St. Ignatius Loyola: Prayer of Generosity

Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I am doing your will.

~ St. Ignatius Loyola ~

Our Lady of Fatima Requests First Saturday Communions of Reparation

"My daughter, look at my Heart encircled with the thorns with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. Do you at least try to console me and announce in my name that I promise to assist at the hour of death with the graces necessary for salvation all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, go to Confession and receive Holy Communion, recite the Rosary and keep me company for 15 minutes while meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary with the intention of making reparation to me."

~ Our Lady of Fatima ~

WHY FIVE SATURDAYS?
It is sometimes asked why Our Lady asked for Communions of reparation on five first Saturdays, instead of some other number. Our Blessed Lord answered that question when He appeared to Sr. Lucia May 29, 1930. He explained that it was because of five kinds of offenses and blasphemies against the Immaculate Heart of Mary, namely: blasphemies against her Immaculate Conception, against her perpetual virginity, against the divine and spiritual maternity of Mary, blasphemies involving the rejection and dishonoring of her images, and the neglect of implanting in the hearts of children a knowledge and love of this Immaculate Mother.

~ For more information about Our Lady of Fatima and First Saturday Devotion, click here. ~

St. Padre Pio: Aim for Our Eternal Homeland

"Our present life is given only to gain the eternal one and if we don't think about it, we build our affections on what belongs to this world, where our life is transitory. When we have to leave it we are afraid and become agitated. Believe me, to live happily in this pilgrimage, we have to aim at the hope of arriving at our Homeland, where we will stay eternally. Meanwhile we have to believe firmly that God calls us to Himself and follows us along the path towards Him. He will never permit anything to happen to us that is not for our greater good. He knows who we are and He will hold out His paternal hand to us during difficulties, so that nothing prevents us from running to Him swiftly. But to enjoy this grace we must have complete trust in Him."

~ St. Padre Pio ~

Rev. James Root talks about a miracle performed by Padre Pio:

Woman in Purgatory for Vanity and Extravagance

Blessed Mary Villani, a Dominican Religious, had a lively devotion to the holy souls, and it often happened that they appeared to her, either to thank her or to beg the assistance of her prayers and good works. One day, whilst praying for them with great fervour, she was transported in spirit to their prison of expiation. Among the souls that suffered there she saw one more cruelly tormented than the others, in the midst of flames which entirely enveloped her. Touched with compassion, the servant of God interrogated the soul. " I have been here," she replied, "for a very long time, punished for my vanity and my scandalous extravagance. Thus far I have not received the least alleviation. Whilst I was upon earth, being wholly occupied with my toilet, my pleasures, and worldly amusements, I thought very little of my duties as a Christian, and fulfilled them only with great reluctance, and in a slothful manner. My only serious thought was to further the worldly interests of my family. See now how I am punished: they bestow not so much as a passing thought upon me: my parents, my children, those friends with whom I was most intimate all have forgotten me."

Mary Villani begged this soul to allow her to feel some thing of what she suffered, and immediately it appeared as though a finger of fire touched her forehead, and the pain which she experienced instantly caused her ecstasy to cease. The mark remained, and so deep and painful was it that two months afterwards it was still to be seen, and caused the holy Religious most terrible suffering. She endured this pain in the spirit of penance, for the relief of the soul that had appeared to her, and some time later the same soul came to announce her deliverance.

~ From Purgatory Illustrated by the Lives and Legends of the Saints by F.X. Shouppe, S.J. ~

St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi: Value of Offering the Precious Blood of Jesus for Souls

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ
in atonement for my sins,
in supplication for the Holy Souls in Purgatory
and for the needs of holy Church.

-------
O Most Merciful Jesus, Lover of souls I pray Thee,

by the agony of Thy most Sacred Heart, and by the sorrows of Thine Immaculate Mother,

cleanse in Thine Own Blood the sinners of the whole world

who are now in their agony and who are to die this day. Amen.
-------
Heart of Jesus, once in agony, have pity on the dying.

O my God, in union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary,

I offer Thee the Precious Blood of Jesus from all the altars throughout the world, joining with It the offering of my every thought, word, and action of this day.

I desire to gain every indulgence and merit I can,

offering them, together with myself, to Mary Immaculate,

whom Thou hast appointed the dispenser of the merits of Thy Precious Blood, especially by means of this Scapular [Here kiss your Brown Scapular] that she may best apply them to the interests of Thy Most Sacred Heart. Amen.

