Sister Faustina Kowalska: Her LIfe and MIssion

though t th a t she concentrated h e r piety and a tten tion on it more closely. F a the r Sopocko published the Novena and Litany du ring h e r lifetime, and also a little picture of the Merciful Jesu s . Mother Irene Krzyzanow­ ska is our most au tho rita tive w itness on the history of the devotion: "When I became superior in Cracow, I obtained a little picture o f the Merciful Jesus and placed it on the altar o f St. Joseph (at the end o f 1937 or in 1938). Seeing that both our S isters and the wards o f our institution had great reverence for th is image, I decided to order a large picture to hang in our chapel. On Low Sunday, which according to the revelations o f S ister Faustina was the day Jesus had chosen as the Feast o f H is Mercy, we placed th is picture a t the side altar o f the Sacred Heart o f Jesus. On Low Sunday a Mass was said at this altar and there was a special sermon on the Divine Mercy." (Archives of S.F., Recollections). In March 1943, F a the r Andrasz blessed a larger picture of the Merciful Jesu s , pa in ted by the a r t is t Adolf Hyla as a votive offering for the safety of h im self and h is family during the war. The image was placed a t a side a ltar. To w ha t degree i t became popular can be seen from the many votive offerings around it. At Lagiewniki nea r Cracow the devotion to th e Divine Mercy is especially closely connected with the person of S ister Faustina . Here i t would be impossible to forget the person who made the public accustomed to the devotion. Those who come to pray in the presence of the image always visit the tomb of S ister Fau s tina . A g rea t variety of people can be seen: largely, crowds of simple people come, b u t among them is a considerable number of represen ta tive members of the intelligentsia, such as priests, nuns, etc. Cardinal Sapieha prayed here, as did th e then O rdinary of Czestochowa, Bishop Barela, when, as a priest, he still lived in Cracow. When he was the Rector of th e Seminary, the p resen t 380