“DIVINE MERCY & MARY: OUR HOPE” UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE DICASTERY FOR EVANGELIZATION OF THE HOLY SEE Third North American Congress on Mercy Nov. 15-17, 2024 Good Shepherd Church Surrey, Vancouver, Canada
“Peace be with you!” “Jesus makes us see the wounds of our brothers and sisters. In the midst of our own crises and our difficulties, Divine Mercy often makes us aware of the sufferings of our neighbor. We think that we are experiencing unbearable pain and situations of suffering, and we suddenly discover that others around us are silently enduring even worse things. If we care for the wounds of our neighbor and pour upon them the balm of mercy, we find being reborn within us a hope that comforts us in our weariness. “Let us ask ourselves whether of late we have helped someone suffering in mind or body; whether we have brought peace to someone suffering physically or spiritually; whether we have spent some time simply listening, being present, or bringing comfort to another person. For whenever we do these things, we encounter Jesus. From the eyes of all those who are weighed down by the trials of life, He looks out at us with mercy and says: ‘Peace be with you!’ “In this regard, I think of Our Lady’s presence with the Apostles. I also recall that we commemorate her as Mother of the Church on the day following Pentecost and as Mother of Mercy on the Monday following Divine Mercy Sunday. May she help us move forward in our very beautiful ministry.” (Pope Francis, Divine Mercy Sunday, April 24, 2022) SOLEMN ACT OF ENTRUSTMENT OF THE WORLD TO DIVINE MERCY God, merciful Father, in Your Son, Jesus Christ, You have revealed Your love and poured it out upon us in the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. We entrust to You today the destiny of the world and of every man and woman. Bend down to us sinners, heal our weakness, conquer all evil, and grant that all the peoples of the earth may experience Your mercy. In You, the Triune God, may they ever find the source of hope. Eternal Father, by the Passion and Resurrection of Your Son, have mercy on us and upon the whole world! Amen. (Saint John Paul II, August 17, 2002) “The hour has come when the message of Divine Mercy is able to fill hearts with hope and to become the spark of a new civilization: the civilization of love. The message of merciful love needs to resound forcefully anew. The world needs this love.”
Saint Albert the Great November 15, 2024 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: It is a privilege for me to extend warm greetings to all of you who are gathering this weekend for the third North American Congress on Mercy, taking place at Good Shepherd Church in Surrey. On behalf of all the lay faithful, consecrated women and men, and clergy of the Archdiocese of Vancouver, I warmly welcome you! My hope for each of you attending this Congress on Mercy is that in these days you will once again be blessed with a profound experience of the Father “who is rich in mercy” (Eph 2:4). Having been forgiven yourselves, you can be instruments of mercy and reconciliation for others. As missionary disciples of mercy, you are called to bear witness to the power of forgiveness, revealing to others Jesus’ loving kindness through your own concrete gestures of mercy. Steep yourselves in mercy, so that you can go out to every man and woman, bringing them God’s goodness and tenderness. Open closed hearts to the doors of Divine Mercy. Through the liturgies, conferences, testimonies, music, and prayers of this Congress, may each of you be compelled by the Spirit to share the Good News of God’s liberating, empowering mercy with a world that so desperately needs to experience the Divine Mercy. Invoking the intercession of Saint Faustina, and assuring you of my blessing and prayers for a fruitful Congress, I am Sincerely yours in Christ, ✠ J. Michael Miller, CSB Archbishop of Vancouver 4885 Saint John Paul II Way | Vancouver, BC I V5Z 0G3 Telephone: 604 443-3203 | Facsimile: 604 681-8355 [email protected]
Third North American Congress on Mercy SCHEDULE Friday, November 15, 2024 4:30 p.m. Registration. 6:00 p.m. Sung Chaplet – Music – Confessions. 7:00 p.m. Opening Mass celebrated by the Most Reverend J. Michael Miller, CSB, Archbishop of Vancouver. Welcome remarks by Fr. Augustine Obiwumma, Pastor of Good Shepherd Church. 8:00 p.m. BREAK. 8:15 p.m. Official Welcome by Fr. Kazimierz Chwalek, MIC, NACOM Coordinator. 8:20 p.m. First Conference: “St. Faustina: Teacher of Human and Divine Mercy” by Robert Stackpole, STD, Emeritus Director of the John Paul II Institute of Divine Mercy. 9:00 p.m. Film: “Love and Mercy Faustina.” Saturday, November 16, 2024 7:30 a.m. Registration. 8:00 a.m. Morning Prayer and Rosary. 9:00 a.m. Holy Mass. 10:00 a.m. BREAK. Confessions offered from 10 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. 10:20 a.m. Introductory Instructions by Dr. Robert Stackpole. 10:30 a.m. Brief Overview of World Apostolic Congresses on Mercy and other Continental Congresses. 10:45 a.m. Second Conference: Keynote Address: “Mercy and Mary – Our Hope for a Troubled World” by the Very Rev. Chris Alar, MIC, Provincial Superior. 11:30 a.m. First Testimony: Michelle Chang. 11:45 a.m. Third Conference: “Jesus, Teacher of St. Faustina” by the Most Reverend Antonysamy Savarimuthu, D.D., D.C.L., Bishop of Palayamkottai, India. 12:30 p.m. LUNCH BREAK (included) and Book Signing in the school gymnasium.
