December 21, 2025 Fourth Sunday Of Advent National Shrine of The Divine Mercy A Ministry of the Marians of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary National Shrine of The Divine Mercy PO Box 951 2 Prospect Hill Road Stockbridge, MA 01262 (GPS: 11 Pine Street, Stockbridge, MA) Fr. Matthew Tomeny, MIC: Rector Fr. Robert Vennetti, MIC: Vice Rector Fr. Anthony Gramlich, MIC: Vice Rector Shrine Reception: 413-298-3931 Bus Pilgrimages: 413-298-1119 Gift Shop: 888-484-1112 National Shrine: www.shrineofdivinemercy.org Divine Mercy: www.thedivinemercy.org Marians: www.marian.org Livestream from the National Shrine Daily Devotions Daily Mass 9:00 am Chaplet of Divine Mercy 3:00 pm Rosary for Life 5:00 pm Divine Mercy (Official) Divine Mercy Videos posted on our website daily: shrineofdivinemercy.org Dear Pilgrims, We welcome you to the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy. Please join us for any upcoming events at the Shrine along with doing a personal pilgrimage during this year. Feel free to visit our Gift Shop and stroll our beautiful grounds during your visit here. May God bless you. Sincerely in Jesus and Mary Immaculate, Fr. Matthew Tomeny, MIC Shrine Rector Monday- Saturday 8:00am, 9:00am & 2:00pm Sunday 9:00am, 10:30am & 2:00pm Please note: 2pm Mass on Saturday does NOT fulfill Sunday obligation Confessions Available Monday thru Friday 1:00pm - 2:00pm Saturdays and Sundays 1:00pm – 2:00pm 3:30pm – 4:15pm Daily Schedule
Upcoming Events December 12/24 Vigil of the Nativity of The Lord • 11pm Silent Holy Hour of Adoration • 12:00am Midnight Christmas Mass • See flyer on page 9 for more information 12/25 Solemnity of the Nativity of The Lord • HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION • 9:00am, 10:30am and 2:00pm Masses • See flyer on page 9 for more information 12/27 “Explaining the Faith Talk in 15 Minutes” with Fr. Chris Alar, MIC • Topic: TBD 12/28 Feast of the Holy Family 12/31 New Year’s Eve • 11pm Silent Holy Hour of Adoration • 12:00am (Midnight) New Year’s Eve Mass • See flyer on page 9 for more information 1/1 Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God • HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION • See flyer on page 11 for Mass times January 2026 For more information please visit the Shrine Calendar found on our website: https: www.shrineofdivinemercy.org
Pope Francis ANGELUS ADDRESS - DECEMBER 18, 2022 Dear brothers and sisters, buongiorno! Today, the fourth and final Sunday of Advent, the liturgy presents the figure of Saint Joseph to us (cf. Mt 1:18-24). He is a just man who is about to get married. We can imagine what his dreams for the future are — a beautiful family, with an affectionate wife and many wonderful children, and a dignified job — simple and good dreams, the dreams of simple and good people. Suddenly however, these dreams shatter against a disconcerting discovery. Mary, his betrothed, is expecting a child, and the child is not his! What would Joseph have felt? Shock, pain, confusion, perhaps even irritation and disappointment…. He experienced his world was falling apart all around him! And what could he do? The Law gives him two options. The first is to accuse Mary and make her pay the price for her alleged infidelity. The second is to secretly annul their engagement without exposing Mary to scandal and to harsh consequences, taking upon himself, however, the burden of shame. So, Joseph chooses this second option, the way of mercy. And behold, at the height of his crisis, right when he is thinking and evaluating all this, God lights a new light in his heart — he declares to him in a dream that Mary’s motherhood did not come about because of a betrayal, but was the work As we await His Holiness Pope Leo XIV ’ s future homilies and addresses regarding Gospel readings, we will revisit the teachings of his predecessors. Wisdom of Pope Leo XIV “Christ announces who he is by what he does. And what he does is a sign of salvation for all of us. In fact, by encountering Jesus – lives previously deprived of light, speech and taste regain meaning – the blind see, the mute speak, the deaf hear. The image of God, seemingly disfigured by leprosy, regains wholeness and vitality. Even the dead, who are completely lifeless, come back to life (cf. v. 5). This is the Gospel of Jesus, the good news proclaimed to the poor. Thus, when God comes into the world, it is clearly seen!” Quote from Angelus Address of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV December 7, 2025 Teachings of the Popes
of the Holy Spirit, and that the baby to be born will be the Saviour (cf. vv. 20-21). Mary will be the Mother of the Messiah, and he will be His guardian. On waking up, Joseph understands that the greatest dream of every devout Israelite — to be the father of the Messiah — is being fulfilled for him in a completely unexpected way. Indeed, in order to fulfil this, it would not be enough to belong to David’s lineage and be a faithful observer of the law, but he will have to entrust himself above and beyond all else to God, welcome Mary and her son in a completely different way than he had expected, different from the way things had always been done. In other words, Joseph will have to renounce all reassuring certainties, his perfect plans, his legitimate expectations, and open himself to a future that was completely to be discovered. And before God, who disrupts his plans and asks that he trust