- Feb 5, 2002
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(OSV News) — Amid papal mourning, an annual celebration of the Divine Mercy reminds the faithful that Easter joy triumphs over tears, with thousands marking the upcoming feast through liturgy, prayer and art.
Observed on the Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday — which in 2025 falls on April 27 — was established in 2000 by St. John Paul II during his canonization of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, a 20th-century Polish mystic.
As a Sister of Our Lady of Mercy, the unassuming saint shared how she enjoyed numerous visions in which Christ urged her to promote devotion to his mercy through various prayers, an annual feast, and an image featuring rays of blood and water issuing from his heart.
This year, however, the solemnity will take place as the church and the world grieve the loss of Pope Francis, who died April 21, and whose funeral will take place the day prior to it.
“It’s kind of a dichotomy of emotions,” admitted Father Chris Alar, provincial superior of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Continued below.
www.oursundayvisitor.com
Observed on the Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday — which in 2025 falls on April 27 — was established in 2000 by St. John Paul II during his canonization of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, a 20th-century Polish mystic.
As a Sister of Our Lady of Mercy, the unassuming saint shared how she enjoyed numerous visions in which Christ urged her to promote devotion to his mercy through various prayers, an annual feast, and an image featuring rays of blood and water issuing from his heart.
This year, however, the solemnity will take place as the church and the world grieve the loss of Pope Francis, who died April 21, and whose funeral will take place the day prior to it.
“It’s kind of a dichotomy of emotions,” admitted Father Chris Alar, provincial superior of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
‘Called to celebrate and rejoice’
Continued below.
Divine Mercy Sunday: A beacon of Easter joy in times of sorrow
Divine Mercy Sunday 2025 brings Easter joy amid papal mourning, reminding the faithful of Christ’s mercy, hope and healing.
www.oursundayvisitor.com
