Why did the 1959 Holy Office Condemn the “Divine Mercy” Devotion?
Only few people have never heard of the so-called “Divine Mercy” devotion. It has its origin in the alleged visions of a Polish nun by the name of Sr. Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938), a member of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy. The “Divine Mercy” devotion is extremely popular in the Vatican II Church, owing for the most part to the efforts of the apostate bishop Karol Wojtyla, first as the “Archbishop” of Cracow, then as “Pope” John Paul II.
A great number of traditional Catholics, as well, have been led to accept this devotion, which, unfortunately, is sometimes confused with the most noble and laudable devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which is based chiefly on the revelations of Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th century.
In the Novus Ordo Church, the “Divine Mercy” devotion has been intimately associated with John Paul II, who “canonized” Sr. Faustina as a “saint”, wrote a lenghty “encyclical” which focuses on the topic of divine mercy (Dives In Misericordia, 1980), and instituted “Divine Mercy Sunday” on the first Sunday after Easter, traditionally known as “Low Sunday” (Dominica in Albis Depositis). On “Divine Mercy Sunday” of 2011 (May 1), Antipope Benedict XVI “beatified” Wojtyla, and the latter’s bogus “canonization” is likewise scheduled for “Divine Mercy Sunday” of 2014 (April 27).
Clearly, the “Divine Mercy” is the Novus Ordo devotion, almost a purported “heavenly” endorsement of John Paul II and his teachings (and thus the entire Novus Ordo religion). While this alone would suffice to render it highly suspect (to say the least), there is something even graver to consider: On March 6, 1959, the Holy Office condemned the devotion, prohibiting people from distributing its images as well as forbidding them from spreading the writings of Sr. Faustina that promote it:
The above is an image of the text of the prohibition against the “Divine Mercy” devotion, as it appeared in the Vatican’s official collection of authoritative documents, the Acta Apostolicae Sedis, vol. 51 (1959), p. 271. You can download a PDF copy of the entire volume from the Vatican web site here.
True, the Holy Office at the time was under the ultimate supervision of Antipope John XXIII, but, to keep things in perspective, he had been elected only 129 days prior (on Oct. 28, 1958 — see information here), and the officials of the Holy Office had all been appointed by Pope Pius XII: The Secretary then was Cardinal Giuseppe Pizzardo, the Pro-Secretary Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani, and the Notary Mgr. Hugh O’Flaherty. In fact, it can be seen as even more damning an indictment of the “Divine Mercy” devotion that it was censured even under the Modernist Angelo Roncalli (John XXIII), the very originator of the Novus Ordo religion.
For further, more in-depth discussion of the problems with this devotion, the writings of Sr. Faustina, and the concerns about the “Divine Mercy” image, we are pleased to make available to you the article “The Divine Mercy Devotion: Why Did the Holy Office Ban It?” by Fr. Benedict Hughes. It appeared in the Summer 2013 issue of The Reign of Mary (vol. 44; no. 151), pp. 4-6, and we have received kind permission from the author to republish it here. Please click below to download a PDF copy of the article:
“The Divine Mercy Devotion:
Why did the Holy Office Ban It?”
by Fr. Benedict Hughes
Incidentally, the Novus Ordo Church retained its ban on the “Divine Mercy” for almost 20 years. It was not lifted until April 15, 1978 (see Acta Apostolicae Sedis, vol. 70 [1978], p. 350), due in large part to the efforts of the “Archbishop” of Cracow, “Cardinal” Karol Wojtyla (who would become “Pope” John Paul II a six months later). The reversal of the decision was justified by blaming the original 1959 condemnation on a “faulty translation” of the writings of Sr. Faustina (sound familiar?).
See Also:
- More reasons to reject the Divine Mercy Devotion (not a sedevacantist source)
Image source: Wikimedia Commons (Divina-Misericordia.org) / vatican.va (screenshot) / cmri.org
License: CC BY-SA 3.0 / fair use / fair use
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Looking forward to reading more on this, and to reading the comments below. I know very litle/next to nothing about this issue (and hence the adage that too little information is a dangerous thing.) BUT, I do recall reading recently that St. Faustina spoke of the day of the worst possible agony she experienced (not sure if there was prophecy connected to this) which turns out to be the day that “pope Francis
was born.
Also, is there mention or discussion as to what, specifically, was supposedly misinterpreted,to support the lifting of the ban on “Divine Mercy?” Thank you.