Bishop Larry Silva, believed to be the first bishop in the U.S. to dedicate his diocese to the Divine Mercy, will celebrate Mass on Divine Mercy Sunday, 3 p.m., April 27, at Star of the Sea Church in Waialae-Kahala.
Before the Mass, starting at 1:15 p.m., there will be a rosary, a chaplet of Divine Mercy and a video talk by Father Donald Calloway on St. John Paul II.
Jesus offered a message of divine mercy to the world a century ago through St. Faustina Kowalska in Krakow, Poland. The messages she received from Jesus and Mary are widely known through her book, “Diary: Divine Mercy in my Soul.”
St. John Paul II is called the Divine Mercy pope. As the archbishop of Krakow, his involvement in having those messages reviewed by the Vatican probably prevented those messages from remaining obscure and virtually unknown.
Six months after the Vatican announced the messages worthy of belief, Pope John Paul II was elected pope. He canonized Sister Faustina on April 30, 2000, the first saint of the 21st century.
Pope John Paul II declared the Second Sunday of Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday. This year, Divine Mercy Sunday is also canonization day for Pope John Paul and Blessed John XXIII.
Today throughout the world, millions of Catholics recite the daily chaplet of Divine Mercy. Jesus also promised mercy for the soul of a dying person, if the chaplet is recited for that person’s soul. Many chaplets are said at 3 p.m. while millions more are said throughout the day and evening.