The Holy Father John Paul II visits the Sanctuary

         The convent on the Łagiewniki hill in Cracow is well known to the current pope. During the II World War, he passed it everyday on his way to work in the Solvay plant. It is difficult to establish when exactly he was there for the first time. The convent annals record only those events in which he participated, first as a young priest, and then as the chief Shepherd of the Cracow diocese who was interested in the pastoral work of the congregation and the developing cult of the Divine Mercy, in the forms passed on to us by the Blessed Sr. Faustina.

    On 7 June 1997, the Pope came to this place - as he himself confessed - out of the need of his heart, so as to entrust to the Divine Mercy the plight of the humankind, the Church and his own pontificate, before the grace-working image of the Merciful Jesus and the relics of the Blessed Sr. Faustina.

The Address Delivered by the Holy Father John Paul II at the Sanctuary of the Divine Mercy in Cracow-Łagiewniki

          1. Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo (Ps. 89 [88], 2).
         Here I come to this Sanctuary as a pilgrim, so as to join in the everlasting song in praise of the Divine mercy. The song in question was first sung by the Lord's Psalmist who expressed what all the generations preserved and will continue to preserve as the most precious fruit of faith. There is nothing that man needs more than God's mercy - that love which is benovelent, which is compassionate, which raises man above his weaknesses to the infinite heights of God's holiness. It is in this very place that one becomes aware of this in a special way. For it was from here that there came from the message of the Divine Mercy which Christ Himself wished to pass on to our generation through the mediation of the Blessed Sr. Faustina. The message in question is clear and understandable to everyone. Everyone can come here, look at the image of the merciful Christ and into His Heart beaming with graces, and hear deep in the soul what the Blessed Sr. Faustina had once heard: Do not fear anything; I am always with you (Diary 613). And if he responds sincerely "Jesus, I Trust in You!", he will find all his fears and anxieties assuaged. In this dialogue, a special bond that sets love free is created between man and Christ. There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment ( 1 Jn 4, 18).

The Church reads anew the message of mercy, so as to bring more effectively the light of hope to the generation of the end of the second millenium as well as to the future generations. It never ceases to supplicate God for mercy for every human being. At no time and in no historical period - especially at a moment as critical as our own - can the Church forget the prayer that is a cry for the mercy of God amid the many forms of evil which weigh upon humanity and threaten it (...) The more the human conscience succumbs to secularization, loses its sense of the very meaning of the word "mercy"- the more the Church has the right and the duty to appeal to the God of mercy with "loud cries" (DM, 15). This is precisely why, this Sanctuary has found itself on the route of my pilgrimage. I come here to entrust all the cares of the Church and of the humankind to Merciful Jesus. I come here at the threshold of the third millenium to once again entrust my Peter's mission to Him - "Jesus I Trust in You!".           The message of the Divine Mercy has always been close to my heart. In a way, history has incorporated it into the tragic experience of the II World War. In those difficult years, it provided a special kind of support and was an inexhaustible source of hope not only for the citizens of Cracow, but for the entire nation. It was also my own personal experience which I later took with me to the Holy See. It is this very experience which is in a way a characteristic feature of this pontificate. I thank the Divine Providence that I have had the opportunity to contribute personally to the fulfillment of Christ's will by instituting the feast of the Divine Mercy. It is right here, next to the relics of the Blessed Sr. Faustina Kowalska that I thank God for the gift of her beatification. I do not cease in asking God for mercy for us and for the whole world (Chaplet). (Chaplet).

          2. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy (Mt 5, 7). Dear Sisters! A great task and responsibility rests upon your shoulders. By choosing the Blessed Faustina from among your ranks, Christ had made your congregation the guardian of this place and at the same time, He summoned you to a special kind of apostolate to His mercy. I am asking you to undertake this task. The contemporary man needs your proclamation of mercy; he needs your deeds of mercy and he needs your prayer for mercy. Please do not neglect any of the above dimensions of your apostolate. Do this in unity with the Archbishop of Cracow who is so preoccupied with the issue of worship of the Divine Mercy, and unity with the entire community of the Church, which he is the leader of. Let this common effort bring fruit. Let the Divine Mercy transform human hearts. Let this Sanctuary, which is already well known in many parts of the world, become a center of the cult of the Divine Mercy emanating with graces to the entire Church.

        Once again, I ask you for prayers in the intention of the Church as well as for support in my mission at the Holy See. I know that such prayers are continually being said here. For this, I thank you with all my heart. We need these prayers very much: tertio millennio adveniente. I bless with all my heart all of you who are present here as well as all the worshippers of the Divine Mercy.