Pillars of Fire In My Soul

wish to grant unimaginable graces to those who trust in My Mercy,” then this certainly, first of all, refers to the veneration accorded to the Image of Divine Mercy. Finally, Christ did not delineate any limits to the size of greatness of the graces and temporal benefits which we can expect through veneration, with unwavering trust, of the Image of the Divine Mercy. THE FEAST OF MERCY The Feast of Divine Mercy occupies the first place among all external manifestations of the Devotion. The Lord Jesus let us know His will in the inaugural revelation. In order to have this feast day established, He devoted fourteen (14) of His revelations to it. He requested of Sister Helen Faustina that the feast be preceded by a novena consisting of the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy. He attached such importance to this feast that in the 43rd revelation He stated: “My Heart rejoices on account of this Feast” (Diary §998). The Feast of Divine Mercy is to be celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. The selection of this Sunday, as well as the distinct desire of Jesus that priests preach sermons about the Divine Mercy on this day (especially about the Mercy that God grants us through Christ), all serve to indicate that Jesus sees an integral relation between the Paschal mystery of our redemption and this Feast. Christ intended that we contemplate the mystery of Redemption on that day as the greatest manifestation of Divine Mercy toward us. This relationship between the Feast of Divine Mercy and the mystery of Redemption was also noted by Sister Helen Faustina when she wrote in 1935: “Now I see that the work of Redemption is connected with the work of Mercy, which the Lord demands” (Diary §89). Such a feast is not found in the liturgical calendar of the universal Church nor in that of the Church in Poland. 8 The agreement of such a feast with the teaching of the Catholic faith has already been established at the beginning of this presenta- tion. The liturgical rules of the post-conciliar Missal and Essential Features of the Devotion to The Divine Mercy 111