---------------

Jesus told Mary Magdalen that what pleases His Eternal Father most, moving His Heart to pity, is the offering of His Son's Blood. As Jesus softened His Father's Heart and opened the curtain that separated us from eternal life, with His Blood on the Cross, now He is once again pleading with the Father through such as Mary Magdalen. She offered Our Lord's Blood fifty times a day. In ecstasy, she saw many sinners repent and convert to the Lord, as well as a multitude of souls being released from Purgatory.

Jesus added, if this offering which commemorates His Passion can soften His Father's Heart, how much more the actual renewal of the Sacrifice of the Cross during the Sacrifice of the Mass where we are present at the Passion of Jesus! Attend Mass daily if you can.

~ Excerpt from Visions of Heaven, Hell and Purgatory by Bob & Penny Lord ~

St. Padre Pio: God's Will in Remembering or Forgetting To Pray for Certain Persons

"The Lord only allows me to recall those persons and things He wants me to remember. On several occasions, our merciful Lord has suggested to me people whom I have never known or even heard of, for the sole purpose of having me present them to Him and intercede for them, whereupon He never fails to answer my poor, feeble prayers. On the other hand, when Jesus doesn't want to answer me, he makes me actually forget to pray for those persons for whom I had firmly decided and intended to pray."

~ St. Padre Pio ~

Why is it that I pray for you with less fervor than I pray for others and that often I forget to recommend you?

"Do not trouble yourself about that. It is a punishment for me. Even if you prayed more I should not be any the more relieved. God wills it thus. If He wants you to pray more He will inspire you to do so. I repeat again, do not be worried about me. You will never see me in my sufferings. Later on, when your soul is stronger, you will see souls in Purgatory and very awful ones, but let this not frighten you. God will then give you the necessary courage and all that you need to accomplish His holy will."

~ Sr. M.G., a deceased nun answering a question from Sr. M. de L. C.,

from An Unpublished Manuscript on Puratory ~

Christina the Astonishing: A Mission of Suffering for Souls in Purgatory

Christina the Astonishing (1150 – 1224), also known as Christina Mirabilis, was a Christian holy-woman born in Brustem (near Sint-Truiden, Belgium) in 1150. She is sometimes considered a saint. Christina is as much remembered for her faith as for her numerous and violent fits of ecstasy. Her memorial day is 24 July. Born a peasant, Christina was orphaned at 15. When she was 21 (22 according to some sources), she is said to have suffered a massive seizure. According to the story, her condition was so severe that witnesses assumed she had died. A funeral was held, but during the service, she "arose full of vigor, stupefying with amazement the whole city of St Trond, which had witnessed this wonder." She levitated up to the rafters, later explaining that she could not bear the smell of the sinful people there.[2] Then, "The astonishment increased when they learned from her own mouth what had happened to her after her death."

She related that she had witnessed heaven, hell, and purgatory. It is written that she said "As soon as my soul was separated from my body it was received by angels who conducted it to a very gloomy place, entirely filled with souls" where the torments there that they endured "appeared so excessive" that it was "impossible to give an idea of their rigor."

She continued,"I saw among them many of my acquaintances" and touched deeply by their sad condition asked if this was Hell, but was told that it was Purgatory. Her angel guides brought her to Hell where again she recognized those she had formerly known. Next she was transported to Heaven, "even to the Throne of Divine Majesty" where she was "regarded with a favorable eye" and she experienced extreme joy and these words were spoken to her, " Assuredly, My dear daughter, you will one day be with Me. Now, however, I allow you to choose, either to remain with Me henceforth from this time, or to return again to earth to accomplish a mission of charity and suffering. In order to deliver from the flames of Purgatory those souls which have inspired you with so much compassion, you shall suffer for them upon earth: you shall endure great torments, without however dying from their effects. And not only will you relieve the departed, but the example which you will give to the living, and your continual suffering, will lead sinners to be converted and to expiate their crimes. After having ended this new life, you shall return here laden with merits."

Christina, at hearing this and "seeing the great advantages for souls" without hesitation she agreed to return to life and arose that same moment. She told those around her that for the sole purpose of relief of the departed and conversion of sinners did she return and that none should be astonished at the penances that she would practice, nor the life that she would lead hence forth, she is quoted as saying, "It will be so extraordinary that nothing like it has ever been seen." Making penances for the souls of Purgatory ... would henceforth become a major theme in her life.

