While praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet on Good Friday, do so with these intentions: Day one - pray for all mankind, especially sinners: "Today bring to Me all mankind, especially all sinners, and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy. In this way you will console Me in the bitter grief into which the loss of souls plunges Me." - from the diary of St. Faustina Most Merciful Jesus, whose very nature it is to have compassion on us and to forgive us, do not look upon our sins but upon our trust which we place in Your infinite goodness. Receive us all into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart, and never let us escape from It. We beg this of You by Your love which unites You to the Father and the Holy Spirit.
Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon all mankind and especially upon poor sinners, all enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion show us Your mercy, that we may praise the omnipotence of Your mercy for ever and ever. Amen.
Read HERE about the Divine Mercy Sunday Indulgence.
Way back in the Fifties, when I was a child of eight, I learned about indulgences albeit to a limited extent.
We were taught about partial and plenary indulgences, and in the front of our trusty Baltimore Catechism were pages of common prayers which listed the partial indulgence, if any, attributed to the prayer. The indulgence of each prayer, if any, was in a stated duration of physical penance ranging from 300 days to 10 Years. Although I did not know this at the time, I believe that the technical name for these durations was “the determination of days and years”, but that term was absent from my Baltimore Catechism.
When I think of physical penance, I think of the fifth century. I am thinking of myself kneeling outside of the cathedral, on the cobblestones, in the middle of winter, in the snow, wearing sackcloth and ashes, renouncing my sins and asking forgiveness of all who pass. And I’m not even going to discuss the pigeons. Hey, that’s tough stuff!
Those members of my class who were destined to become MBA’s in later years quickly concluded that the most indulgence for the least amount of effort consisted in repeatedly praying the ejaculation, “My Jesus, Mercy”. Three words of a total of five syllables were good for 300 days! There was a girl who sat near me in class who kept a book of strokes and slashes indicating the count of her “My Jesus, Mercies”. Whenever, Sister Mary Inviolata, I.H.M. took leave of the class, usually to pow wow with another sister in the hall outside the classroom, that book of hash marks came out and got updated.
In my opinion, the selection of “My Jesus, Mercy” by my third grade class as the go to prayer demonstrated remarkable discernment. The beloved bishop Fulton Sheen once related the story of a man dying of “cancer of the face” who remained, upon his death bed, unrepentant. After refusing the opportunity to confess his sins and receive Viaticum, he ordered Sheen out of his hospital room. Sheen’s last words to the man were “Before you die tonight; please do one thing for me; say ‘My Jesus, Mercy’”. It was later reported to Sheen that after he had left the room, the dying man said the prayer, and then continued repeating it until the time of his death hours later.
Unfortunately, my third grade Baltimore catechism is long gone, but, recently, I was able to obtain an actual Baltimore Catechism No. 3 with a copyright date of 1957. The following information is gleaned from the sections on prayers and on prayers said after mass:
• These prayers are listed without indulgences:
The Lord’s Prayer
The Hail Mary
The Glory Be to the Father
The Apostles’ Creed
The Confiteor
The Morning Offering
The Regina Coeli (see also below)
• The Blessing before meals is not indulgenced, but the grace after meals is indulgenced (300 days). [How many times have you said the blessing before meals, and then forgot the grace after meals?]
• All the prayers referred to as the acts (Faith, Hope, Charity and Contrition) are indulgenced. (3 years)
• The sign of the cross is indulgenced. (3 years. With holy water, 7 years.) [I have heard the argument that it is unnecessary to make the sign of the cross with holy water upon leaving the church. This argument ignores the fact that even if we leave church in a sinless state, the temporal punishment due to sin remains and by blessing ourselves as we leave the church some of that temporal punishment is removed.]
• Hail Holy Queen ( 5 years)
So what about that ten year indulgence?
There were three prayers listed with ten year indulgences:
The Saint Michael Prayer – The famous prayer of Pope Leo XIII, and, when I was a kid, it was said immediately after every mass.
The Angelus -- The Angelus is a prayer said specifically at 6 am, noon and 6 pm. Ten years indulgence for each recitation amounts to 30 years a day. That’s a lifetime of physical penance for an early middle ages kind of guy or gal, and probably a few lifetimes for you or me. (How long do you think you would last out there on the cobblestones?)
The Regina Coeli when said at Eastertide in place of the Angelus.
How we view indulgences changed in the Sixties.
While, in the Fifties, Sister Mary Inviolata’s third grade class had a very clear picture of what those days and years meant and how they related to physical penance which is performed here on earth, by the time we get to the Sixties the perception of the durations morphed from days of physical penance here on earth into days off from purgatory. So three hundred days of physical penance morphs directly into three hundred days off from a sentence to purgatory? I don’t think so. But what does it mean to spend a day in purgatory? I contend that, you cannot answer that question unless you have been there and done that, and if you have been there and done that then what are you doing here? The important thing worth noting is that the people’s perceptions changed, either due to misunderstanding or poor catechesis, but the teaching never did!
No matter, because in 1968 Pope Paul VI removed the days and years from all partial indulgences.
