“O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the
Heart of Jesus
as a fountain of Mercy for us, I trust in You!” (Diary, 84)
Blood and water! The Evangelist John saw blood and water
flowing from Jesus’ side after the soldier on Calvary thrust a spear into His
side. From His side we receive the gift of the Eucharist and the gift of
Baptism and the Holy Spirit.
Jesus asked Saint Faustina,
“My daughter, tell everyone that I am Love and Mercy personified” (Diary,
1074).
Knowing this, the two rays
(Diary, 299) radiating out from His Heart, combined with this Extraordinary
Jubilee of Mercy: the Fountain of Mercy that flows out upon suffering man,
through His Hands, and then through our hands to one another. That receptivity
of Mercy: received and given.
A Brief Tour of Mercy
It is a holy moment – that
crossing the threshold of the Holy Door into the Shrine Church. Since this Holy
Door is on the left side, it seemed as if the “procession” down the left aisle was
like entering that “fountain of Mercy” personified in the lives of three saints
portrayed there.
In order to give mercy to
those in need, spiritually and/or corporally, I need to encounter Mercy. Thus my first goal on this brief journey is
the confessional, the mercy-seat.
Afterwards, I go to meet
each of the saints, in whose lives the work of mercy is made tangible.
First: Saint Peregrine who,
as a young man, rebelled against the Church and authority. Upon experiencing
the mercy of God, he confessed his sin, amended his life, and followed God’s
call as a member of the Servite order.
Later in life a cancerous sore on his leg was to result in amputation.
The night before the surgery, Saint Peregrine prayed before the Crucifix for
the grace to accept whatever God willed. Jesus extended His Hand from the Cross
on which He hung and touched him. Saint Peregrine experienced a physical
healing of his leg!
Next: This brief journey
takes me to the vision of Alessandro Serenelli, who had stabbed Saint Maria
Goretti. She appeared to Alessandro, who
was bound in chains in his prison cell. Bound by his lack of remorse, bound to
darkness. But Saint Maria Goretti wanted
Alessandro in Heaven with her.
During the vision, something
inside Alessandro reached for the gift of mercy that Saint Maria Goretti was
extending to him in the form of fourteen lilies: forgiveness for each stab against her dignity.
Saint Maria Goretti had
already forgiven Alessandro before she died. Her mother also forgave him: “My
daughter forgives Alessandro, how can I not?”
Alessandro accepts the mercy and forgiveness extended to him, and he is
freed from the chains that held him bound. Saint Maria Goretti is the Little
Saint of Great Mercy.
Lastly, before reaching the
Holy Door, this brief journey has me meet Saint Faustina Kowalska. She also had a vision: that of Divine Mercy
Himself. Her encounter resulted in what we know as her Diary. The Image of the
rays of mercy flowing from Jesus’ Heart is a fountain flowing down upon the
whole world in need of God’s Mercy. Jesus
asked Faustina to spread the message … to evangelize. So appropriate as a “final” reflection: how
will I extend mercy today after I walk out of this church?
The tour has concluded. It
is as if it is “now the hour” to come down from the mountain and to go out into
the valley to extend in a variety of ways, spiritually and corporally, the love
and hope of mercy!
- Sister M. Ancilla, FSGM
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