Him, Joseph says “yes”. Joseph’s courage is heroic and is exercised in silence — his courage is to trust, he welcomes, he is willing, he asks for no further guarantees. Brothers and sisters, what does Joseph say to us today? We too have our dreams, and perhaps we think of them more, we talk about them together at Christmas. Perhaps we long for some dreams that were shattered and we see that our best expectations have to face with the unexpected, disconcerting situations. And when this happens, Joseph shows us the way. We should not give in to negative feelings, like anger or isolation — this is the wrong way! Instead, we have to attentively welcome surprises, life’s surprises, even the crises. When we find ourselves in crisis, we should not make decisions quickly and instinctively, but rather sift through them like Joseph did, who “considered everything” (cf. v. 20), and base ourselves on the underlying criterium: God’s mercy. When one experiences a crisis without giving in to isolation, anger, and fear, but keeping the door open to God, He can intervene. He is an expert in transforming crises into dreams — yes, God opens crises into new horizons we never would have imagined before, perhaps not as we would expect, but in the way he knows how. And these, brothers and sisters, are God’s horizons — surprising — but infinitely broader and more beautiful than ours! May the Virgin Mary help us live open to God’s surprises. Picture of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV from Welcome, Pope Leo XIV from marian.org: https://marian.org/articles/welcome-pope-leo-xiv Quote from Angelus Address given by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV December 14, 2025: https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/angelus/2025/documents/20251214-angelus.html Crest of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV: https://www.vatican.va/content/vatican/en.html Angelus Address given by Pope Francis on December 18, 2022 https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/angelus/2022/documents/20221218-angelus.html Picture of Pope Francis from Pope Francis, rest in peace : https://www.facebook.com/DivineMercyOfficial/photos/may-the-soul-of-pope-francis-rest-in-peace/1070714418415285/
Get to know the Diary of… November 29, [1936]. The Mother of God has taught me how to prepare for the Feast of Christmas. I saw Her today, without the Infant Jesus. She said to me: My daughter, strive after silence and humility, so that Jesus, who dwells in your heart continuously, may be able to rest. Adore Him in your heart; do not go out from your inmost being. My daughter, I shall obtain for you the grace of an interior life which will be such that, without ever leaving that interior life, you will be able to carry out all your external duties with even greater care. Dwell with Him continuously in your own heart. He will be your strength. Communicate with creatures only in so far as is necessary and is required by your duties. You are a dwelling place pleasing to the living God; in you He dwells continuously with love and delight. And the living presence of God, which you experience in a more vivid and distinct way, will confirm you, my daughter, in the things I have told you. Try to act in this way until Christmas Day, and then He himself will make known to you in what way you will be communing and uniting yourself with Him. I am reliving these moments with Our Lady. With great longing, I am waiting for the Lord’s coming. Great are my desires. I desire that all humankind come to know the Lord. I would like to prepare all nations for the coming of the Word Incarnate. O Jesus, make the fount of Your mercy gush forth more abundantly, for humankind is seriously ill and thus has more need than ever of Your compassion. You are a bottomless sea of mercy for us sinners; and the greater the misery, the more right we have to Your mercy. You are a fount which makes all creatures happy by Your infinite mercy. Today [December 9, 1936], I am leaving for Pradnik, just outside Cracow, to undergo treatment. I am to stay there for three months. I am being sent there through the great solicitude of my superiors, especially that of our dear Mother General [Michael], who is so solicitous for the sisters who are ill. I have accepted the favor of this treatment, but I am fully resigned to the will of God. Let God do with me as He pleases. I desire nothing but the fulfillment of His holy will. I am uniting myself with the Mother of God, and I am leaving Nazareth and going to Bethlehem. I will spend Christmas there among strangers, but with Jesus, Mary and Joseph, because such is the will of God. I am striving to do the will of God in all things. I do not desire a return to health more than death. I entrust myself completely to His infinite mercy and, as a little child, I am living in the greatest peace. I am trying only to make my love for Him deeper and purer, to be a delight to His divine glance... Two days before Christmas, these words were read in the refectory: “Tomorrow is the Birth of Jesus Christ according to the flesh.”221 At these words, my soul was pierced by the light and love of God, and I gained deeper knowledge of the Mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God. How great is the mercy of God contained in the Mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God! Saint Faustina God will descend to earth; the Immortal Lord of lords will abase Himself.