The document that did this was entitled “INDULGENTIARUM DOCTRINA (Apostolic Constitution On Indulgences)”. You can find it here.
What follows is from chapter five section 12 paragraph 4:
Regarding partial indulgences, with the abolishment of the former determination of days and years, a new norm or measurement has been established which takes into consideration the action itself of the faithful Christian who performs a work to which an indulgence is attached.
It would be nice to have a metric; metrics allow for rational decision making. The above paragraph seems to hint at a new norm or measurement, but consider the very next paragraph in the document:
Since by their acts the faithful can obtain, in addition to the merit which is the principal fruit of the act, a further remission of temporal punishment in proportion to the degree to which the charity of the one performing the act is greater, and in proportion to the degree to which the act itself is performed in a more perfect way, it has been considered fitting that this remission of temporal punishment which the Christian faithful acquire through an action should serve as the measurement for the remission of punishment which the ecclesiastical authority bountifully adds by way of partial indulgence.
Somehow, that wasn’t the kind of metric I was expecting.
The last two sections of the encyclical are devoted to Norms. Here is N-13:
n.13—The Enchiridion Indulgentiarium [collection of indulgenced prayers and works] is to be revised with a view to attaching indulgences only to the most important prayers and works of piety, charity and penance.
At the very end of that document, “Enchiridion of Indulgences”, in an appendix, appears the following section:
APPENDIX: PIOUS INVOCATIONS
In regard to any invocation, the following observations are to be noted:
1) An invocation, as far as indulgences are concerned, is no longer considered a work, distinct and complete in itself, but as complementing an action, by which the faithful raise their heart and mind with humble confidence to God in performing their duties or bearing the trials of life. Hence, a pious invocation perfects the inward elevation; both together are as a precious jewel joined to one's ordinary actions to adorn them, as salt added to them to season them properly.
A bit further down in this section is the only reference to my third grade prayer that can be found in the entire document:
Examples of Invocations in Customary Use [Other invocations, as expressed in the vernacular, may be found in commonly used prayer-books. For example, in English, My Jesus, mercy (proposed by St. Leonard of Port Maurice); …]
I was able to find an example in keeping with the spirit of the Enchiridion of Indulgences, you can find it here . If you take the link you will discover that my little third grade prayer has become the responsorial line in a litany, and I suppose there it fulfills its role as salt, but I cannot help thinking that, sadly, its best years are behind it. Litanies are great when recited en masse by the faithful, and everybody is on the same page, but they are not simple prayers. Quick now! How many litanies can you recite from memory? The days may well be gone when such a simple prayer could stir the imagination of a third grade class, or save the soul of a sinner on his deathbed.
A Postscript
“…Ask and you will receive…”—Jn 16:24. Within hours of finishing the paragraph where I asked about spending a day in purgatory, I found myself in the back of St. Peter’s in LeRoy scanning the pamphlet racks. A title caught my eye – “Heaven, Hell and Purgatory according to passages from the diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska (1905 – 1938)”. I took a well thumbed copy which appeared to be the last one from the slot. In the section of this pamphlet titled “Purgatory”, St. Faustina is ordered by her Guardian Angel to follow the angel into Purgatory where she meets with some of the holy souls who suffer there. Afterwards, she is summoned to the judgment seat of God where she is allowed to see the complete condition of her soul. Now, keep in mind the remark attributed to Bishop Sheen about hearing nuns' confessions being akin to being stoned to death with popcorn. Jesus tells her, “You are guilty of one day of fire in purgatory”. Then He gives her a choice “Suffer here and now in Purgatory, or for a short while on earth.” Faustina, proving to be the saint she is, elects to suffer both. Jesus, proving to be the merciful God He is, sends her back to earth telling her, “You will suffer much, but not for long”.
Indulgences attached to devotions in honour of Divine Mercy
"O God, your mercy knows no bounds and the treasure of your goodness is infinite..." (Prayer after the "Te Deum"Hymn) and "O God, you reveal your almighty power above all by showing mercy and forgiveness..." (Prayer for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time), in these prayers Holy Mother Church humbly and faithfully sings of Divine Mercy. Indeed, God's great patience with the human race in general and with each individual person shines out in a special way when sins and moral failures are forgiven by Almighty God Himself and the guilty are readmitted in a fatherlike way to his friendship, which they deservedly lost.
Duty of honouring Divine Mercy
The faithful with deep spiritual affection are drawn to commemorate the mysteries of divine pardon and to celebrate them devoutly. They clearly understand the supreme benefit, indeed the duty, that the People of God have to praise Divine Mercy with special prayers and, at the same time, they realize that by gratefully performing the works required and satisfying the necessary conditions, they can obtain spiritual benefits that derive from the Treasury of the Church. "The paschal mystery is the culmination of this revealing and effecting of mercy, which is able to justify man, to restore justice in the sense of that salvific order which God willed from the beginning in man, and through man, in the world" (Encyclical Letter Dives in misericordia, n. 7).
