Catholic Candle note: The article below is a warning against a false, conciliar, counterfeit devotion concerning God’s mercy.

 

 

Catholics should stay away from the so-called “Divine Mercy” devotion and stick to the traditional Catholic devotions, especially the devotion to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

The “Divine Mercy” devotion sprang out of supposed apparitions to Sister Faustina in Poland.  She is a supposed conciliar “saint”.  Pope John Paul II, of course, was Polish and loved “all things” Polish.  He “canonized” her.  He encouraged devotion to Sister Faustina, her supposed visions, and this devotion. 

 

Before Vatican II, the Holy Office quelled the so-called “Divine Mercy” devotion.  The Congregation of the Holy Office, in a plenary meeting held on November 19, 1958, declared the following:

·         The supernatural nature of the revelations made to Sister Faustina is not evident.

·         No feast of Divine Mercy is to be instituted.

 

·         It is forbidden to divulge images and writings that propagate this devotion under the form received by Sister Faustina.

Sister Faustina’s diary was also placed on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, or List of Prohibited Books by Pope Pius XII.  The diary was never removed from the List, but the list was completely abolished by the Modernist Pope Paul VI.

There was also a second decree, on March 6, 1959, in which of the Holy Office decreed the following:

·         The diffusion of images and writings promoting the devotion to Divine Mercy under the form proposed by the same Sister Faustina is forbidden.

·         The prudence of the bishops is to judge as to the removal of the aforesaid images that are already displayed for public honor.

 

Pope Paul VI lifted these prohibitions and restrictions on April 15, 1978 and Pope John Paul II introduced a “feast” of Divine Mercy into the novus ordo mass’s calendar.  These actions are part of the conciliar pattern of overturning the pre-Vatican II safeguards of the Faith.

 

There are many things in the writings of Sr. Faustina which would scandalize an informed Catholic.  For example, Sr. Faustina claimed that “Our Lord” declared that “He” is uniting “Himself” more closely with her than anyone else, including “His” own Mother.  Here are the words of this supposed apparition to Sr. Faustina:

 

I am uniting Myself with you so intimately as with no other creature.[1]

 

How different from these words are Our Lord’s words to a real saint, St. Catherine of Sienna!  Our Lord told St. Catherine:

 

Do you know, daughter, who you are, who I am?  If you know these two things, you will be blessed.  You are she who is not; whereas I am He who is.[2]

 

There are many other evils in the supposed words of “Our Lord” to Sr. Faustina.  But for the present article, let this quote (above) suffice for a warning against the supposed “revelations” to Sr. Faustina.

 

The real image of God’s mercy is the Sacred Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance, crowned with thorns, dripping with His Precious Blood.  The Sacred Heart calls for a devotion of reparation, as the Church had continually promoted before Vatican II. However, this is not true with the “Divine Mercy” devotion.

 

The picture that accompanies this false “Divine Mercy” devotion is an image of “Our Lord” with rays coming from “His Heart” but “He” has no heart.  It is a Sacred Heart without a heart, without reparation, without the price of our sins being shown. This points toward this devotion being a satanic counterfeit of the Real devotion to the Sacred Heart.

 

In the “Divine Mercy” devotion, there is an absence of the need for reparation for sins.  For example, there is a claim that all the temporal punishment for sin will be removed for persons who observe the 3:00 p.m. Low Sunday devotions. How could such a devotion be more powerful and better than a plenary indulgence?  How could it not require as a condition that we perform a penitential work of our own?  How could it not require the detachment from even venial sin that is necessary to obtain a plenary indulgence?

 

The “Divine Mercy” devotion seems to place so much emphasis on God’s mercy as to exclude His justice.  Our sins, and the enormity of their offensiveness to God, is pushed aside as being unimportant.  That is why the aspect of reparation for sin is omitted or obscured.  The “Divine Mercy” seems to be the sort of presumption on God’s mercy which is described by Pope St. Gregory the Great, Doctor of the Catholic Church:

 

Let him who does all that he can, rely firmly upon the mercy of God.  But for him who does not do all that lies within his power, to rely upon the mercy of God would be simple presumption.[3]

 

Although God is truly all-merciful, nonetheless, this devotion seems like a devotion NOT suited to our time.  Presently, most people seem more inclined to presume upon God’s mercy than to despair of God’s mercy.  People today have less need to be convinced that God will accept them back as prodigal sons and have more need to be convinced they should “work out their salvation in fear and trembling”,[4] as St. Paul teaches.  No doubt some people need to focus on the fact that it is not too late to repent.  But it would seem this is not most people’s problem and that this supposed “Divine Mercy” devotion is especially contrary to what we need in our time.

 

The chaplet of Divine Mercy contains orthodox prayers.  However, the evil is that it is the chaplet of this false vision and “Divine Mercy” devotion.  If a person thinks that he received spiritual benefit in connection with his use of the “Divine Mercy” devotion, that merely shows that God can draw a person to Himself in any circumstances.  If a person got an inspiration while attending the novus ordo mass or a protestant service, that does not indicate that those evil services are in themselves good or a source of any good.  The same is true of the “Divine Mercy” devotion.

 

Lastly, the “new” SSPX now promotes this false conciliar devotion in a low-key way.