Sample News Stories

Diocese to follow Pope in
Celebrating Divine Mercy Sunday

The Diocese of ___________________ has vowed to follow Pope John Paul II this year in celebrating Divine Mercy Sunday in an evangelization effort to bring alienated and inactive Catholics back to the practice of their faith.

Why, you might ask, would someone want to come back on this Special Sunday? It is because of a promise that Jesus made for the total forgiveness of sins and punishment for anyone that goes to Confession and receives Holy Communion.

On April 30th in the Great Jubilee Year 2000, the Pope declared that from now throughout the universal Church the Second Sunday of Easter will be known as Divine Mercy Sunday. He also indicated that he had fulfilled the will of Christ by this action.

What John Paul was referring to was the numerous requests from Jesus made to St. Faustina in the 1930's. Fourteen times in the diary that the Lord had asked her to keep were the appeals for a Feast of Mercy to be established in His Church.

He specifically asked for the feast to be celebrated on the Sunday after Easter. Jesus also asked that His image of Divine Mercy be venerated publicly on that day. It's the one with the red and pale rays with the words, "Jesus, I Trust In You!"

The main message that the Lord was revealing to the World was that He wanted to pour out His Mercy before His return. Jesus told Faustina, "Before I come as a just Judge, I first open wide the door of My mercy." (Diary, 1146) This wide-opened door is Divine Mercy Sunday and the promise of the forgiveness of all sins and punishment for going to Confession and Communion on that feast day.

Jesus said, "On that day are open all the divine floodgates through which graces flow. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls." (Diary, 699)

"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 the complete forgiveness of sins and punishment." (Diary 699)

This year the feast is on ______________. Contact your local parish for more details or visit www.divinemercysunday.com.

Calling All Catholics!

Could This Be Our Last Hope Of Salvation?

Catholics around the world are returning to the practice of their faith despite attacks from evil forces to discredit the Church. The attacks are meant to turn people away from the confession of their sins, which is the key to receiving the mercy of God. In recent revelations that have been accepted by the Church Our Lord Jesus indicated to St. Faustina that He would give mankind "the last hope of salvation."

This "last hope of salvation" is the recourse to His mercy. Jesus first appeared to St. Faustina in 1931 and He told her that she was to prepare the world for His return. He told her that before He comes again, He would pour out His mercy. In that vision Jesus was dressed in a white garment and had two brilliant rays of light coming from His Heart, one red as blood, the other clear as water. He asked her to paint an image of Him just as she had seen Him and to sign it "Jesus, I Trust In You." She was also to work on establishing a Feast of Mercy in the Church and to have the painted image venerated throughout the world. Our Lord said that this feast is to be celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. On May 5th, 2000 the Vatican issued a decree and fulfilled the will of Christ by establishing this feast called "Divine Mercy Sunday".

Jesus told St. Faustina, "I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially poor sinners. On that day all the divine floodgates through which graces flow are opened. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain the complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet."(Diary, 699) One who had been a terrible sinner all their life could return and be totally pardoned by going to Confession and Holy Communion on that Feast of Mercy. But why that day and why now? Because Our Lord said it was to be so. The Bible says that in the last days that He would pour out His spirit and all those who ask for His mercy would receive it. Wake up all Catholics! We could be in those last days!

Jesus said, "Souls perish in spite of My bitter Passion. I am giving them the last hope of salvation; that is, the Feast of My Mercy.....Tell souls about this great mercy of Mine, because the awful day, the day of My justice is near." (Diary, 965) It doesn't take a genius to see the times that we are in. We only need to look at what is happening in our world today. Repent of your sins and ask for His Mercy.

Don't ever be afraid to go to Confession. Jesus said, "When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. Never analyze what sort of a priest it is that I am making use of... I am only hidden by the priest, but I Myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul meets the God of mercy. The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy." (1602,1725, 723)

One should attempt to go to Confession before Divine Mercy Sunday. We must also remember the precepts of the Church which are:
   1. Attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days.
   2. Confess sins at least once a year.
   3. Receive Holy Communion at least during the Easter season.
   4. Observe days of fast and abstinence.
   5. Provide for the material needs of the Church. (Catechism of the Catholic Church,    2041-2043)

It would be a mistake for someone who has been away from the Church to think that they could return just for that one day. Our Lord knows our intentions and part of making a good Confession is intending never to sin again. Missing Mass on Sundays and Holydays offends Our Lord very much. We should be serious about our faith and do the best we can to help to support our Church and to save as many souls as possible.

Our Lord also said, "I demand from you deeds of mercy which are to arise out of love for Me. The first Sunday after Easter is the Feast of Mercy, but there must also be acts of mercy...." (742) A good act of mercy would be to tell everyone about this feast. Some people have been away for a long time. What better reason to come back, when we can be granted a complete pardon of sins and punishment?

Sample News Stories

Diocese to follow Pope in Celebrating Divine Mercy Sunday

Calling All Catholics!

Could This Be Our Last Hope Of Salvation?

Diocese to follow Pope in
Celebrating Divine Mercy Sunday