National Shrine of The Divine Mercy Bulletin: Aug. 15, 2021

O Mary, Immaculate Virgin, Pure crystal for my heart, You are my strength, O sturdy anchor! You are the weak heart’s shield and protection. O Mary you are pure, of purity incomparable; At once both Virgin and Mother, You are beautiful as the sun, without blemish, And your soul is beyond all comparison. Your beauty has delighted the eye of the Thrice-Holy One. He descended from heaven, leaving His eternal throne, And took Body and Blood of Virgin’s Heart. O Mother, Virgin, purest of all lilies, Your heart was Jesus’ first tabernacle on earth. Only because no humility was deeper than yours Were you raised above the choirs of Angels and above all Saints. O Mary, my sweet Mother, I give you my soul, my body and my poor heart. Be the guardian of my life, Especially at the hour of death, in the final strife. Diary 161 From the Diary of St. Faustina Blessed Oil of St. Faustina Oil Blessed in honor of St. Faustina is available at the Shrine Reception Desk. A suggested donation of $5.00 is being requested to help fund all our Shrine Ministries. To order your copy of The Diary of St. Faustina please go to divinemercygiftshop.org. or call our Gift Shop at1-888-484-1112 August 15, 1937 During meditation, God's presence pervaded me keenly, and I was aware of the Virgin Mary's joy at the moment of Her Assumption. Towards the end of the ceremony carried out in honor of the Mother of God, I saw the Virgin Mary, and She said to me, Oh, how very pleased I am with the homage of your love! And at that moment She covered all the sisters of our Congregati n with Her m tle. With Her right hand, She clasped Mother General Michael to herself, and with Her left hand She did so to me, while all the sisters were at Her feet, covered with Her mantle. Then the Mother of God said, Everyone who perseve es zealously till death in My Congregation will be spa ed the fire of purgatory, and I desire that each one distinguish herself by the following virtues: humility and meekness; chastity and love of God and neighbor; compa sion and mercy. After these words, the whole Congregation disappeared from my sight, and I remained alone with the Most Holy Mother who instructed me about the will of God and how to apply it to my life, submitting completely to His most holy decrees. It is impossible for one to please God without obeying His holy will. My daughter, I strongly recommend that you faithfully fulfill all God's wishes, for that is most pleasing to His holy eyes. I very much desire that you distinguish yourself in this faithfulness in accomplishing God's will. Put the will of God before all sacrifices and holocausts. While the heavenly Mother was talking to me, a deep understanding of this will of God was entering my soul . Diary 1244 St. Jane Frances de Chantal “ Saint Vincent de Paul said of [St.] Jane Frances [de Chantal]: ‘ She was full of faith, yet all her life had been tormented by thoughts against it. While apparently enjoying the peace and easiness of mind of souls who have reached a high state of virtue, she suffered such interior trials that she often told me her mind was so filled with all sorts of temptations an abominations that she had to strive not to look within herself ... But for all that suffering her face never lost its serenity, nor did she once relax in the fidelity God asked of her. And so I regard her as one of the holiest souls I have ever met on this earth ’” (Butler's Lives of the Saints ) Saint Jane Frances de Chantal's successful struggle against many sufferings and great inner darkness offers hope to those who also struggle against terrible temptations, for whom the road to sanctity isn't going to be pretty and for whom faith comes at a high cost. There's room in the Church for the disreputable, for the diseased, for the monstrous and the mad. There is a balm in Gilead (Jer 8:22); there is grace and forgiveness for all, no matter their sins, no matter their temptations, no matter how dark and horrible they may seem to themselves. On Aug. 12, her feast day, let us ask St. Jane Frances de Chantal to pray for us when we face dark times and discouragement, that our trust in Jesus' mercy never waver and our hope for our own sanctification through our cooperation with the grace of God be steadfast. Let us ask her intercession that we rise rapidly to the heights of loving communion with God for the salvation of our own soul and the souls of those around us. - Excerpt from Defying the Darkness by Chris Sparks. Full article go to: www.thedivinemercy.org/articles/darkness-light Saint Jane Frances de Chantal, foundress of the Congregation of the Visitation, spiritual daughter of St. Francis de Sales, and a woman renowned for sanctity in her own time, often said to St. Vincent de Paul that "her mind was so filled with all sorts of temptations and abominations that she had to strive not to look within herself." S t. J ane F rances de C hantel Foundress of the Sisters of the Visitation Feast Day: August 12t h