Christina immediately commenced the work for which she believed she had been sent by God, renouncing all comforts of life, reducing herself to extreme destitution, she lived without home or hearth, and not content with privations she eagerly sought all that could cause her suffering.

As chronicled by her contemporaries, she threw herself into burning furnaces and there suffered great tortures for extended time uttering frightful cries, yet coming forth with no sign of burning upon her. In winter she would plunge into the frozen Meuse River for hours and days and weeks at a time all the while praying to God and imploring His Mercy. She would hop around on one leg exclaiming "Look upon me o Lord, for I am like unto a flamingo." She allowed herself to be carried by the currents down river to the mill where the wheel "whirled her round in a manner frightful to behold" yet she had no dislocations or broken bones. She was chased by dogs that bit and tore her flesh. She ran from them into thickets of thorns, and though covered in blood she would return with no wound or scar.

Christina died in 1224 of natural causes, aged 74.

Source of information

Meditation on the Sufferings of Jesus

"In order to fix your mind firmly on the presence of God, take each day one of the fourteen Stations of Our Lord in His Passion and dwell on it more particularly. Jesus wishes that we recall all the sufferings He has endured for us."

~ Sr. M.G., a deceased nun, from An Unpublished Manuscript on Purgatory ~

Plenary Indulgence possible for making the Way of the Cross,

which can be offered for the souls in Purgatory.

In conclusion it may be safely asserted that there is no devotion more richly endowed with indulgences than the Way of the Cross, and none which enables us more literally to obey Christ's injunction to take up our cross and follow Him. A perusal of the prayers usually given for this devotion in any manual will show what abundant spiritual graces, apart from the indulgences, may be obtained through a right use of them, and the fact that the Stations may be made either publicly or privately in any church renders the devotion specially suitable for all. One of the most popularly attended Ways of the Cross at the present day is that in the Colosseum at Rome, where every Friday the devotion of the Stations is conducted publicly by a Franciscan Father. (For more detailed information from this source, click here.)

~ Related post from Eucharistic Adoration for Priests: The 15 Prayers of St. Bridget of Sweden ~

St. Padre Pio: The Spirit of God Compared to the Spirit of the Devil

"The Spirit of God is a spirit of peace. Even in the most serious faults He makes us feel a sorrow that is tranquil, humble, and confident. This is precisely because of His mercy. The spirit of the devil, instead, excites, exasperates, and makes us feel, in that very sorrow, anger against ourselves. We should, on the contrary, be charitable with ourselves first and foremost. Therefore if any thought agitates you, this agitation never comes from God, who gives you peace, being the Spirit of Peace, but from the devil."

~ St. Padre Pio ~

(From Apostleship of Prayer: Reflection for 9/23/08)

Prayer to Guardian Angel

An Urgent Duty to Relieve Souls in Purgatory

"Alas! how feeble is our faith! If a domestic animal, a little dog, falls into the fire, do you delay to draw it out? And see, your parents, benefactors, persons most dear to you, writhe in the flames of Purgatory, and you do not consider it your urgent duty to relieve them; you delay, you allow long days of suffering to pass for those poor souls, without making an effort to perform those good works which will release them from their pains."

~ Fr. F. X. Shouppe, from Purgatory ~

St. Francis de Sales: The Justice of Purgatory

"Souls who are in Purgatory are there because of their sins, sins that they now supremely detest. But as for abjection and pain at being detained in that place and at being temporarily deprived of enjoying the blessed love that is paradise, they suffer it lovingly and devoutly according to the canticle of divine justice, "Righteous and true are Your ways..." [Rv 15:3]

~ St. Francis de Sales ~

from Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales,
Edited by Francis J. Klauder, S.D.B.

Majority of Souls in Purgatory are Totally Abandoned

"I am very much relieved by the prayers of good Father P—. Tell him I thank him very much for them, as also for those he has had the charity to get said for me. I always pray for him, as I told you, and I hope to do so still more when I am in Heaven. Tell him, also, I know when he prays for me, and it is the same with the other souls in Purgatory . . . Very few souls get any prayers, the majority are totally abandoned and no thought or prayers are given them on earth."

