Pillars of Fire In My Soul

16. From several entries in Sister Faustina’s Diary it is clear that Our Lord considered the “Feast of Mercy” which He wants celebrated solemnly in the Church on the first Sunday after Easter, to be actually existing. Our Lord’s words referring to this matter were recorded in her Diary (88). There He is quot- ed as having said plainly: That Sunday is the Feast of Mercy . On another occasion, when Sister Faustina was offering her prayers, work and sufferings to Our Lord so that the Feast of Mercy be established in the Church, she said to Him: But, Jesus, I have one word to say to You: I am very surprised that You bid me to speak about this Feast of Mercy, for they tell me that there already is such a feast; and so why should I speak about it? And Jesus said to me: And who knows anything about this feast? No one! Even those who should be proclaiming My mercy and teaching people about it often do not know about it themselves (Diary, 341). In another entry, Jesus is quoted as saying: My Heart rejoices on account of this Feast (Diary, 998). 17. See Footnote 6 on the way to understand the expression: “divine wrath”. 18. An eminent scholar of Sacred Scripture, Fr. George Montague, S.M., gives us a good explanation of how we are to understand statements about “God’s punishment”. He states: “In the biblical view, sin is its own punishment and the evil God brings on sinners is primarily allowing their own schemes to bear their rotten fruits” ( Building Christ’s Body , p. 88). St. Paul assures us of God’s never-changing intent by insisting that God gave Jesus up to be a sacrifice of atonement for us, that is, as the one who would turn aside the wrath (the hurtful result which is present wherever sin comes in) by taking away sin. 19. With regard to the Novena that Our Lord wants us to Divine Mercy … We Trust in You! 75