Jesus, Mercy Incarnate

To those familiar with her writings, it will be immediately apparent that our Lord made very similar promises to St. Faustina, and to those who venerate the Image of The Divine Mercy: 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.... 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 inYou.... I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel, and (then) throughout the world . 30 Not only did Jesus make similar promises to those who venerate these two images, but also, the movements inspired by His Spirit to promote such veneration seem remarkably similar. For example, early in the 20th century our Lord inspired Fr. Mateo Crawley-Boevey, a priest from Peru, to initiate the movement for the solemn enthronement of the image of the Sacred Heart in families. Pope St. Pius X, when asked for his approval of this mission, answered Fr. Mateo, “I not only approve; I command,” and called his mission the “work of social salvation.” 31 As a result, the enthronement movement spread rapidly throughout the world. Fr. Mateo described it as follows in his principal work, Jesus, King of Love : What is the work of enthronement? It can be defined as the official and social acknowledgment of the sovereignty of the Heart of Jesus over the Christian family, an acknowledgment made tangible and permanent by the solemn installation of the picture of the Divine Heart in a place of honor, and by an act of consecration.... The family is the source of life, the child’s first school. If the source of national life is poisoned, the nation will perish. 115 The Sacred Heart and The Divine Mercy