins and those of the whole world; for the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us.

The next morning, when I entered chapel, I heard these words interiorly: Every time you enter the chapel, immediately recite the prayer which I taught you yesterday. When I had said the prayer, in my soul I heard these words: This prayer will serve to appease My wrath. You will recite it for nine days, on the beads of the rosary, in the following manner: First of all, you will say one OUR FATHER and HAIL MARY and the I BELIEVE IN GOD. Then on the OUR FATHER beads you will say the following words: “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.” On the HAIL MARY beads you will say the following words: “For the sake of His sorrowful Passion have mercy on us and on the whole world.” In conclusion, three times you will recite these words: “Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world.”

Notebook I, paragraphs 474-476

One of my own favourite passages from St Faustina’s Diary is the following dialogue between Jesus and St Faustina, when she was concerned about her interior attitude during a spiritual retreat.

At the beginning of the retreat, Jesus told me, “During this retreat, I Myself will direct your soul. I want to confirm you in peace and love.” And so, the first few days passed by. On the fourth day, doubts began to trouble me; Is not this tranquillity of mine false? Then I heard these words, “My daughter, imagine that you are the sovereign of all the world and have the power to dispose of all things according to your good pleasure. You have the power to do all the good you want, and suddenly a little child knocks on your door, and trembling and in tears and, trusting in your kindness, asks for a piece of bread lest he die of starvation. What would you do for this child? Answer Me, my daughter.” And I said, “Jesus, I would give the child all it asked and a thousand times more.” And the Lord said to me, “That is how I am treating your soul. In this retreat I am giving you, not only peace, but also such a disposition of soul that even if you wanted to experience uneasiness you could not do so. My love has taken possession of your soul, and I want you to be confirmed in it. Bring your ear close to My Heart, forget everything else, and meditate upon My wondrous mercy. My love will give you the strength and courage you need in these matters.”

Notebook I, paragraph 229

St Faustina’s message was certainly for the Church of her time; but she was also told by Our Lady:

I gave the Savior to the world; as for you, you have to speak to the world about His great mercy and prepare the world for the Second Coming of Him who will come, not as a merciful Savior, but as a just Judge. Oh, how terrible is that day! Determined is the day of justice, the day of divine wrath. The angels tremble before it. Speak to souls about this great mercy while it is still the time for [granting] mercy.

Notebook I, paragraph 635

So the message of Divine Mercy is very much for us too. It holds the key to the salvation of the world at the Second Coming of Jesus.

Now previously we have discussed the Warning, a global event in which each person will experience the state of their soul as seen through God’s eyes, first announced to four child visionaries in the obscure Spanish village of Garabandal in the 1960s. It seems that St Faustina had a similar experience herself: (my emphasis)

Once I was summoned to the judgment [seat] of God. I stood alone before the Lord. Jesus appeared such as we know Him during His Passion. After a moment, His wounds disappeared except for five, those in His hands, His feet and His side. Suddenly I saw the complete condition of my soul as God sees it. I could clearly see all that is displeasing to God. I did not know that even the smallest transgressions will have to be accounted for. What a moment! Who can describe it? To stand before the Thrice-Holy-God!

Notebook I, paragraph 36

The Warning will clearly be a “great and terrible day” for the whole world. Will there be any forewarning? Many people now believe that there will be visible signs in the sky based on these words from the early part of the Diary:

Before I come as the Just Judge, I am coming first as the King of Mercy. Before the day of justice arrives, there will be given to people a sign in the heavens of this sort:

All light in the heavens will be extinguished, and there will be great darkness over the whole earth.   Then the sign of the cross will be seen in the sky, and from the openings where the hands and the feet of the Savior were nailed will come forth great lights which will light up the earth for a period of time. This will take place shortly before the last day.

Notebook I, paragraph 83

If you see these signs appearing and your church provides the Sacrament of Reconciliation, you need to make that your top priority. Everyone else will need to beg God for forgiveness of their sins as best they can. Surely we all want the state of our souls to be pleasing to God at the moment of the Warning?