The Dawn of Mercy: An Easter Retreat Guide on Divine Mercy

Violence, hatred, injustice—it takes heroic fortitude just to turn on the daily news. And this evil isn’t abstract. It has a name. Events in society mirror a reality we all face every day. It’s called sin; it’s ugly; and it’s horrifically destructive.

Have you ever wondered if there’s a limit to this evil? Does it simply surge unchecked, leaving broken lives strewn in its wake? Does sin have the last word in my own life and in the life of the world?

In his book Memory and Identity Saint John Paul II wrote, “The limit imposed upon evil, of which man is both perpetrator and victim, is ultimately the Divine Mercy.” What is this Divine Mercy and what does it mean? Even more importantly, does it make a difference in my life? How do I receive it?

These questions have an answer; and that answer is a person. Evil, the fruit of sin, does not have the last word. There is a Word more powerful than sin, more powerful than evil. Jesus Christ is the Word of the Father, who came to bring us forgiveness, healing, and union with God. Divine Mercy is when God’s love, in Jesus, meets our brokenness.

With that in mind, here’s a brief overview of The Dawn of Mercy: An Easter Retreat Guide on Divine Mercy.

• In the First Meditation we’ll explore the dawn of the devotion to the Divine Mercy in the midst of the 20th century’s horrific evil.
• In the Second Meditation we’ll reflect on how Divine Mercy meets each of us individually.
• In the Conference we’ll look at Divine Mercy as an offer and a response, and examine some practical consequences.

Let’s quiet our hearts now. Let’s turn to Jesus, who came to call sinners, and ask him to show us the merciful face of the Father.