The National Shrine of The

Divine Mercy The Divine Mercy is a form of God's compassion, an act of grace based on trust or forgiveness. In Catholicism, it refers specifically to a devotion which had its origin in the apparitions of Jesus Christ reported by Faustina Kowalska. Etymolog ...

is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

shrine located in Stockbridge,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. The priests and Catholic and brothers of the Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary have resided on Eden Hill in Stockbridge, since June 1944. Father Walter Pelczynski, MIC, with the assistance of local clergy and friends of the Marian community, initially purchased 50 of the that constituted the "Eden Hill" estate in November, 1943. The house was to serve as the

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

for a newly formed province. An image of "The Divine Mercy" was enshrined in one of the small chapels where the members of the community prayed daily a perpetual

novena A novena (from Latin: ''novem'', "nine") is an ancient tradition of devotional praying in Christianity, consisting of private or public prayers repeated for nine successive days or weeks. The nine days between the Feast of the Ascension and Pen ...

to the

Pilgrim A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) who is on Pilgrimage, a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journey (often on foot) to some place of special significance to the a ...

s began to arrive the very next spring to celebrate the

Feast of The Divine Mercy Divine Mercy Sunday (also known as the Feast of the Divine Mercy) is celebrated on the Second Sunday of Easter, which concludes the Octave of Easter. The feast day is observed in the Roman Rite calendar, as well as some Anglo-Catholics of th ...

(the Sunday after

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

). By the end of World War II in 1945, pilgrims in growing numbers came to offer thanksgiving for graces received through the Divine Mercy message and devotion. They urged the Marians to build a shrine to Jesus, The Divine Mercy, as a

votive A votive offering or votive deposit is one or more objects displayed or deposited, without the intention of recovery or use, in a sacred place for religious purposes. Such items are a feature of modern and ancient societies and are generally ...

of thanks. The Fathers decided to accede to the requests since there was also a need for a larger chapel to accommodate a growing community. The construction of the present Shrine began in 1950 and was completed and solemnly dedicated by Springfield Bishop Christopher Weldon in 1960. In 1996, the

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

declared it a National Shrine in accord with

Church law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

. The National Shrine has drawn thousands of pilgrims from around the world.

References

* Marians of the Immaculate Conception
''National Shrine of Divine Mercy''.
Last accessed on 21 August 2010. * The Divine Mercy
''The Divine Mercy''.
Last accessed on 31 March 2008.

External links

National Shrine of The Divine Mercy (the official website)The Catholic Photographer: National Shrine of The Divine Mercy
Catholic pilgrimage sites Roman Catholic churches in Massachusetts Roman Catholic national shrines in the United States Churches in Berkshire County, Massachusetts Stockbridge, Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Berkshire County, Massachusetts Divine Mercy Roman Catholic churches completed in 1960 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States {{Massachusetts-church-stub

See also

References

External links