Divine Mercy: The Heart of the Gospel

Saint Luke: The Gospel of Divine Mercy 25 adding verse 5 from Isaiah 40: “and all humanity will see the salvation o f God” (Luke 3: 5). Then to further emphasize that God’s salvation and Mercy is for all mankind, Luke presents the genealogy o f Jesus. Unlike Matthew’s genealogy, which begins with Abraham, the Father o f the Jews, Luke goes back to Adam, the fa th er o f all mankind. Luke ends his genealogy by these words “ ...son of Adam, son o f God,” identifying God as Adam’s Father. In short, Luke is saying all descendants o f Adam are “children of God,” thus giving Jesus’ mission of Divine Mercy a universal character. In a unique twist, Luke shows Mary in the royal family lineage descend­ ing from David through one o f his other sons, Nathan. It is the origin of the genealogy from God and Mary’s lineage that makes Luke’s geneal­ ogy unique and different from Matthew’s by making God’s Mercy and His salvation universal and inclusive. This is confirmed by Jesus’ words to Sr. Faustina in her Diary, entry no. 1182: Today the Lord said to me, My daughter, My pleasure and delight, nothing will stop Me from granting you graces. Your misery does not hinder My Mercy. My daughter, write that the greater the misery o f a soul, the greater its right to My mercy; [urge] all souls to trust in the unfathomable abyss o f My mercy, because I want to save them all. On the cross, the foun­ tain o f My mercy was opened wide by the lance for all souls — no one have I excluded!23 Having established the universality o f Divine Mercy and salvation, Luke continues to confirm this by his use of incidents and parables that are unique to his Gospel. For Luke, Jesus is the Savior o f all people. To emphasize this, his narrative includes every gender, class and moral character conceivable. Just within the material unique to Luke we find: The cure o f the Centurion’s servant, a military man from the occupation force. A son raised to life because he is the only son o f a widow who would be left destitute. A woman o f questionable reputation who anoints Him. Female companions, considered second class citizens, who