October 5
St Faustina Kowalska
Monday, week 27 in Ordinary Time — Year II
St Faustina Kowalska, a Polish nun of the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, is widely known as the 'Apostle of Divine Mercy.' Born at the dawn of the 20th century in Poland, her life was marked by deep spirituality, simplicity, and profound mystical experiences. Through visions and interior locutions, she reported that Jesus entrusted her with the mission of promoting devotion to His Divine Mercy, focused particularly on the trust in God's mercy and the importance of mercy toward others.
Despite humble origins and frail health, Faustina’s perseverance in her vocation made her a vessel for what would become one of the Church’s most influential spiritual movements of the last century. Following her instructions, the now world-renowned Divine Mercy image was painted, the Divine Mercy Chaplet was composed, and the Second Sunday of Easter was dedicated as Divine Mercy Sunday. The posthumous impact of her diary, which recounts her mystical encounters and spiritual insights, has guided countless souls toward a deeper appreciation for God's infinite compassion. Faustina was canonized by Pope John Paul II, himself Polish, who deeply believed in the importance of her message for the modern world. The Church honors her not only for her mystical experiences, but also for her humble, obedient trust in God and her compassion for the suffering and spiritually needy.
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The liturgical day
Mass readings
ReadingGa 1, 6-12
Brothers and sisters,
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting
the one who called you by the grace of Christ,
and are turning to a different Gospel.
Not that there is another:
there are simply some people who are troubling you
and want to distort the Gospel of Christ.
But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach to you a Gospel
different from the one we preached to you,
let him be accursed!
We have said it before, and I say it again now:
if anyone preaches to you
a Gospel different from the one you received,
let him be accursed!
So now, is it human approval or God’s
that I am seeking?
Is it people I am trying to please?
If I were still trying to please people,
I would not be a servant of Christ.
Brothers and sisters, I want you to know
the Gospel that I proclaimed
is not a human invention.
Nor did I receive it from any man,
or was I taught it,
but through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
– The word of the Lord.
PsalmPs 110 (111), 1-2, 7-8, 9.10c
I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart
in the assembly, among the upright.
Great are the works of the Lord;
those who love them ponder them.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy,
established forever and ever,
done with uprightness and fidelity!
He brings deliverance to his people;
his covenant is forever established;
holy and awe-inspiring is his name.
His praise will endure forever.
GospelLc 10, 25-37
At that time,
a doctor of the Law stood up
and put Jesus to the test, saying:
"Teacher, what must I do
to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus said to him:
"What is written in the Law?
How do you read it?"
He replied:
"You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, with all your soul,
with all your strength, and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself. "
Jesus said to him:
"You have answered correctly.
Do this and you will live."
But he, wanting to justify himself,
said to Jesus:
"And who is my neighbor?"
Jesus replied:
"A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho,
and fell into the hands of bandits;
they stripped him and beat him,
and went away, leaving him half dead.
By chance, a priest was going down that road;
he saw him and passed by on the other side.
Likewise a Levite, when he came to the place,
saw him and passed by on the other side.
But a Samaritan, as he was traveling,
came near him;
he saw him and was moved with compassion.
He went to him and bandaged his wounds,
pouring on oil and wine;
then he set him on his own animal,
brought him to an inn,
and took care of him.
The next day he took out two denarii,
and gave them to the innkeeper, saying:
"Take care of him;
and whatever more you spend,
I will repay you when I come back."
Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor
to the man who fell into the hands of the bandits?"
The doctor of the Law replied:
"The one who showed him mercy."
Jesus said to him:
"Go, and you too do likewise."
– The Gospel of the Lord.
Liturgical texts: © AELF — aelf.org