It is God's Mercy that grants supernatural sorrow and resolution to amend
Indeed, Divine Mercy knows how to pardon even the most serious sins, and in doing so it moves the faithful to perceive a supernatural, not merely psychological, sorrow for their sins so that, ever with the help of divine grace, they may make a firm resolution not to sin any more. Such spiritual dispositions undeniably follow upon the forgiveness of mortal sin when the faithful fruitfully receive the sacrament of Penance or repent of their sin with an act of perfect charity and perfect contrition, with the resolution to receive the Sacrament of Penance as soon as they can. Indeed, Our Lord Jesus Christ teaches us in the parable of the Prodigal Son that the sinner must confess his misery to God saying: "Father I have sinned against heaven and against you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son" (Lk 15,18-19), realizing that this is a work of God, "for [he] was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found" (Lk 15,32).
Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday
And so with provident pastoral sensitivity and in order to impress deeply on the souls of the faithful these precepts and teachings of the Christian faith, the Supreme Pontiff, John Paul II, moved by the consideration of the Father of Mercy, has willed that the Second Sunday of Easter be dedicated to recalling with special devotion these gifts of grace and gave this Sunday the name, "Divine Mercy Sunday" (Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Decree Misericors et miserator, 5 May 2000).
The Gospel of the Second Sunday of Easter narrates the wonderful things Christ the Lord accomplished on the day of the Resurrection during his first public appearance: "On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you'. When he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the discples were glad to see the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you'. And then he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained'" (Jn 20,19-23).
Plenary Indulgence
To ensure that the faithful would observe this day with intense devotion, the Supreme Pontiff himself established that this Sunday be enriched by a plenary indulgence, as will be explained below, so that the faithful might receive in great abundance the gift of the consolation of the Holy Spirit. In this way, they can foster a growing love for God and for their neighbour, and after they have obtained God's pardon, they in turn might be persuaded to show a prompt pardon to their brothers and sisters.
Pardon of others who sin against us
Thus the faithful will more closely conform to the spirit of the Gospel, receiving in their hearts the renewal that the Second Vatican Council explained and introduced: "Mindful of the words of the Lord: "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another' (Jn 13,35), Christians can yearn for nothing more ardently than to serve the men of this age with an ever growing generosity and success.... It is the Father's will that we should recognize Christ our brother in the persons of all men and love them with an effective love, in word and in deed (Pastoral Constitution, Gaudium et spes, n. 93).
Three conditions for the plenary indulgence
And so the Supreme Pontiff, motivated by an ardent desire to foster in Christians this devotion to Divine Mercy as much as possible in the hope of offering great spiritual fruit to the faithful, in the Audience granted on 13 June 2002, to those Responsible for the Apostolic Penitentiary, granted the following Indulgences:
a plenary indulgence, granted under the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and prayer for the intentions of Supreme Pontiff) to the faithful who, on the Second Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday, in any church or chapel, in a spirit that is completely detached from the affection for a sin, even a venial sin, take part in the prayers and devotions held in honour of Divine Mercy, or who, in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament exposed or reserved in the tabernacle, recite the Our Father and the Creed, adding a devout prayer to the merciful Lord Jesus (e.g. Merciful Jesus, I trust in you!");
A partial indulgence, granted to the faithful who, at least with a contrite heart, pray to the merciful Lord Jesus a legitimately approved invocation.
For those who cannot go to church or the seriously ill
In addition, sailors working on the vast expanse of the sea; the countless brothers and sisters, whom the disasters of war, political events, local violence and other such causes have been driven out of their homeland; the sick and those who nurse them, and all who for a just cause cannot leave their homes or who carry out an activity for the community which cannot be postponed, may obtain a plenary indulgence on Divine Mercy Sunday, if totally detesting any sin, as has been said before, and with the intention of fulfilling as soon as possible the three usual conditions, will recite the Our Father and the Creed before a devout image of Our Merciful Lord Jesus and, in addition, pray a devout invocation to the Merciful Lord Jesus (e.g. Merciful Jesus, I trust in you).
If it is impossible that people do even this, on the same day they may obtain the Plenary Indulgence ifwith a spiritual intention they are united with those carrying out the prescribed practice for obtaining the Indulgence in the usual way and offer to the Merciful Lord a prayer and the sufferings of their illness and the difficulties of their lives, with the resolution to accomplish as soon as possible the three conditions prescribed to obtain the plenary indulgence.
Duty of priests: inform parishioners, hear confessions, lead prayers
Priests who exercise pastoral ministry, especially parish priests, should inform the faithful in the most suitable way of the Church's salutary provision. They should promptly and generously be willing to hear their confessions. On Divine Mercy Sunday, after celebrating Mass or Vespers, or during devotions in honour of Divine Mercy, with the dignity that is in accord with the rite, they should lead the recitation of the prayers that have been given above. Finally, since "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Mt 5,7), when they instruct their people, priests should gently encourage the faithful to practise works of charity or mercy as often as they can, following the example of, and in obeying the commandment of Jesus Christ, as is listed for the second general concession of indulgence in the "Enchiridion Indulgentiarum".
This Decree has perpetual force, any provision to the contrary notwithstanding.
Archbishop Luigi De Magistris, Tit. Archbishop of Nova Major Pro-Penitentiary
