Writer Sees New Pope’s Role Alongside John Paul II’s

[Michie]

Benedict’s Devotion

David Came lives with a passion for Divine Mercy.

As the editor of one of the largest Catholic quarterly magazines in the country, he has worked to spread the Divine Mercy message and devotion since the mid-1990s — long before most Catholics had ever heard of St. Faustina Kowalska, the Polish mystic and “secretary” of Christ’s mercy.

Came, editor of Marian Helper magazine, has just published Pope Benedict’s Divine Mercy Mandate, which chronicles Pope Benedict XVI’s passion to proclaim that Divine Mercy isn’t simply an optional devotion — it’s the heart of the Gospel message. Came spoke to Register correspondent Patrick Novecosky from his office in Stockbridge, Mass.


You’ve been a writer and editor in Catholic circles for several decades. Has faith always been central in your life and work?

It has. I grew up in Nevada as a devout Catholic with devout parents. I had some struggles in terms of dealing with the presence of evil in the world when I was in college. But we prayed the daily Rosary in my family and my parents were daily communicants, so the faith was always there for me.


How did learning about Divine Mercy deepen your experience of the faith?

It opened up for me the whole dimension that God is merciful and loving in an unconditional way. One thing that stands out for me was seeing the Divine Mercy image for the first time in a religious goods store. It was a tug at the heart. In Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Dives in Misericordia, he developed the theme of God’s mercy by unpacking the unconditional love the father shows to the prodigal son. It’s come to the forefront now in my spiritual life. It’s an urgent message for the world as the heart of the Gospel.


John Paul has been heralded as “the Great Mercy Pope.” What inspired you to write a book about Pope Benedict?

Interestingly, it developed from John Paul II’s death back in 2005. We were working on a commemorative edition of Marian Helper magazine, and what really leaped off the page for me was that the day after Pope Benedict’s election, in his first message as Pope, he talked about receiving the gift of Divine Mercy through the intercession of John Paul II. So I began to wonder if this was something that will be indicative of his papacy. I followed his statements over the course of the first 3 1/2 years of his papacy and saw a definite pattern: that he was building upon John Paul II’s commitment to Divine Mercy.


April 19 is Divine Mercy Sunday this year and the fourth anniversary of Pope Benedict’s election. A coincidence?

I think it’s a God-incidence. Not only did he talk about receiving the gift of Divine Mercy on the day after his election, but he also marked his 80th birthday on Divine Mercy Sunday in 2007. On that occasion, he talked about receiving the gift of Divine Mercy through his birth and rebirth. He said rebirth because he was baptized the very day he was born, which was Holy Saturday. Given what he said in his first message and what he said in 2007, it’s going to be fascinating to see what he will say on the fourth anniversary of his election on Divine Mercy Sunday.


What do you think he will say?

Continued- http://www.ncregister.com/site/article/17828/