~ Sr. M.G., a soul from Purgatory, died in 1871 at age 36,

from An Unpublished Manuscript on Purgatory ~

Significance of the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel

"Whosoever dies wearing this scapular

shall not suffer eternal fire."

~ Promise of Our Lady

made July 16, 1251 to St. Simon Stock ~

St. Simon Stock had an apparition from Our Lady of Mt Carmel where the Scapular of Our Lady of Mt Carmel was given to the Church, but it is not a pass to lazy piety. Ave Maria!

To Download Audio go to http://airmaria.com/?p=5870

God's Revelation is Clear That Punishment in Hell is Eternal

God's Revelation is clear that there is a hell. In denying this Jehovah's deny Scripture and the Church Fathers. Ave Maria!

Pope Benedict XVI: God's Justice--Heaven, Hell, Purgatory

Fr Pietro Riggi, a Salesian from Don Bosco Boys' Town: ... My question is: on 25 March 2007, you spoke extemporaneously complaining how seldom the "last things" are mentioned today. In fact, in the catechisms of the Italian Bishops' Conference used for teaching our faith to children for confession, Communion and confirmation, it seems to me that certain truths of the faith have been omitted. Hell is never mentioned, nor Purgatory, Heaven only once, sin only once and then only original sin. In lacking these essential parts of our belief does it not seem to you that the whole system of logic which leads one to see Christ's Redemption has crumbled? By the absence of any mention of sin, by not speaking of Hell, even Christ's Redemption seems diminished. Do you not think that this has encouraged a loss of the sense of sin, hence, of the Sacrament of Reconciliation and even of the saving, sacramental figure of the priest himself, who has the power to absolve and celebrate in Christ's name? Today, unfortunately, when the Gospel speaks of Hell we priests circumvent even the Gospel. Hell is not mentioned. Or we are unable to talk about Heaven. We cannot speak of eternal life. We risk giving faith a purely horizontal dimension or one where the horizontal is too detached from the vertical. And this unfortunately occurs in catechesis for children, quite apart from the initiatives of parish priests; it lacks a basic structure....

Pope Benedict XVI: You correctly spoke of the fundamental themes of the faith which unfortunately rarely appear in our preaching. In the Encyclical Spe Salvi I wanted to speak precisely about the Last Judgement, judgement in general, and in this context also about Purgatory, Hell and Heaven... When one does not know the judgement of God one does not know the possibility of Hell, of the radical and definitive failure of life, one does not know the possibility of and need for purification...

...In the Encyclical I tried to show that it is God's Last Judgement that guarantees justice. We all want a just world. Yet we cannot atone for all the destruction of the past, all the people unjustly tortured and killed. God alone can create justice, which must be justice for all, even for the dead, and as the great Marxist Adorno said, only the resurrection of the body, which he claimed as unreal, would be able to create justice. We believe in this resurrection of the body in which not all will be equal. Today people have become used to thinking: what is sin? God is great, he knows us, so sin does not count; in the end God will be kind to us all. It is a beautiful hope. But both justice and true guilt exist. Those who have destroyed man and the earth cannot suddenly sit down at God's table together with their victims. God creates justice. We must keep this in mind. Therefore, I felt it was important to write this text also about Purgatory, which for me is an obvious truth, so evident and also so necessary and comforting that it could not be absent. I tried to say: perhaps those who have destroyed themselves in this way, who are for ever unredeemable, who no longer possess any elements on which God's love can rest, who no longer have a minimal capacity for loving, may not be so numerous. This would be Hell. On the other hand, those who are so pure that they can enter immediately into God's communion are undoubtedly few - or at any rate not many. A great many of us hope that there is something in us that can be saved, that there may be in us a final desire to serve God and serve human beings, to live in accordance with God. Yet there are so very many wounds, there is so much filth. We need to be prepared, to be purified. This is our hope: even with so much dirt in our souls, in the end the Lord will give us the possibility, he will wash us at last with his goodness that comes from his Cross. In this way he makes us capable of being for him in eternity. And thus Heaven is hope, it is justice brought about at last. He also gives us criteria by which to live, so that this time may be in some way paradise, a first gleam of paradise. Where people live according to these criteria a hint of paradise appears in the world and is visible. It also seems to me to be a demonstration of the truth of faith, of the need to follow the road of the Commandments, of which we must speak further. These really are road signs on our way and show us how to live well, how to choose life. Therefore, we must also speak of sin and of the sacrament of forgiveness and reconciliation. A sincere person knows that he is guilty, that he must start again, that he must be purified. And this is the marvellous reality which the Lord offers us: there is a chance of renewal, of being new. The Lord starts with us again and in this way we can also start again with the others in our life.