God, You did not destroy man after his fall, but in Your mercy You forgave him, You forgave in a divine way; that is, not only have You absolved him from guilt, but You have bestowed upon him every grace. Mercy has moved You to deign to descend among us and lift us up from our misery. God will descend to earth; the Immortal Lord of lords will abase Himself. But where will You descend, Lord; will it be to the temple of Solomon? Or will You have a new tabernacle built for Yourself? Where do You intend to come down? O Lord, what kind of tabernacle shall we prepare for You, since the whole earth is Your footstool? You have indeed prepared a tabernacle for Yourself: the Blessed Virgin. Her Immaculate Womb is Your dwelling place, and the inconceivable miracle of Your mercy takes place, O Lord. The Word becomes flesh; God dwells among us, the Word of God, Mercy Incarnate. By Your descent, You have lifted us up to Your divinity. Such is the excess of Your love, the abyss of Your mercy. Heaven is amazed at the superabundance of Your love. No one fears to approach You now. You are the God of mercy. You have compassion on misery. You are our God, and we are Your people. You are our Father, and we are Your children by grace. Praise be to Your mercy, that You have deigned to descend among us. + Christmas Eve [1937]. After Holy Communion, the Mother of God gave me to experience the anxious concern she had in Her heart because of the Son of God. But this anxiety was permeated with such fragrance of abandonment to the will of God that I should call it rather a delight than an anxiety. I understood how my soul ought to accept the will of God in all things. It is a pity I cannot write this the way I experienced it. My soul was plunged in deep recollection all day long. Nothing could tear me away from this recollection, neither duties, nor the business I had with lay people. + When I arrived at Midnight Mass, from the very beginning I steeped myself in deep recollection, during which time I saw the stable of Bethlehem filled with great radiance. The Blessed Virgin, all lost in the deepest of love, was wrapping Jesus in swaddling clothes, but Saint Joseph was still asleep. Only after the Mother of God put Jesus in the manger, did the light of God awaken Joseph, who also prayed. But after a while, I was left alone with the Infant Jesus who stretched out His little hands to me, and I understood that I was to take Him in my arms. Jesus pressed His head against my heart and gave me to know, by His profound gaze, how good He found it to be next to my heart. At that moment Jesus disappeared and the bell was ringing for Holy Communion. Midnight Mass...I immediately felt a great interior recollection; joy filled my soul. During the offertory, I saw Jesus on the altar, incomparably beautiful. The whole time the Infant kept looking at everyone, stretching out His little hands. During the elevation, the Child was not looking towards the chapel but up to heaven. After the elevation He looked at us again, but just for a short while, because He was broken up and eaten by the priest in the usual manner. His pinafore was now white. The next day I saw the same thing, and on the third day as well. It is difficult for me to express the joy of my soul. The vision was repeated at the three Masses in the same way as in the first ones. When I was by myself, I began to reflect on the spirit of poverty. I clearly saw that Jesus, although He is Lord of all things, possessed nothing. From a borrowed manger He went through life doing good to all, but himself having no place to lay His head. And on the Cross, I see the summit of His poverty, for He does not even have a garment on himself. O Jesus, through a solemn vow of poverty I desire to become like You; poverty will be my mother. As exteriorly we should possess nothing and have nothing to dispose of as our own; so interiorly we should desire nothing. And in the Most Blessed Sacrament, how great is Your poverty! Has there ever been a soul as abandoned as You were on the Cross, Jesus? O Light Eternal, who come to this earth, enlighten my mind and strengthen my will that I may not give up in times of great affliction. May Your light dissipate all the shadows of doubt. May Your omnipotence act through me. I trust in You, O uncreated Light! You, O Infant Jesus, are a model for me in accomplishing Your Father’s will, You, who said, “Behold, I come to do Your will.” Grant that I also may do God’s will faithfully in all things. O Divine Infant, grant me this grace! Diary 785, 793-795, 1433, 1745, 1437, excerpt 1442, 347;, 533, 830
Here in the Holy Family, we have divinity obedient to humanity, for Jesus, the divine Son, was obedient to Joseph and Mary (see Lk 2:51). We see creatures and Creator living as family, living in relationships of love, not of fear; of mutual self-gift, not of dominance. We see the same sort of infinite generosity in the earthly Holy Family as we see in the Heavenly Trinity. And we see there modeled the whole ecclesial life in the Spirit to which we are called. Saint Faustina had a living relationship with all three members of the Holy Family. She saw Joseph and Mary as well as Jesus, and loved all three with a great and fervent love (see, for instance, Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, 608, 846, 1203, 1442). Even as she had near daily conversations with Jesus, still she turned in prayer to Mary and Joseph regularly. Indeed, she had been told to do so: Saint Joseph urged me to have a constant devotion to him. He himself told me to recite three prayers [the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be] and the Memorare once every day. He looked at me with great kindness and gave me to know how much he is supporting this work [of mercy]. He has promised me this special help and protection. I recite the