The image of Divine Mercy was commissioned by Jesus himself to Sister Faustina and shows us the DEEP LOVE of Jesus for us, to whom he offers all possible opportunities to save us.
“I promise the soul to venerate this Image that it will not perish. I also promise, already here on earth, victory over the enemies and, especially, at the time of death. I, the Lord, will protect her as to My own Glory ”(Diary, 48)
“Through this image I will fill souls with many graces, so that every soul has access to it” (Diary, 570)
“I offer men a container with which they must come to the Source of Mercy to collect graces. This container is this image with the signature: Jesus in You I trust ”(Diary, 327)
These rays protect souls from My father’s indignation. Blessed is he who lives in their shadow, for the right hand of God will not reach him ”(Diary, 299)
Jesus said that he would preserve the cities and houses in which this Image was found. (Note: The important towns of Krakow and Vilnius, where this devotion was established, were preserved from the almost total destruction of Poland in World War II.)
What is the meaning of the image of divine mercy?
The image presents the risen Christ with the signs of the crucifixion in the hands and feet. Two rays come out of the pierced Heart (invisible in the image): one red and the other white. Once, when the confessor sent me to ask the Lord Jesus about the meaning of the two rays that are in this image (he is talking about the image painted in Vilnius by Eugene Kazimirowski); I answered yes, that I would ask the Lord. During the prayer I heard these words inside: The two rays signify the Blood and the Water. The pale ray symbolizes the Water that justifies souls. The red ray symbolizes the Blood that is the life of souls … Both rays emerged from the deepest bowels of my mercy when my dying Heart was opened on the cross by the spear. These rays protect souls from my Father’s indignation. Blessed is he who lives in their shadow, for the right hand of God will not reach him.
The red and white rays signify Water and Blood. They are the source of graces that flow from the Heart of Christ.
How to venerate the image of divine mercy?
The rays that come from the heart of Jesus in this image, one red and the other pale, symbolize the blood and water that flowed from the pierced heart of Jesus on the cross “(…) as from an overflowing source of mercy” (Diary, 367), for the whole world. Jesus said to Sister Faustina on different occasions: ”(…) The pale ray symbolizes the Water that justifies souls. The red ray symbolizes the Blood that is the life of souls … “(…)” Blessed is he who lives in their shadow, because the right hand of God will not reach him “(Diary, 299). “(…) Through this image I will fill souls with many graces, for this reason, that each soul has access to it” (Diary, 570).
In your own home, you should look for a place where you can be in a moment of recollection, placing the image of the merciful Jesus in a prominent place.
When you need to pray or if you want to pray at 3 in the afternoon, you can go to that place to do it or simply when you look, say the inscription of it: Jesus I trust in you.
A rite can be performed to enthrone the image, although it is not mandatory.
Enthronement of the Image of Divine Mercy
The rite or ceremony of the Enthronement of the Image of Divine Mercy consists of presenting the Image to a family by a priest, their representative, or a delegated member of the family such as being the head of the family. Reading and meditation on the Word of God and the Act of Consecration to Divine Mercy.
The rite of the enthronement of the image in the home can be:
- Greeting and animation. Singing.
- Reading the Word and brief reflection
- Blessing of the Image. (May be previously blessed in church)
- Offering of the Chaplet: Chaplet of Divine Mercy
- Consecration of the family to Merciful Jesus.
- Thanksgiving: Litanies of Mercy.
- Blessing.
Enthronement of the image of Divine Mercy in the home
1. Greeting. Monition.
Enthronement exalts the Merciful God who said: I am the King of Mercy (Diary, 88) honoring him with a trusting heart. The enthronement of the Image is an act of total commitment to this King of Mercy. It is an act of trust with which we express our desire for reconciliation, healing and transformation.
With the Enthronement we place our trust in the merciful Jesus so that he may restore the dignity of the family and heal any state of rupture. Our commitment affects the whole Body of Christ when we pray with one voice … “have mercy on us and on the whole world.”
2. Reading the Word
Read one or two of the following readings:
Romans 12, 9-21 (Brotherly Charity)
John 21, 19-23 (Appearance of the risen one)
(Other Bible readings that relate to God’s mercy and practice can also be selected.)
He who presides may exhort the group to the profound significance of the enthronement; the meaning of Divine Mercy in the home and the importance of family prayer; the special and supernatural blessings that they receive if they are faithful to their commitments. Importance should be given to the themes of: trust in God, the desire to receive and practice mercy, and to forgive enemies and those who have hurt us.
3. Image blessing and enthronement
If no priest is available, it can be blessed earlier in the Church or on the Sunday of the Feast of Mercy.
The priest blesses the image.
Let us pray: Almighty and Eternal God, that you do not disapprove of seeing that we sculpt or paint the images of Your Saints, because every time we see them with the eyes of the body, we meditate on His Holiness and his acts with the eyes of memory; deign to bless and sanctify, We ask you, this image (or sculpture) prepared in honor and memory of your Divine Mercy; and grant to those who strive to honor and adore supplicants this Most Holy attribute of Your Mercy, obtain grace in the present life and eternal glory in the future. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Enthronement: The head of the family places the image in the place of honor, in order to pay homage to the sovereignty of love of Jesus Christ.