MEETING WITH THE PARISH PRIESTS AND THE CLERGY
OF THE DIOCESE OF ROME

Excerpt from ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI

Hall of Blessings
Thursday, 7 February 2008

Purgatory and the Catholic Church

You shouldn’t want to do things to gain merit,

nor out of fear of the punishments of purgatory.

From now on, and always,

you should make the effort to do everything,

even the smallest things, to please Jesus.
~ St. Jose Maria Escriva, The Forge, 1041 ~

The Terrible Evil of Sin

"How can I describe what happens after the agony? It is impossible really to understand it unless one has passed through it. When the soul leaves the body it is as if it were lost in or, if I may say so, surrounded by God. It finds itself in such a bewildering light that in the twinkling of an eye it sees its whole life spread out, and at this sight, it sees what it deserves, and this same light pronounces its sentence. The soul does not see God but is annihilated in His presence. If the soul is guilty as I was and, therefore, deserves to go to Purgatory, it is so crushed by the weight of the faults that still remain to be blotted out, that it hurls itself into Purgatory. It is only then that one understands God and His love for souls and what a terrible evil sin is in the eyes of the Divine Majesty. St. Michael is present when the soul leaves the body. I saw him only, and he is the only one that every soul sees. (Later) I also saw my Guardian Angel. From this you can understand why it is said, "St. Michael conducts souls to Purgatory", for a soul is not taken, but he is there at the carrying out of each sentence. All that happens in this other world is a mystery for yours."

~ Sr. M. G., a deceased nun: From An Unpublished Manuscript on Purgatory ~

Combat With the Angel of Darkness at the Moment of Death

I had no agony as you know, but I can tell you this, that at the last decisive moment, the devil lets loose all his rage against the one that is dying. God permits souls to go through these last trials in order to increase their merits. Souls that are strong and generous, in order that they may have a more glorious place in Heaven, have often had, at the end of their lives and in the moment of death, terrible combats with the angel of darkness. You have been witness to this. But they always come out victorious. God never allows a soul that has been devoted to Him during life to perish at the last moment. Those souls who have loved the Blessed Virgin and invoked her all their lives receive from her many graces in their last struggles. It is the same for those who have been really devout to St. Joseph, to St. Michael, or to any of the saints. I have already said one is glad to have an intercessor with God in those dreadful moments. Some souls die quite tranquilly without experiencing any of those trials. God has His designs in everything. He does or permits all for the good of each particular soul.

~ Sr. M. G., a deceased nun, from An Unpublished Manuscript on Purgatory ~

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen: Manifest Jesus in Your Life

"Energy is renewed if we love."

"You ought to so manifest Him (Jesus) in your lives
that as you move among others they will say of you
as the maidservant said of Peter,
'Thou hast been with Christ.' "

~ Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen ~

St. Joseph Cafasso: Apostle of Hope and Confidence

The prisons in Don Cafasso's time were gloomy places infested with vermin. There was much communication between the prisoners, and the wicked had the greatest influence. It was among these outcasts of society that Don Cafasso spent most of his free time. He visited each prison at least once a week, and some of them once a day, and spent long hours there, usually four or five hours at a time.

He instructed the prisoners in the truths of religion, and not being in any hurry to leave, he did that work thoroughly. He prepared them for the Sacraments and heard their Confessions. There is no case on record in which he failed to convert even the hardened sinners among them. He brought some of the young priests under him to visit the prisons and made it part of their training to help the poor and needy and visit those in prison. He helped to get employment for those among the prisoners who from time to time were liberated.

Don Cafasso singled out for special kindness criminals condemned to death. He visited all these frequently, instructed them and prepared them for death. He accompanied them all to the scaffold—fifty seven from Turin prisons and seven others from other towns. He succeeded in getting all these to go to the Sacraments. He was not satisfied with merely converting them but endeavored to make them Saints. He exhorted them to accept capital punishment with resignation and told them that if they did so with perfect dispositions, they were in a state to go directly to Heaven without passing through Purgatory, for by dying a violent and dishonorable death they were performing the heaviest penance that could be imposed on anyone in this world. He even gave them a commission for him to execute when they went to Heaven, which was to kneel before the throne of Mary and intercede for him.