1:45 p.m. Sacred Music. 2:00 p.m. Fourth Conference: “Spirituality of Mercy” by Sr. Inga Kvassayova, OLM. 2:45 p.m. Second Testimony: Angel and Estrella Mijares. 3:00 p.m. Hour of Great Mercy: Prayers and Meditations. 3:15 p.m. BREAK. 3:30 p.m. Third Testimony: “Living Divine Mercy” by Bryan Thatcher, MD, Director of the Eucharistic Apostles of Divine Mercy (EADM). 3:45 p.m. Fifth Conference: “The Rosary – Instrument of Mercy and Hope” by the Very Rev. Donald Calloway, MIC. 4:30 p.m. REST and SUPPER BREAK. Local Dining areas available or Pizza in the school gymnasium (pre-registration required). 6:45 p.m. Music; Prayer and Praise. 7:00 p.m. Sixth Conference: “The Eucharist – Source of Mercy and Hope” by Fr. Patrice Chocholski, STD, SSL, Secretary General of the World Apostolic Congress on Mercy (WACOM). 7:45 p.m. BREAK. 8:00 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration, Procession, and “Hem of His Garment” solemn blessing with the Very Rev. Chris Alar, MIC and Fr. Mark Baron, MIC. Sunday, November 17, 2024 10:15 a.m. Small Groups Sharing in the school gymnasium. 11:15 a.m. Q & A with Speakers. 12:15 p.m. LUNCH BREAK (included). 1:30 p.m. Music in church. Announcements. 1:45 p.m. Fourth Testimony: Marie Romagnano, MSN, RN, CCM-R, Founder, Healthcare Professionals for Divine Mercy. 2:00 p.m. Seventh and Final Conference: “‘Pilgrims of Hope’ and Mercy – Theme of the Holy Year 2025 and in Preparation for WACOM VI 2026 in Vilnius” by the Most Reverend Gintaras Grušas, Archbishop of Vilnius, Lithuania (via video). 3:00 p.m. Hour of Great Mercy. 3:15 p.m. Closing Holy Mass. 4:30 p.m. Reflection by Fr. Prospero V. Tenorio and Fr. Nap Baltazar (Secretary General & Assistant Secretary General for AACOMs.) 4:45 p.m. Concluding Remarks and Closing of NACOM III by Fr. Kazimierz Chwalek, MIC, NACOM Coordinator.
