Mission of the Divine Mercy Conference

To spread the message of Divine Mercy through:

  1. Deed

  2. Word

  3. Prayer

In Every Heart, In Every Home, In Every Parish

In Every County, In Every Country, In Collaboration with Others.

Historical background: 32 years’ ago when we set out on this Divine Mercy Journey we did not envisage ‘The Way Ahead’ would lead to 32 Annual Conferences together with travelling up and down the country with Fr. Cathal Price celebrating Masses for Healing, delivering Retreats and facilitating Prayer Days.

We were a small committee of dedicated hardworking apostles working to the Vision Statement of “Spreading Divine Mercy, Parish by Parish, County by County". In these 32 years, this vision hasn't changed just expanded as shown above in every heart, in every home, in every parish, in every county, in every country. In spreading devotion to The Divine Mercy, it has been a long-term objective to have an online spiritual educational resource programme that would cater for people at all levels of ability and motivation. Indeed, Ireland has the longest running history of Divine Mercy Conferences in the world. This history gives us a legacy that we want to share with everybody, not only in Ireland, but also the whole world.

Over the years we have enjoyed some of the best speakers in the world at our Conferences and we will be selecting a number of these talks and promoting their use as part of this online spiritual educational resource programme. We will also be offering a number of easy to follow Divine Mercy Retreats and Courses. It is our plan to categorise these talks by theme, by speaker, by subject this is to try and make it easy for lecturers, prayer group leaders to use this as a resource in presenting/facilitating educational inputs, discussion groups, retreat reflections.

We are also encouraging Divine Mercy Apostles around the country to come together in prayer, in groups of three or four, or more where possible, similar to the cell structure in Lectio Divina. Where possible, these cell groups can decide to do some works of mercy. There are some ground rules for visiting hospitals or prisons for example, the main one is to be guided by the Chaplain.

The urgency of Praying the Chaplet for the sick and the dying and all Mankind (Diary 1541) is emphasised in the Diary as a very important duty because it brings tremendous comfort to every soul it is said for regardless of time, place or location. So if you are not able to visit a hospital or prison do realise how important the power of praying the Chaplet is for ourselves, the dying, the homeless and the whole world. Many saints never left their convents and their intercessory prayers converted multitudes of souls.

THE PROMISE OF THE GRACE OF MERCY FOR THE DYING

“It pleases Me to grant everything souls ask of Me by saying the chaplet. When hardened sinners say it, I will fill their souls with peace, and the hour of their death will be a happy one. Write this for the benefit of distressed souls; when a soul sees and realizes the gravity of its sins, when the whole abyss of the misery into which it immersed itself is displayed before its eyes, let it not despair, but with trust let it throw itself into the arms of My mercy, as a child into the arms of its beloved mother (...). Tell them no soul that has called upon My mercy has been disappointed or brought to shame. I delight particularly in a soul that has placed its trust in My goodness. Write that when they say this chaplet in the presence of the dying, I will stand between My Father and the dying person, not as the just Judge but as the merciful Saviour” (Diary, 1541).

"At the hour of their death, I defend as My own glory every soul that will say this chaplet; or when others say it for a dying person, the indulgence is the same. When this chaplet is said by the bedside of a dying person, God's anger is placated and his unfathomable mercy envelops the soul" (Diary, 811).

The plan is to show the history of God's mercy throughout the Old Testament leading into the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and to show the Divine Mercy Devotion in the context of God’s mercy. This being the Year of Mercy our full emphasis is on the Mercy of God in its full context.

The Beatitudes tell us “Blessed are the Merciful, for they will be shown Mercy”.

In promoting Divine Mercy Sunday, we encourage apostles to go to confession during Holy Week so as to avoid any additional work for priests on Divine Mercy Sunday. We initiated the very successful campaign of donating a free Divine Mercy picture to every church in the country so that apostles can fulfil the four requirements for Divine Mercy Sunday without any extra work on their local priest.
The four conditions are:

  • To attend the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

  • To receive Holy Communion in a state of grace.

  • To publicly venerate The Divine Mercy Image.

  • To do an act of mercy for someone on that day.

More details about the online spiritual educational resource programme will follow shortly. We hope that people can join in this programme at any time during the year! God bless you all and thank you for your work as an Apostle of Mercy.

Don Devaney (Chairman)