Jesus, Mercy Incarnate

of Jesus Christ lying behind them all, and expressed in them all. If our Lord intends the Feast of Mercy to be this kind of “compendium” or summary, a celebration of the merciful love behind all of His saving acts, then it is no wonder that He promised the most extraordinary spiritual benefits to those who prepare for it by making a good con- fession, and who receive Him with true devotion on that day. As He said to St. Faustina: This Feast emerged from the very depths of My mercy. ... It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. ... I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sin- ners. On that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fountain of My mercy.... 45 Whoever approaches the Fountain of Life on this day will be granted complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. 46 In short, there is room both for the Feast of the Sacred Heart, and for the Feast of The Divine Mercy in the liturgical calendar. The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was meant to be a day of loving repara- tion to His Heart , while the Feast of Mercy is supposed to be a cele- bration of all the merciful love flowing from His Sacred Heart to us . Both feasts are needed, and Jesus Himself asked for them both. (c ) Holy Hours, First Friday Communions, Novenas, and Chaplets These various devotional acts are joined together under a single heading in order to illustrate that the new devotion to The Divine Mercy fits very well with the traditional devotion to the Sacred Heart, and easily flows from it. First of all, the Lord Jesus Himself asked St. MargaretMary to keep a weekly Holy Hour before Him in the tabernacle. He said to her: 121 The Sacred Heart and The Divine Mercy