Divine Mercy Sunday

Did you know:
That Divine Mercy Sunday has only been a feast celebrated by the Universal Church for seven years? Sr. Faustina was canonized by Pope John Paul II in the year 2000, making her the first saint of the new millennium. On that day, the pope also instituted the Sunday following Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday, effective the following year. So, the first universal feast day of Divine Mercy was on April 22, 2001.
That Jesus said to Sr Faustina about this feast day: "On that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day all the divine floodgates through which grace flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity." (Diary of Saint Faustina, 699)
That in 2002, Pope John Paul consecrated the world to Divine Mercy.
That Jesus said: "I sent prophets wielding thunderbolts to My people. 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." (Diary 1588)
That Pope John Paul II died during the vigil of the Divine Mercy Sunday in 2005. He said: "Right from the beginning of my ministry in St. Peter's See in Rome, I considered this message (of Divine Mercy) my special task."
That public veneration of Divine Mercy began on April 28, 1935 and that in 1937, holy cards with the Divine Mercy image were printed for first time.
That the Divine Mercy devotions were banned for 19 years, starting in 1959, when the Holy Office reviewed faulty translations and declared them unworthy of public consumption.
That in 1965 the future Pope john Paul II, Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, as Archbishop of Krakow, opens an investigation into Sr Faustina and the Divine Mercy devotions.
That on April 15, 1978 Prefect of Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith declares the ban no longer binding.
That Sr. Faustina was born on August 25, 1905 as Helena Kowalska ; the third of ten children
That her first vision was in 1924 of the scourged Christ, and on Good Friday 1928, she was engulfed by the flame of Divine Love, and that in 1931, Jesus tells her to paint His image.
That in 1934 the now famous painting of Divine Mercy was completed, but Sr. Faustina didn’t like it.
Check out www.thedivinemercy.org