DIVINE MERCY RESOURCES Visit the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Massachusetts during the 2025 Jubilee Year! ShrineOfDivineMercy.org MercyCongress.org TheDivineMercy.org DivineMercyPlus.org Materials: ShopMercy.org and (800) 462-7426 Dicastery for Evangelization: evangelizatio.va WACOM 2026 Vilnius: wacomvilnius.org I heard these words, My daughter, tell the whole world about My inconceivable mercy. (Diary, 699)
THE SPEAKERS The Most Reverend Gintaras Grušas was appointed by Pope Francis as Archbishop of Vilnius, Lithuania, on April 5, 2013. Born in Washington, D.C., he worked for IBM before studying for the priesthood in Steubenville, Ohio and Rome, Italy. In 1992, he was ordained a deacon for the Archdiocese of Vilnius, and assigned as General Secretary of the committee for the apostolic journey to Lithuania of Pope St. John Paul II. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1994. In the same year, he was chosen as the General Secretary for the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference. In 1997, he returned to the Pontifical St. Thomas Aquinas University in Rome, where he received a Ph.D. in Canon law in 2001. In 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed then-Msgr. Grušas as an Ordinary of the Army, and he was consecrated a bishop. Since 2021 he has served as president of The Council of Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (CCEE). Archbishop Grušas speaks Lithuanian, English, Italian and French. He will host the Sixth World Apostolic Congress on Mercy (WACOM) in Vilnius, June 7-12, 2026. “Let’s meet at the Congress in Vilnius – the city chosen by God so that through Saint Faustina and Blessed Michael Sopócko the world would be reminded of His Mercy,” he says. The Most Reverend J. Michael Miller, CSB, Archbishop of Vancouver, has been the chief shepherd of Vancouver’s 400,000 Catholics since January 2009. Born in Ottawa, Archbishop Miller grew up in the nation’s capital before attending the University of Toronto. He then entered the novitiate of the Basilian Fathers (the same religious order as Fr. George Kosicki), and made his first profession of vows in 1966. In 1975, Pope St. Paul VI ordained him to the priesthood. He completed his Licentiate and Doctorate in theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome in 1979. In 2011, Archbishop Miller established the first permanent diaconate program in the Archdiocese, and in 2015 he established the Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary, Redemptoris Mater. He has invited the foundation of nine new religious communities of women in the Archdiocese. He also re-established the tradition of the Red Mass and the St. Thomas More Guild of Catholic lawyers, and has seen to the formation of a chapter of Legatus. Besides English, Archbishop Miller is fluent in Spanish, Italian, and French.
Father Kazimierz Chwalek, MIC, is the Coordinator of the North American Congress on Mercy. A member of the Marian Fathers since 1980, and a priest since 1987, Fr. Chwalek worked on the first Polish edition of St. Faustina’s Diary and assisted with its English publication. He has served as Director of Evangelization and Development and of the Association of Marian Helpers, and as Provincial Superior. His love for St. John Paul II led him to edit the English edition of The Making of the Pope of the Millennium: Kalendarium of the life of Karol Wojtyła (Marian Press, 1997), a compendium of primary sources chronicling the life and activities of the future pope. Robert Stackpole, STD is the founding director (now emeritus) of the John Paul II Institute of Divine Mercy, based in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, an apostolate of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception. In that capacity, he has been a speaker at many conferences, and the author and editor of numerous articles and books on the Catholic Faith, including Divine Mercy: A Guide From Genesis To Benedict XVI (Marian Press, 2009). He obtained a Doctorate in Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the “Angelicum”) in Rome in 2000. He is presently working on the book Saint Faustina: Doctor of Divine Mercy, a comprehensive work summarizing the case for declaring St. Faustina a “Doctor of the Church.” The Very Reverend Chris Alar, MIC, is the Provincial Superior of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Mercy Province of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception in the United States and Argentina. Prior to joining the Marian Fathers, he received a B.S. in industrial engineering and an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan. Answering the Lord’s call, he earned his Masters of Divinity degree from Holy Apostles Seminary in Cromwell, Connecticut. He was ordained to the priesthood in 2014. He is the author of After Suicide: There’s Hope for Them and for You (Marian Press, 2019) and Understanding Divine Mercy (Marian Press, 2021). He is the host of the weekly EWTN show Living Divine Mercy, which airs on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. ET. From 2014-2024, he served as “Father Joseph, MIC,” the Director of the Association of Marian Helpers. His popular “Explaining the Faith” talks are broadcast live on Saturdays at 11 a.m. ET.