4. The Chaplet of Mercy
The devoted prayer of the Crown prepares the family for the final act of their consecration. With the Chaplet we offer to the Heavenly Father the Person of the Incarnate Son of God. When we invoke the painful Passion of Jesus, we make reparation for our sins and the sins of the whole world. The family pleads with Jesus for the mercy that He wishes to impart to them and to the whole world.
5. The Consecration to merciful Jesus
We must claim the home for Jesus Christ. With the help of the presence of Jesus, the home becomes a fortress against the attacks of the enemies of the family and faith. It is there that Christ brings peace, healing and reconciliation.
This is a very special occasion for the family. Family members stand or kneel in front of the Image and with much reverence and devotion recite the consecration prayer:
I resort to Your mercy, compassionate God, since only You are goodness. Although my misery is great and my offenses many, I trust in Your mercy and since time immemorial it has never been heard, neither heaven nor earth remember that a soul trusting in Your mercy has been disappointed. O God of mercy, only You can justify me and you will never reject me, when I, repentant, approach your Merciful Heart, from which no one has ever been rejected, even though he was the greatest sinner. (Diary, 1730) Before heaven and earth turn to nothing, may My mercy stop embracing a trusting soul. (Diary 1777)
Oh Jesus, Friend of the lonely Heart, You are my port, You are my peace, You are my Only salvation. You are serenity in moments of struggle and in the sea of doubts. You are the bright ray that illuminates the path of my life. You are everything to the lonely soul. You understand the soul, even if it remains silent. You know our weaknesses and like a good doctor you console and cure us, saving us suffering, like a good expert. (Diary, 247)
Act of entrusting the world to Divine Mercy. (Saint John Paul II)
O God, merciful Father,
Who have revealed your love
in your Son, Jesus Christ,
and have poured it out upon us
in the Holy Spirit, the Comforter.
We entrust to You today the destiny of the world
and of every man and woman.
Bend down to us sinners,
heal our weaknesses,
conquer all evil,
and grant that all the inhabitants of the earth
may experience Your mercy.
May they always find the source of hope
In You, the Triune God.
Eternal Father,
for the sake of the sorrowful Passion,
and the Resurrection of Your Son,
have mercy on us
and on the whole world. Amen
God, the Merciful Father, who has revealed your love in your Son Jesus Christ and has poured it out on us in the Holy Spirit, Comforter, we entrust to you today the destiny of the World, of our country and of all men. Bow down to us, sinners; heal our weakness; defeat all evil; make all the inhabitants of the earth experience your mercy, so that in you, one and triune God, they always find the source of hope.
Eternal Father, through the painful passion and glorious Resurrection of your Son, have mercy on us and on the whole world. Amen.
A visible gesture of this consecration could be for family members to sign it.
This consecration can be renewed once a week on Friday at 3 in the afternoon, the Hour of Mercy, or at another convenient time for the family.
6. Litanies of Divine Mercy. (Diary 949-951)
Divine Mercy, gushing forth from the bosom of the Father,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, greatest attribute of God,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, incomprehensible mystery,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, fountain gushing forth from the mystery of the Most Blessed Trinity,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, unfathomed by any intellect, human or angelic,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, from which wells forth all life and happiness,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, better than the heavens,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, source of miracles and wonders,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, encompassing the whole universe,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, descending to earth in the Person of the Incarnate Word,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, which flowed out from the open wound of the Heart of Jesus,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, enclosed in the Heart of Jesus for us, and especially for sinners,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, unfathomed in the institution of the Sacred Host,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, in the founding of the Holy Church,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, in the Sacrament of Holy Baptism,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, in our justification through Jesus Christ,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, accompanying us through our whole life,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, embracing us especially at the hour of death,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, endowing us with immortal life,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, accompanying us every moment of our life,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, shielding us from the fire of hell,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, in the conversion of hardened sinners,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, astonishment for Angels, incomprehensible to Saints,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, unfathomed in all the mysteries of God,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, lifting us out of every misery,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, source of our happiness and joy,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, in calling us forth from nothingness to existence,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, embracing all the works of His hands,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, crown of all God?s handiwork,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, in which we are all immersed,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, sweet relief for anguished hearts,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, only hope of despairing souls,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, repose of hearts, peace amidst fear,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, delight and ecstasy of holy souls,
I trust in You.
Divine Mercy, inspiring hope against all hope,
I trust in You.
Let us pray:
Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself.
7. I greet the Heart of Jesus. (Diary, 1321)
Hail, most merciful Heart of Jesus,
Living Fountain of all graces,
Our sole shelter, our only refuge;
In You I have the light of hope.
Hail, most compassionate Heart of my God,
Unfathomable living Fount of Love
From which gushes life for sinful man
And the Spring of all sweetness.
Hail, open Wound of the Most Sacred Heart,
From which the rays of mercy issued forth
And from which it was given us to draw life
With the vessel of trust alone.
Hail, God’s goodness, incomprehensible,
Never to be measured or fathomed,
Full of love and mercy, though always holy,
Yet, like a good mother, ever bent o’er us.
Hail, Throne of Mercy, Lamb of God,
Who gave Your life in sacrifice for me,
Before whom my soul humbles itself daily,
Living in faith profound.