Fall-Winter 2013-2014

T he live drama Faustina: Messenger of Divine Mercy premiered in the Portland Archdiocese on Oct. 5, St. Faustina’s feast day and the 75th anniversary of her death. The drama by Saint Luke Productions (SLP),which stars actress Maria Vargo as St. Faustina and is now touring across the country, has had quite a journey from concept to stage. “Ever since she was the first saint to be canonized in the new millennium, I always thought, ‘Someday, we’re going to do Faustina,’” Leonardo Defilippis said. The cofounder of SLP with his wife, Patti, Leonardo has brought many saints to life on stage and screen, including John of the Cross, Augustine of Hippo, Maximilian Kolbe, and Francis of Assisi. SLP’s movie Thérèse had a theatrical release and did remarkably well for a grassroots, independent production, while their touring dramas of the lives of Jean Vianney and Maximilian Kolbe continue to be among the most popular of all their works. Blessed Mother Teresa was supposed to be next, but God had other plans. “I kept think- ing of Faustina,” said Leonardo. For many years, the Defilippises were vaguely familiar with Faustina and Divine Mercy, but they didn’t have a chance to dig deeper. “We were always dealing with other saints. It was through the example and devo- tion to the Divine Mercy of young people that I learned about it,” said Leonardo. “Both actresses for Thérèse — the original theater actress Maggie Mahrt and Lindsay Younce who played the role in the movie — had great devotions to Divine Mercy, to St. Faustina. “Those young women led me to Faustina. I would pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet occasion- ally, but I had never read the Diary because I never had time. Once I was able to put my focus on it, then it opened up a new world to me.” Contacting the Marians When Leonardo and Patti began to seri- ously contemplate a live drama based on St. Faustina’s Diary , they contacted Fr. Michael Gaitley, MIC, the director of the Association of Marian Helpers, for advice. They had heard of the Marian Fathers and their promotion of the Divine Mercy message, especially through 8 M arian H elper • F all /W inter 2013 •  www.marian.org In the News: St. Faustina’s story comes alive on stage Faustina: Messenger of Divine Mercy is touring around the country. The Marian Fathers encourage their Marian Helpers to consider sponsoring a performance in their area or diocese. See details below. C ourtesy of S t . L uke P roductions St. Faustina live drama tours nationwide Maria Vargo stars in Faustina: Messenger of Divine Mercy. by Chris Sparks