Father Mark Baron, MIC, is the Director of the Association of Marian Helpers (“Father Joseph, MIC”), based in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. A native of Louisville, Kentucky, he attended Purdue University, and was ordained for the Marians in 2004. He has served as Novice Master, Superior of the Marian House of Formation in Washington, D.C., and Administrator of Our Lady of Peace Parish in Darien, Illinois. Father Mark prays the Chaplet of The Divine Mercy for the dying live on social media every Friday at 3:00 p.m. ET. The Very Reverend Donald Calloway, MIC, is a member of the Marian Fathers. He earned a B.A. in Philosophy and Theology from Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio; M.Div. and S.T.B. degrees from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C.; and an S.T.L. in Mariology from the International Marian Research Institute in Dayton, Ohio. He was ordained to the priesthood in 2003. He is the author of 18 books, including the international bestseller Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father (Marian Press, 2020, translated into more than 25 languages); 30-Day Eucharistic Revival: A Retreat with St. Peter Julian Eymard (Marian Press, 2023); and the popular Gems series of daily devotionals. He serves as the Vicar Provincial and Vocation Director. Sister M. Inga Kvassayová, OLM is a member of St. Faustina Kowalska’s order, the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, based in Washington, D.C. Originally from Slovakia, she was discerning her vocation when her aunt gave her the Diary of Saint Marian Faustina Kowalska, she says, “out of the blue. When I read it, it was just mind-blowing for me. I went to visit the sisters in Kraków. I wanted to find out, and I knew: ‘This is my place.’” She has spoken widely about Divine Mercy and St. Faustina. Angel and Estrella Mijares, are the Co-Founders and Directors of the Divine Mercy Evangelization Movement Foundation (DMEMF); Divine Mercy Ministry Leaders and Mentors for several parishes; and Divine Mercy Retreat Directors, Speakers, and Formation Trainers. The completed the Fortnight on Divine Mercy at the John Paul II Institute of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and the Catholic Bible Institute of the Loyola Institute for Spirituality in Orange, California.
Bryan Thatcher, MD, gave up his medical practice to promote a spiritual renewal program for the laity. For this purpose, he founded the Eucharistic Apostles of The Divine Mercy (EADM), an international apostolate of the Marians Fathers, based in Florida and now active in 35 countries. EADM offers group spiritual formation in the Divine Mercy message, fosters Eucharistic Adoration, assists the sick and the dying, and offers material assistance to the poor in the underprivileged countries. Dr. Thatcher has authored several Formation Manuals and booklets for its cenacle members who wish to live the spirituality of mercy in their daily life. His talks focus on personal conversion, the need for trust in God, and living the Eucharistic love of Jesus. The ministry of the Eucharistic Apostles promotes the notion that Divine Mercy is a “Way of Life.” Marie F. Romagnano, MSN, RN, CCM-R, is a catastrophic injury registered nurse case manager who has cared for critically injured and dying patients for over 30 years. In 2001, she founded Nurses for Divine Mercy which evolved and expanded into Healthcare Professionals for Divine Mercy, an official apostolate of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception. It offers nurses, physicians, and other allied health professionals a unique program of professional formation that integrates the spirituality and devotional elements of The Divine Mercy message in patient care. Each year Nurse Marie organizes academic conferences on spiritual and professional formation. She is the author of Nursing with the Hands of Jesus: A Guide to Nurses for Divine Mercy (Marian Press, 2003). The Most Reverend Antonysamy Savarimuthu, DD, DCL was appointed by Pope Francis as Bishop of Palayamkottai, Tamil Nadu, India in 2019. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1987 for the diocese of Palayamkottai. He attended L’Institut Catholique de Paris and earned his licentiate and doctorate in Canon law. Prior to becoming bishop, he served as secretary to the bishop of Palayamkottai; vocation director and rector of St. Mary’s Minor Seminary in Palayamkottai; rector of Christ Hall Seminary, Karumathur; judicial vicar and vicar general of the diocese of Palayamkottai; and vice-president of the Canon Law Society of India. He is the author of several articles on Canon law. In addition to English, he speaks Tamil, French, German, and Latin.
