When I recall she confessed that in a few days time I am to be made one with the Lord by my perpetual vows, my soul is inundated with such unimaginable joy that I just cant describe it at all (Diary 231).The ceremony for her perpetual vows was conducted by Bishop Stanisaw Rospond on 1 May 1933. It is also the means to establish peace in human hearts and between nations: Mankind shall not find peace and contentment until it turns with trust unto My mercy (Diary 300). Then she saw the powerlessness of the Angel, who could not administer the just punishment for the sins of mankind. You have a good, humble and such an innocent child, a neighbour, Marianna Bereziska, praised Helenka. One day passing by the chapel she said to Sister Damiana Ziek, I heard that Jesus said that at the Last Judgement He would judge people only on their mercy, for God is Mercy, so by doing or failing to do merciful deeds you are casting a verdict on yourself. Two days later she was baptized with the name Helena in the parish church of winice Warckie. 5 October. It happened again for 13 days, but I was never sure that he would bring me Holy Communion on the next day(Diary 1676). During the ceremony she fainted twice. After her death, when World War Two came, Sister Faustinas Vilnian confessor Father Sopoko disclosed the name of the initiator of the devotion to Divine Mercy, which was spreading. There will be a Feast of Divine Mercy, I see it, all I want is to do Gods will, she told Mother Superior. Oh, what pain they cause Me when they do not want to accept My mercy. That was St. Maria Faustina Kowalska of the Divine Mercy revelations, who was canonized in 2000 and whose revelations were celebrated Sunday. He promised the grace of a blessed and tranquil death not only to those who say the Chaplet, but also those at whose deathbed others will say the Chaplet. In the convent chapel Father Andrasz blessed another picture of the Merciful Jesus painted in accordance with Sister Faustinas instructions and started special services in honour of the Divine Mercy. This period, which Sister Faustina had foretold, contributed to the theological analysis of her writings and the making of the right foundations for the practise of the devotion. I remember her wholesome, happy smile Aldona Lipszyc recalled after many years She used to sing a lot and I always think of her in connection with the hymn she sang most often and which I learned from her, 'I am to revere Jesus hidden in the Sacrament'. With trustful prayer at three oclock in the afternoon, offered on the merit of His Passion, is connected a promise of all graces which would be granted to the petitioners and all for whom they prayed, naturally provided that the grace asked for was in agreement with the will of God, i.e. St Mary Faustina Kowalska was born on 25 August 1905 in Glogowiec, Poland, to a poor, religious family of peasants, the third of 10 children. Not only did she notice them, but she would also think of ways to help them. Today, I am sending you with My mercy to the whole of mankind (Diary 1588). What was the main message that Jesus told St Faustina? She was very happy in Prdnik and never complained that she was suffering. [2]. Unexceptional, a meagre little creature, poor, nothing special about her, not very promising. Life in the Kowalski household went on at a tranquil place marked out first by prayer and then work, never the other way round. He ate it. In the early morning Father would sing the Hours or other hymns, and when Mother rebuked him that he would wake the children, he replied that they had to learn from their youngest years that God was the most important. Although she could not read she was the one who instructed them in the faith and the principles of morality, and prepared them for their First Holy Communion. Already on her third day there she had evidence of the efficacy of the Chaplet to the Divine Mercy Jesus had given her. Greater sufferings from those which were caused by tuberculosis, she offered as a voluntary sacrifice for sinners and as the Apostle of Divine Mercy. The background to and instrument whereby God effected this in Sister Faustinas soul was the work for the implementation of the concept of a new congregation. St. Faustina is celebrated each year as an Optional Memorial on October 5. She told us children that when she grew up she would enter a convent, but we laughed. You didnt have to tell her twice, as often happens with other novices. Souls that venerate the image of Divine Mercy will not perish In her diary, Saint Faustina recorded the words of Christ regarding the image. She was baptized with the name Helena in the parish church of Swinice Warckle. Helenka looked after her employers children and also after those in need, of whom there was no shortage. But there were still some doubts as to the inscription. Apostle of Divine Mercy, Prophet of Our Times, Great Mystic, Mistress of Spiritual Life - these are the epithets usually appended to the name of Sister Faustina Kowalska, St Faustyna (Faustina), of the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy. St. Faustina was canonized in 2000, making her the first declared saint of the third millennium. This religious fervor spread to Helena quickly, as she was known from an early age for her obedience, prayerfulness . In the same year she went to Kiekrz near Pozna, to take over in the kitchen for Sister Modesta Rzeczkowska, who was ill. FAQ: Who Is The Patron Saint Of Football? Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska was born on August 25, 1905 in central Poland, the third of the ten children of Stanisaw Kowalski and Marianna Kowalska. She fetched her rosary, knelt by the dying persons bedside and started saying the Chaplet with all the powers of her spirit, asking Jesus to fulfil the promise He had made regarding the Chaplet. As I was a senior novice I had to act as her guide (angel). Her main occupation at Pock, until her third probation, was serving customers in the bakers shop. This scrawny young man, in dreadfully tattered clothes, barefoot and without a hat as Sister Faustina described the incident was freezing, as it was a cold and wet day. She died on Oct. 5, 1938, after being chosen by Jesus and Mary to become the unlikely apostle of the Divine Mercy. Thats how Mother Magorzata Gimbutt described the candidate on a preliminary interview to Mother General, Mother Leonarda Cielecka, who was not very keen on admitting persons with such a background into the Congregation. On Divine Mercy Sunday, 18 April 1993, the Holy Father John Paul II raised Sister Faustina to the glory of the altars. After examining by the Holy See the next miracle of healing Father Ronald Pytel of Baltimore, MD, from incurable disease of the heart, the Holy Father John Paul II numbered her to the group of saints of the Catholic Church. Tell them, O My daughter, that I am love and mercy itself (Diary 1074). In July her superiors sent her to the Congregations house in the spa resort of Rabka, but the sharp mountain climate was not good for Sister Faustina, she felt worse and had to leave after thirteen days. After just a few weeks in the convent Mother Superior sent the postulant Helenka along with two other sisters to Skolimw, in the suburbs, for reasons of health, which had deteriorated due to the fairly strict fasts practised in the house and in service, and also due to the spiritual experience of a new life in the convent. At first she was happy to be leaving, but on the next day was overwhelmed by darkness and felt she had lost Gods presence, so she decided to put off this move a little until her next meeting with her confessor. The doctor said it was very bad. Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi (Italian: Francesco d'Assisi; c. 1181 - 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianity. Two days later she was baptized with the name Helena in the parish church of . I had seen him in the vision. But occasionally someone was a witness to them. In August 1938 she wrote a letter to Mother General Michaela Moraczewska: Dearest Reverend Mother, I feel this is our last conversation on earth. At first Mother General had not consented to her leaving the Congre- gation and had warned Sister Faustina to beware of delusions and imprudent moves, but now that she was travelling to Krakw for a visitation, on 4 May 1937, she said: Up to now, I have always held you back, but now I leave it entirely up to you; if you want to leave, you can do so; if you want to stay in the Congregation, you can stay(Diary 1115). She saw clearly what she was taking upon herself. But soon she had to leave for Krakw, where there were better medical facilities for the treatment of tuberculosis. Sister Faustina died in Krakow on October 5, 1938, at the age of just thirtythree. I felt extremely happy, I thought I had entered life in paradise. However, under heavy inner pressure, Sister Faustina did not wait until the feast-day but told Father Andrasz during her weekly confession that she had decided to leave the Congregation. Sister Maria Faustina (born Helena Kowalska in Glogowiec, Poland on August 25, 1905) was canonized on April 30, 2000 by Pope John Paul II thus becoming the first Catholic saint of the 21st century. After having said good-bye to Sister Faustina he left her room, but on his way out remembered that he had not left her the booklets with the prayers to the Divine Mercy Jesus had given her. Many churches dedicated to the Divine Mercy, the Merciful Jesus, or St. Faustina are being founded in Poland and throughout the world. The flames of mercy are burning Me; I want to pour them out onto human souls. From the book of sr. M. Elisabeth Siepak ISMM These words filled her soul with a terrible awe. Saint Faustina describes God's love as a "Fountain of Mercy." 6. In the Holy Week of 1935 she told Father Sopoko that this was what Jesus wanted and insisted it be set up for three days in the Ostra Brama gate, where a triduum of ceremonies was to be held before the first Sunday after Easter to mark the close of the Jubilee of the Worlds Redemption. On her way to Walendw she stopped at Warsaw, where she had the opportunity to discuss the matter with Mother General Michaela Moraczewska, in whom she had always been able to confide. I opened up all my soul, as usual. I Myself shall protect it as My glory (Diary 47-48). The crowds were so huge that I couldnt see an end to them. Asked by her if she was pleased to be dying in our Congregation she replied, Yes. Known as the apostle of divine mercy, St. Faustina Kowalska brought the message of God's . She was canonized by Pope John Paul II on April 30, 2000. that it is good for that person from the perspective of eternity. In the Lipszyc household Helenka was treated like a member of the family, they all loved and respected her for her hard work and cheerfulness, she had a way with children, in short she had all it takes to be a good wife and mother. She suffered from tuberculosis of the lungs and alimentary system and that is why for over 8 months stayed at the hospital in Krakw Prdnik. I couldnt paint, either, and I did not understand that she meant a new kind of picture, Sister Boenna recalled, so I suggested I would offer her a choice out of the many fine holy pictures I had. While there is still time, let them have recourse to the fount of my mercy; let them profit from the blood and water which gushed forth for them ( Diary, 848). After his ordination on the third Sunday of each month he celebrated Divine Mercy services in this chapel. Tell souls of His great mercy, while there is still time for mercy; if you should remain silent now, you shall be held responsible on that terrible day for a great number of souls. Towards the end of my first year in the novitiate she recorded in her diary it began to grow dark in my soul. Some, especially the more curious ones, were irked by my silence. Tell souls about this great mercy of Mine . She is so well known for her beautiful relationship with Jesus, but what is not known so well is that the goal of her existence and spirituality was to live in unity with Jesus as an offering to the Father. Father Sopoko had preached a sermon on the Divine Mercy, during which Sister Faustina saw Jesus in the painting assume a living form, and His rays penetrate into the hearts of the people gathered for the ceremony, making them happy. She prayed to the souls in purgatory to wake her when the time came for Sister Faustina to die. 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