His great devotions were: to the Passion, to the Sacred Heart, to the Mass, to the Stations of the Cross, to the Blessed Sacrament, to our Blessed Lady, to St. Joseph, to many of the Saints, to the Souls in Purgatory in whose favor he recommended the Heroic Act. (Source)

St. Joseph Cafasso's Prayer to Avoid Purgatory

"O my sweet Jesus, in addition to the many graces which Thou hast conferred on me in the course of my life, I ask Thee for this further one: when my soul shall have departed from this world, not only that it not be condemned to Hell, but that it shall not be compelled to remain away from Thee for even a moment in Purgatory. It is true that I am a debtor to Divine Justice, but I hope to pay all my debts from the infinite merits of Thy Passion and Death. O Heaven, holy city of my God, my dear native land! Oh, howI sigh for thee! O happy day when I shall reach thee! O Heavn, my dear Heaven, come quicky and satisfy the desires of a wretched heart that sighs for thee!

"My God, I accept whatever kind of death it may please Thee to send me, with all the terrors, all the pains, all the sufferings that shall justly accompany it. Finally, I pray Thee to accept the destruction of my body as the last act of homage that I can offer to Thy Supreme Divine Majesty, in satisfaction for the offenses committed in the course of my life.

"O Mary, I ask thee for one more grace: Obtain from thy Divine Son that I may die, but that I may die with thee, and that I may fly to Heaven along with thee. O merciful Mother, grant that when my soul is liberated from this wretched body I may go immediately to find thee in Heaven, there to commence that life which will be my occupation for all eternity.

"Requiem aeternam dona mihi, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat mihi. Requiescam in pace."

~Prayer of St. Joseph Cafasso: From The Life of St. Joseph Cafasso by St. John Bosco ~

He made his preparation for death on the first Sunday of the month and devoted the whole day to it. He made his Confession as if it were to be his last, received Holy Communion at Mass as Viaticum, and received Extreme Unction in spirit as if he were a dying man. He recited the prayers for the dying and kissed the Crucifix as if it were the moment of expiring, and then imagined that Our Lady obtained for him another month to prepare for death.

His last illness began on the 9th June as he was hearing Confessions. He was obliged to go to bed and, on the third day of his illness, finding that he had still a little strength left, he got up and spent a few hours in the Confessional until he became quite exhausted. He had great devotion to Our Blessed Lady and it was his constant prayer that he should die on a day dedicated by the Church to her. His prayer was granted, for he died on a Saturday, a day consecrated by the Church to Our Lady. It was a Saturday within the Octave of the Feast of Mary Consolatrix, and was on the vigil of St. John, who is the principal patron of pious works of mercy for those condemned to death, to whose benefit he had devoted so much care. St. John Bosco believes that Our Lady appeared to him at the moment of death and conducted him to Heaven. (Source)

St. Faustina: Prayers Benefit Souls in Purgatory

"On one occasion, when I dropped by the chapel for a five-minute adoration and was praying for a certain soul, I came to understand that God does not always accept our petitions for the souls we have in mind, but directs these to other souls. Hence, although we do not relieve the souls we intended to relieve in their purgatorial suffering, still our prayer is not lost." (621)

~ From Divine Mercy in My Soul, The Diary of St. M. Faustina Kowalska ~

St. Faustina: Prayer for a Merciful Heart

"O Jesus, I understand that Your mercy is beyond all imagining, and therefore I ask You to make my heart so big that there will be room in it for the needs of all the souls living on the face of the earth. O Jesus, my love extends beyond the world, to the souls suffering in purgatory, and I want to exercise mercy toward them by means of indulgenced prayers. God's mercy is unfathomable and inexhaustible, just as God himself is unfathomable. Even if I were to use the strongest words there are to express this mercy of God, all this would be nothing in comparison with what it is in reality. O Jesus, make my heart sensitive to all the sufferings of my neighbor, whether of body or of soul. O my Jesus, I know that You act toward us as we act toward our neighbor.

"My Jesus, make my heart like unto Your merciful Heart. Jesus, help me to go through life doing good to everyone." (692)

~ From Divine Mercy in My Soul, The Diary of St. M. Faustina Kowalska ~