Meditate on these classic devotional prayers. A prolific writer, professor, and pastor, Johann Gerhard is regarded as one of the greatest theologians and thinkers of his time. This book is a translation of a book of prayers that Gerhard wrote prior to 1612. Now newly translated, Meditations on Divine Mercy is available for English readers to enjoy and appreciate. A chapter on the purpose and benefits of prayer is also included as well as an explanation of the aspects of daily meditation. The prayers are divided into four sections: sin, God's gifts, personal needs, and others' needs.
From the late 1920's to 1938 a young Polish nun had visions of Jesus. Jesus asked her to write down the conversations they had over this period of years until she died of tuberculosis in 1938. A Polish priest, Fr. Sopocko, her friend, Confessor, and Spiritual Director, was her strong supporter and worked hard to get her notes composed into the book, "THE DIARY of ST. FAUSTINA. KOWALSKA." In that diary Jesus tells her that the greatest attribute of God is His Mercy. He taught her the Divine Mercy Chaplet prayer. After editing her notes Fr. Sopocko introduced Faustina's Dairy to a Polish Cardinal named Karol Wojktila (known today as Pope John Paul II). Years later as pope, he canonized Faustina a saint and he named the Sunday after Easter "Divine Mercy Sunday. Jesus told her to commission a painting of Him as Divine Mercy just like He appeared to her in their numerous encounters. This painting is found in great a many churches throughout the world today. This book is an adaptation of the Divine Mercy Prayer. When I read the Diary, Jesus tells St. Faustina that it is very important to Him and to us that we meditate on His Sorrowful Passion. When I saw that comment of His, I began to try to figure out how to incorporate His Passion into the original prayer. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the help of friends, We devised what came to be a suitable format for this prayer... It begins with Jesus entering into the Garden of Gethsemane just after The Last Supper and follows Jesus as He encounters Satan, His arrest and trial, Pilate reluctantly condemning Him to death, the scourging, and finally the carrying of the cross to Calvary and His Crucifixion and death. This all with the hope of the Resurrection on the Third Day. It does describe Jesus' suffering rather graphically, backed by the Old and New Testament scriptures and science.
Several years ago, I read the diary of St. Faustina about divine mercy and became devoted to the idea that Gods greatest attribute is his mercy and the promise he made to those who say the Divine Mercy Chaplet with or for a dying person that that person will die not only peacefully but also that Jesus will act as the giver of divine mercy, not as just judge. When I actually witnessed the peaceful death of a friend for whom I prayed the regular chaplet, I became a very strong believer and advocate of this prayer. But Jesus asks us to meditate on his sorrowful passion, not just to robotically say words. So I tried to put meditative thoughts to go with the prayer, not to be read daily but to be a fertile resource for helping us to meditate on Jesus sorrowful passion for both the chaplet and the sorrowful mysteries of the rosary.
This little booklet gives instruction in how to use passages from Scripture to meditate while saying the Diving Mercy Chaplet, the Franciscan Crown, the Seven Sorrows of Mary, or the Rosary, including the Mysteries of Light. All four of these traditional Catholic devotions can be made using traditional rosary beads. A short history of each of the four devotions is given, followed by detailed instructions on how to say them on the beads of a rosary. Different scriptural passages are suggested as biblical reflections relating to each topic and bead.
"Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy" was written to provide an awakening to the abundant Mercy of God. It offers daily reflections and prayers to help deepen the day-to-day faith life of every Catholic so that you can understand the abundance of Mercy poured forth from the Heart of our Savior as it is revealed in the writings of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska. "Divine Mercy in My Soul: Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska" is soon to become a classic spiritual book that everyone is encouraged to read in their lifetime. However, many find this invitation intimidating, not just because of the width of her book, but because of the depth of its message on The Divine Mercy in each of Saint Faustina’s notebook entries. This book, "Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy," was written with the hope of guiding you through Saint Faustina’s Diary and her six notebooks of reflections. It can be used on its own to help you pause and reflect on the beauty of Jesus’ messages to her, or as a companion book, as you simultaneously read Saint Faustina’s Diary. "Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy" offers 365 daily teachings, reflections and prayers based upon the pages of Saint Faustina’s Diary. The structured way to use this daily reflection book is to do just that…reflect upon one page each day. However, some may feel called to skip around a bit, read a few reflections at a time, or return to a particular reflection through which God spoke to you. Therefore, though this book was written with the intent of providing one reflection for each day of the year, the best way to use it is any way you feel called and the way that benefits your relationship with God the most. The first paragraph for each day offers this author’s insights to the words and teachings of Saint Faustina. The section of her Diary used for the day’s teaching is marked so that the reader can also read her Diary first hand so as to see the primary source that the author of this book took inspiration from for that day’s reflection. Though the primary text of the Diary is never quoted, nor are the reflections of this book exact representations of the Diary, they do provide the foundational basis for the spiritual message shared in each reflection. The second paragraph for each day offers a short reflection put more as a question to the reader. It offers the same insight in a different format so as to enter more deeply into the message of the day. Finally, each daily reflection ends with a prayer focused upon the message and reflection for that day. The reader is encouraged to pray this prayer several times. Ideally, it is prayed first thing in the morning, again during the day, and again at night as an examination on how well the daily message was received. As you seek to survive the world we live in, allow these pages to be a font of Mercy for you from God. Allow God’s Divine Mercy to penetrate your heart so that you will know the abundance of His love and be more prepared to share that love with others.
Finally, the entire Divine Mercy message and devotion is summarized in one, easy-to-read book! Explaining the teaching of Jesus Christ as given to St. Faustina, Understanding Divine Mercy by Fr. Chris Alar, MIC, has it all. Written in his highly conversational and energetic style, this first book in his Explaining the Faith series will deepen your love for God and help you understand why Jesus Called Divine Mercy "mankind's last hope of salvation."
Published and distributed by Marian Press, this bestselling Diary sparked the Divine Mercy Movement and chronicles the message that Jesus, the Divine Mercy, gave to the world through a humble nun. It reminds us to trust in His forgiveness - and as Christ is merciful, so, too, are we instructed to be merciful to others. The trade edition of this title is now in its 30th printing, with more than one million copies distributed worldwide since its release in 1981 in the original Polish edition.
Here are four of the most popular Catholic devotions, accompanied by a short passage from Scripture to inspire meditation on each mystery. A short history of each devotion, plus instructions for how to pray it using traditional rosary beads, is given. Included are: The Chaplet of Divine Mercy The Franciscan Crown of Mary's Joys The Seven Sorrows of Mary (The Servite Chaplet) The Rosary (including the Mysteries of Light)
To the unstudied eye, St. Matthew's gospel can seem a terse narrative, almost a historical document and not the tremendously spiritual (and doctrinal) storehouse that it is. In his third volume of meditations on Matthew (chapters 19-25), Erasmo Leiva continues to show Matthew's prose to be not terse so much as economical--astoundingly so given its depth. The lay reader can derive great profit from reading this. Each short meditation comments on a verse or two, pointing to some facet of the text not immediately apparent, but rich with meaning. Leiva's work is scholarly but eminently approachable by the lay reader. The tone is very much of "taste and see how good the Lord is" and an invitation of "friend, come up higher!." The goal of the book is to help the reader experience the heat of the divine heart and the light of the divine Word. Leiva comments on the Greek text, demonstrating nuances in the text that defy translation. He uses numerous quotes from the Fathers and the Liturgy of the Church to demonstrate the way the Tradition has lived and read the Word of God. His theological reflection vivifies doctrine by seeking its roots in the words and actions of Jesus.
