Preamble to the Statutes of the Mission of Divine Mercy

Our preamble and statutes, first approved in 2003, were further developed and approved by a decree from Archbishop Jose H. Gomez in 2010. Please see his accompanying letter here: Archbishop Gomez May 2010

1. THE THREE BASES OF THE MISSION OF DIVINE MERCY

• By faith we know that Jesus is the Son of God; that He came into the world to save us, teaching us through His example and His word the way to salvation and to Heaven.
• Moreover, Jesus is the One Who with His life, passion and death has taught us perfect abandonment to the Divine Will of the Father. It is the fulfillment of this Will that brought about the Redemption, liberating us from the slavery of sin.
• Thus, Jesus is the Eternal Mercy of the Father for fallen humanity, weak yet pilgrim.

2. Therefore the three bases upon which the Mission of Divine Mercy (MDM) is founded are faith in Jesus; abandonment to the Father’s Will; and the adoration of and teaching concerning His divine mercy.  All of this is lived under the protection and the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Woman of Faith and Abandonment par excellence, and our Mother of Mercy.

3. By faith we mean not only believing in God, but also going to the depths of authentic faith, which means believing God,[2] Who truly speaks to us through the Gospel and in various other ways.  This act of believing God is more difficult and more rare, above all in these times, which abound with information, scientific knowledge, and technology, but which are also affected by rationalism and plagued by doubt.

4. Believing God also means trusting in the Holy Spirit, present and active today in His Church.[3] This includes a prudent openness to the charisms that He may give,[4] especially those given to the little and ignorant ones according to the world, such as St. Juan Diego or St. Faustina Kowalska. “I give you thanks, Father…that you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned and revealed them to little children.”[5] St. Faustina is of special importance for our community. She received momentous revelations destined for today’s world to renew trust in the Gospel’s good news of God’s mercy.[6] Our community is to be rooted in His mercy, striving to live this message.

5. The world desperately needs to know of the great mercy that God has for us sinners, so that all of us may turn to Him wholeheartedly with a firm hope in His love and His pardon.  Hence, our constant prayer to Our Lord asking for mercy for ourselves and for all the world; and asking that one day God may be more known and praised for this which has been called His greatest attribute.[7]

6. Abandonment –Faith leads to abandonment to the Divine Will, which draws great blessings from Heaven.  By abandonment, the soul places its poor and humble will in unison with the Will of God, Who causes or permits the events for each soul, and Who draws good from evil itself.[8]

OBJECTIVES:

7. Our first objective is threefold:

1)      To teach the members of the Mission of Divine Mercy this faith in Jesus;

2)      To imitate Jesus, living with His grace an apprenticeship in this abandonment to the Will of God;

3)      To live by trust and faith in God’s eternal mercy, His first and greatest attribute, still too little known.

Our second objective is to share this three-fold reality (which we ourselves are still struggling to learn) with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

PRINCIPAL MEANS

8. As a contemplative community our principal means for realizing these objectives are:

a)      Daily celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Eucharist.

b)      The practice of continuous prayer.

c)      Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

d)     Appropriate apostolic activities.

a)      The daily offering of the Holy Eucharist is the prayer par excellence in which Jesus offers Himself to the Father as an Oblation for the whole of humanity.  It is the “source and summit” of our Christian life.[9] We want to live the celebration of the Eucharist with loving reverence for these “Sacred Mysteries.”

b)      The practice of continuous prayer involves an effort towards the constant repetition of the Holy Name of Jesus throughout the different activities of each day.  It permits us to discipline our mind in order to center our spirit and our life in the constant contemplation of God: striving towards a continuous and uninterrupted contemplation of the Person of Jesus.

c)      The adoration of the Eucharist permits the Christian to draw graces from heaven both for himself and for suffering humanity.  In this passive activity in which man is quiet and God acts, the Lord communicates His gifts and His graces through the prayer of the one who adores Him.  We are simple instruments of the God of Mercy.  Our apostolate and missionary spirit consists first of all in this.  (We recall that St. Therese of Lisieux was named patron of the missions without having left her convent.)

d)     Appropriate apostolic activities provide a means by which this contemplative spirit of personal communion with God may be shared with men and women of all ages—children, youth and adults.  A primary example is the “Encounter with Jesus” retreat.  This retreat is to guide a person into a “convivencia,” or fellowship, with Jesus through adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and through personal, individual prayer lived out in silence. Silence is a privileged means by which we may listen to and experience He who speaks to and inspires our soul.

9. This mission of the spiritual works of mercy does not exclude the possibility that the Mission of Divine Mercy may be led to other types of activities.  But it is important to us to guard and protect the contemplative charism of the Mission of Divine Mercy.  Therefore, these activities should be in harmony with this charism.

MEMBERS OF THE MISSION OF DIVINE MERCY

10. The Mission of Divine Mercy is a movement[10] whose members will constitute five different branches: religious men [including priests]; religious women; consecrated laymen; consecrated laywomen; and lay members.  Members of this last branch, single or married, will live their commitment in the world.  Members of the other branches will live together in their respective communities.

11. The men’s and women’s branches will have separate living areas and will preserve the due distance and distinction that prudence, respect and mutual charity require.  Some of the activities will be realized in common:  for example, participation in the Holy Eucharist; adoration of the Blessed Sacrament; and the organization of the retreat apostolate.

IN COMMUNION[11]

12. This communion among the members of the Mission of Divine Mercy has its source in our communion with the Blessed Trinity, which also calls us to a deeper communion with all who “dwell in His love”[12]:

• With the local church and its pastor. In communion with and under the guidance of our Archbishop, we wish to offer our charism as a spiritual resource at the service of the local Church.
• With the universal Church and our Holy Father. We also wish to be in a filial communion with our Holy Father, the Pope.  In particular, we wish to gratefully express our debt to the teaching and example of Pope John Paul II, which have in fact been a providential inspiration for the founding of the Mission of Divine Mercy.[13]
• With the saints in heaven. The Mission of Divine Mercy is a new community, born in this third millennium in the particular situation of today.  But this newness is rooted in the great tradition of holiness in the Church, supported and inspired by our brothers and sisters in heaven.
• With the angels and archangels. In this great mission, conscious of our weakness, we sense a particular need to turn with confidence also to our beloved angels, especially Sts. Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.
• With our brothers and sisters in Purgatory. An important part of this Mission of Mercy, too easily forgotten, is to help these souls being purified.
• With non-Catholic Christians and with all persons of good will. The Mission of Divine Mercy is Roman Catholic, but far from excluding others, we want to be open to all with whom the Lord would like us to share this spirit.

13. Nature also has an important role to play in our communion with God.  We seek peaceful natural settings to facilitate this communion.

FINALLY

This is a noble project, but we have to be realistic about our littleness and limitations.  Hence a sense of humor is important; to not take ourselves too seriously, but to hope in Him.

MARANATHA.  COME, LORD JESUS.