Marian Helper Fall 2015

N ot ones to mince words — about hell, Satan, and the society-fracturing effects of abortion, pornography, same-sex marriage, sexual pro- miscuity, economic injustice, and substance abuse — Dave and Joan Maroney have proffered a solution to save our country from itself. Simply put: to follow in the footsteps of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska by utilizing the same prayers and sacrifices for the United States that she offered the Lord for Poland in the 1930s. Enter the Divine Mercy for America campaign, a three-pronged plan to nurture personal holiness, utilize the promises Jesus makes through St. Faustina, and spread the message of Divine Mercy t o others. “People think they cannot change things, that they are not empowered to turn this country around. But they are empowered,” says Joan, who, along with her husband, Dave, runs Mother of Mercy Messengers (MOMM), an apostolate of the Marian Fathers. And wouldn’t you know it: The blueprints for MOMM’s Divine Mercy for America campaign have been embed- ded in the pages of St. Faustina’s Diary a ll along. In her Diary , St. Faustina chronicles her encounters with Jesus, who reveals God’s greatest attribute to be mercy. On occasion, Jesus tells Faustina of his Father’s anger toward sinners — and, indeed, toward nations. He names names. Relative to MOMM’s campaign, this is where things get interesting. Back in 2012, Dave and Joan had just returned home to Texas from a road trip giving Divine Mercy presenta- tions to local parishes and schools. It being an election year, they felt worn down by a veritable fusillade of presidential politics, economic anxiety, and the volley of rancorous jeremiads in our country’s cultural wars. The Maroneys were preparing for Pentecost, the liturgical memorial of the Church’s watershed moment. While rereading the Diary , they experienced their own watershed moment in their efforts to spread Divine Mercy. It dawned on them how often Christ mentions his Father’s anger with Faustina’s native Poland and how often Faustina responded by offering her prayers and sufferings for her country. Saint Faustina wrote, “I often pray for Poland, but I see that God is very angry with it because of its ingratitude. … I constantly remind God of the promises of His mercy. When I see His anger, I throwmyself trustingly into the abyss of His mercy, and I plunge all Poland in it, and then He cannot use His justice” (1188). One nation under God NEW EVANGELIZATION F elix C arroll 10 M arian H elper • F all 2015 • marian.org W hat to do Visit DivineMercyForAmerica.org to learn more and to join the campaign. Dave and Joan Maroney talk about campaign.