St. Faustina is most well-known for her visions of Divine Mercy and the Divine Mercy chaplet said worldwide each day at 3 PM by many people. Her message promoting Divine Mercy is also discussed in light of the modern world on our program Divine Mercy in My Soul.
A Remarkably Spiritual Vocation
The third of ten children, Helena Kowalska joined the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in 1925. In addition to her many works of mercy for the local community and the community of her sisters, she also developed a deep spiritual life with a devotion to the Holy Eucharist and Blessed Mother.
Sr. Maria Faustina received several visions of Our Lord which she recorded in her famous Diary at the request of Christ Himself.
In these remarkable visions, Our Lord Jesus Christ portrayed himself outpouring divine mercy and forgiveness from his heart. These rays of mercy represented the blood and water that gushed forth from His side after His Death on the Cross.
“One hand [was] raised in the gesture of blessing, the other was touching the garment at the breast. From beneath the garment, slightly drawn aside at the breast, there were emanating two large rays, one red, the other pale.”
She also received several visions of the realities contained in Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory.
Sr. Maria Faustina was careful in sharing these revelations and visions of mercy, knowing that they could easily be misconstrued as holiness itself, rather than a means to attain holiness. She stated in her Diary: “Neither graces, nor revelations, nor raptures, nor gifts granted to a soul make it perfect, but rather the intimate union of the soul with God. These gifts are merely ornaments of the soul, but constitute neither its essence nor its perfection. My sanctity and perfection consist in the close union of my will with the will of God.”
St. Faustina: A Modern Apostle
Our Lord chose Sr. Maria Faustina to be the Apostle and “Secretary” for His Mercury, and told her to write all that she had seen and heard in a diary she titled Divine Mercy in My Soul. Her spiritual maturity and union with God are clearly evident in the mystical experiences she shared with Our Lord: “Today I am sending you with My Mercy to the people of the whole world. I do not want to punish aching mankind, but I desire to heal it, pressing it to My Merciful Heart.”
At just 33, Sr. Maria Faustina succumbed to tuberculosis and other sufferings which she continuously offered up as reparation for the souls of sinners. On April 30, 2000 Pope St. John Paul II canonized Sr. Maria Faustina a saint and she became known to the whole world as St. Faustina, an Apostle of Divine Mercy. Her feast day is celebrated on October 5.
Join Us in Prayer
Please join The Station of the Cross everyday at 3 PM for a Holy Hour where we recite the Divine Mercy Chaplet and the Holy Rosary. You can also listen to our program Divine Mercy in My Soul, where the message of Divine Mercy is applied to the world today.
St. Faustina, Pray for Us!