requested prayers every day and feel his special protection (Diary, 1203). Why? Because to love God properly means we should love what — and whom — He loves. And God loves no one more than His earthly parents. Think of the trust God must have had for them! Think of the love, to look on Joseph and Mary and to believe them capable of being people to whom He could be obedient, to whom He could entrust God the Son. Think of the extraordinary humility God must have, being willing to make Himself subject to creatures. During these trying times, come home to the Holy Family. Welcome these most powerful protectors and intercessors into your life, and you’ll have all the help you need to meet any challenge, no matter how great. Feast Day December 28th Excerpt from Come Home to the Holy Family by Chris Sparks, May 7, 2020: h ps://www.thedivinemercy.org/ar cles/come-home-holy-family Picture from All in the Holy Family: h ps://www.thedivinemercy.org/ar cles/all-holy-family Feast of the Holy Family
The Gift Shop is open daily 9:30am – 4:30pm Find us at: divinemercy giftshop.org e Shrine Bulletin Board Oil blessed in honor of St. Faustina is available at the Shrine Reception desk. A suggested donation of $5.00 which would go to support Shrine Ministries. Join the Marian Fathers in person or via livestream for the First Fridays and First Saturdays Livestream: First Fridays at 8pm First Saturdays at 11:45am TheDvineMercy.org FacebookDivineMercyOfificial YouTube: Divine Mercy
MARIANS OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Yes, I want to Help! How to help Please visit www.marian.org/ukraine/ to make a donation for Ukraine relief. One-hundred percent of funds received are sent directly to Ukraine and used to purchase humanitarian aid and medical supplies. Please do not mail medical supplies to Ukraine! Instead, please contact the Eucharistic Apostles of The Divine Mercy: 1-877-380-0727 or e-mail [email protected] to answer any of your questions. Because shipping via container is more cost effective, we prefer whatever monetary donations you can give rather than you sending medical supplies. Please know that boxes previously sent to the Marians or the EADM office were sent to Project C.U.R.E. and will be on fu-ture containers.
Embrace Life! Be A Hospice Volunteer. Do you have a talent to share? A contagious passion for just about anything? Would you like a appreciative audience? Want an easy way to make a big impact in someone’s life? Do you want to spend your precious free time making a difference in someone’s life? This is an opportunity for you. We are currently looking for HOPSICE VOLUNTEERS on a regular, periodic or as needed basis. You can play cards, read papers, or have a nice conversation with patients. We provide training. You must be at least 18 years old to apply. Please contact Lori Johnson, Volunteer Coordinator, at 413-443-2994 Or email: [email protected] Visit their website for more information: h ps://hcib.org/ Jesus said to St. Faustina: "... I demand from you deeds of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me. You are to show mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to excuse or absolve yourself from it" Diary of St. Faustina, 742 Excerpt from Comfort the Sick-Park of a Series on Corporal Deeds of Mercy. To read in full go to: https://www.thedivinemercy.org/articles/comfort-sick
The Image of Divine Mercy I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish. I also promise victory over [its] enemies already here on earth, especially at the hour of death. I myself will defend it as my own glory. (Diary 48) In 1931, our Lord appeared to St. Faustina in a vision. She saw Jesus clothed in a white garment with His right hand raised in blessing. His left hand was touching His garment in the area of the Heart, from where two large rays came forth, one red and the other pale. She gazed intently at the Lord in silence, her soul filled with awe, but also with great joy. Jesus said to her: Paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the signature: Jesus, I trust in You. I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish. I also promise victory over [its] enemies already here on earth, especially at the hour of death. I Myself will defend it as My own glory (Diary, 47, 48). I am offering people a vessel with which they are to keep coming for graces to the fountain of mercy. That vessel is this image with the signature: Jesus, I trust in You (327). I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel, and [then] throughout the world (47). At the request of her spiritual director, St. Faustina asked the Lord about the meaning of the rays in the image. She heard these words in reply: The two rays denote Blood and Water. The pale ray stands for the Water which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for the Blood which is the life of souls. These two rays issued forth from the depths of My tender mercy when My agonized Heart was opened by a lance on the Cross. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him (299). By means of this image I shall grant many graces to souls. It is to be a reminder of the demands of My mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works (742). These words indicate that the Image represents the graces of Divine Mercy poured out upon the world, especially through Baptism and the Eucharist. Many different versions of this image have been painted, but our Lord made it clear that the painting itself is not what is important. When St. Faustina first saw the original image that was being painted under her direction, she wept in disappointment and complained to Jesus: "Who will paint You as beautiful as You are?" (313). From The Image of The Divine Mercy www.thedivinemercy.org/message/devotions/image
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