Father Patrice Chocholski, STD, SSL is a priest from the Diocese of Lyon, France serving currently as Director of the Institut Catholique de la Méditerranée in Marseille, France. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1989 and worked in seminary formation and served in pastoral ministry, in particular as Rector of the Basilica of Ars. His educational background includes degrees in Canon law (Antonianum in Rome) and theology (Fribourg, Switzerland). He is a well-known lecturer and theologian on The Divine Mercy message and the author of two books focusing on God’s mercy: At the Source of Mercy — a Christian and Interreligious Approach and Pray Fifteen Days with St. Faustina. Father Patrice is the founder of the “Fountains of Mercy” project, which brings together Jewish and Muslim leaders in France to share their belief in the mercy of God. He served as the Secretary General of the World Apostolic Congress on Mercy in an outstanding manner under the leadership of Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, WACOM’s President, from 2006 until its recent placement under the Dicastery of Evangelization of the Holy See. Through his generosity and kind-hearted service, he has provided needed assistance and expert advice to every World, Continental, and National Apostolic Congress on Mercy. Father Prospero V. Tenorio is the Secretary General of the World Apostolic Congress on Mercy Asia and its Chief Executive Director. He is the National Coordinator of Divine Mercy-Philippines. In October 2024, Fr. Prospero was a host and speaker at the Fifth Asian Apostolic Congress on Mercy in Cebu, Philippines. Father Nap Baltazar is the Assistant Secretary General of the World Apostolic Congress on Mercy Asia. He is the Assistant National Coordinator of the Divine Mercy-Philippines. In October 2024, Fr. Nap was a host and speaker at the Fifth Asian Apostolic Congress on Mercy in Cebu, Philippines. Ashley Nemeh was invited to sing this year at the Divine Mercy Sunday liturgy, broadcast by EWTN, at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, MA. From the age of seven, Ashley knew she wanted to be a performer, and grew up singing in church. Her life motto is: “Anything is possible, follow your dreams, never give up, and be positive!” Visit online at ashleynemeh.com.
On behalf of the North American Congress on Mercy III organizers, I offer our deepest appreciation to the people and organizations that have made this wonderful weekend possible, and for the first time in Canada! First and foremost, I wish to thank Archbishop J. Michael Miller for welcoming and hosting this Apostolic Congress in his Archdiocese. We are deeply grateful for his presence as presider and homilist at the Opening Liturgy. We thank Fr. Augustine Obiwumma, pastor of Good Shepherd Church of Star of the Sea Parish, who has opened his heart and the church and school facilities to this special event. We wish to thank his staff for their invaluable assistance, especially Janice Hamanishi, Evangelization and Catechesis Leader, and our hardworking team of local volunteers, including Cynthia Leowardy, Fe Forteza, Eva Mrad, Ethelyn David, Corazon Bernardo, and Vanessa Gilera. We are greatly indebted to Fr. Mark Baron, MIC, Mr. Kevin Dougherty, and the staff of the Marian Helpers Center (an Apostolate of the Marian Fathers in Stockbridge, MA) for their hard work in assisting in the organization of this Congress, and all the members of the Association of Marian Helpers for their prayers and support. I wish to thank the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Women’s League for their presence and support, and all of the speakers, presenters, singers, and musicians who traveled to share their experiences in living the message of God’s mercy, especially during the forthcoming Jubilee Year of Hope. Above all we are grateful to Our Holy Father Pope Francis, who has enthusiastically taken up the mantle of mercy from St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI to become our beloved “Mercy Pope,” and has placed the World Apostolic Congress on Mercy and its continental congresses under the Dicastery For Evangelization, headed by His Excellency, Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella, Pro-Prefect. We are also grateful to His Excellency, the Most Reverend Gintaras Grušas, Archbishop of Vilnius, and President of the European Conferences of Bishops, who will be hosting the next World Apostolic Congress on Mercy, June 7-12, 2026. Finally, our profound gratitude goes to the Holy Father, Pope Francis, who has enthusiastically taken up the mantle of mercy from Saint John Paul II and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI to become our beloved “Mercy Pope.” With best wishes and blessings in our Merciful Lord! Fr. Kazimierz Chwalek, MIC, NACOM Coordinator Thank you to all of our Volunteers! Back row (left to right): Vanessa Gilera, Luchie Alinas, Theresa Alillio- Baguisa, Joanne Palma, Rosemary Wald, Ari Iniwati, Corazon (Corgie) Bernardo, Gwen Filippelli, Eva Mourad; front row (left-right) Fe Patricia Forteza, Margaret Zmudzloa Bajersky, Gisella Deutsch, Fr. Augustine Obiwumma, Susan Papas Hauck, Cynthia Leowardy. Not pictured: Donna Sali, Peter Chang, Amanda Michelle Chang, Astrid Priscilla Chang, Ethelyn David, Janice Hamanishi, and Tanya Cheney, Anne Kristen Bennett. 27271139
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