Getting ready for Divine Mercy Sunday at home? Here are some CNA suggestions

CNA Staff, Apr 16, 2020 / 13:45 pm

On April 30, 2000, the Church officially declared the Sunday after Easter to be “Divine Mercy Sunday,” an annual celebration of the mercy of God.

The celebration usually centers around the image of Divine Mercy painted by St. Faustina Kowalska, which is placed in churches around the world, and venerated at Mass and throughout the day.

This year, with Masses still suspended in some part of the world, the day may look different. But you can still celebrate God’s divine and abundant mercy.

Here are some suggestions for Divine Mercy Sunday, from the journalists at CNA:

--Pray the chaplet of divine mercy.

--Go to confession (if you can).

--Ask God to help you forgive someone.

--Ask someone for forgiveness.

--Watch a livestreamed Mass from the chapel of the Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Łagiewniki, Poland.

--Begin "Consoling the Heart of Jesus."

--Read the diary of St. Faustina.

--Paint, draw, or color the divine mercy image

--Perform a spiritual work of mercy.

--Divine Mercy Sunday was declared by a Polish pope and involves a Polish saint. So cook a Polish feast.

--Read Pope St. John Paul II’s Dives in misericordia.

--Read “The Merchant of Venice.” Maybe stage a reading with friends over Zoom.

--Bake Divine Mercy Cookies. Like these, or these. Or get this cookie cutter. Or make Divine Mercy Sunday Sundaes.

--Pray the rosary for someone who has hurt you.

--Check out this EWTN cartoon about St. Faustine and Divine Mercy.

--Make paczki!

--Submit prayer intentions and pay for a votive candle at the Shrine of Divine Mercy.

--Read the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Because the Sunday after Easter is also ‘Quasimodo Sunday.’

--Pray for the dead.

This article was originally published on CNA April 16, 2020.