The Chaplet of Divine Mercy is prayed on the beads of the Rosary.
At the beginning:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Optional opening prayers:
You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls, and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.
O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.
O Blood and Water, which gushed forth
from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of mercy for us,
I trust in You!
(Three times)
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
I believe in God…
On the large beads:
Eternal Father,
I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity
of Your dearly beloved Son,
Our Lord, Jesus Christ,
in atonement for our sins
and those of the whole world.
On the small beads:
For the sake of His sorrowful Passion,
have mercy on us and on the whole world.
To conclude:
Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One,
have mercy on us and on the whole world.
(Three times)
Optional concluding prayer:
Eternal God,
Your mercy knows no bounds
and Your treasures of compassion are innumerable.
Look graciously upon us
and increase our trust in Your mercy,
so that we may never,
even in the greatest difficulties,
fall into despair,
but always agree with You
and trust Your will,
which is mercy itself.
The Origin and Meaning of the Divine Mercy Chaplet
The Divine Mercy Chaplet was dictated word for word by Jesus Himself to Saint Faustina Kowalska on September 13-14, 1935, in Vilnius, as a prayer to appease and pacify God’s wrath. On September 13, Saint Faustina received a vision of an angel, the executor of divine wrath. When the angel was ready to strike the sinful world, Faustina began to plead that he would not, and that the world might repent. Immediately she understood that her prayer was nothing more than empty nothingness before divine wrath. Yet, at that very moment, she saw the grandeur of the glory of the Most Holy Trinity and felt the power of Jesus’ mercy in her heart. Saint Faustina began to implore God for the world with words she heard internally. As she prayed in this manner, the angel could not carry out the deserved punishment, which was entirely justified for sins.
The next morning, on September 14, Saint Faustina heard these words within her: “Each time you enter the chapel, immediately recite the prayer I taught you yesterday. (…) This prayer is to appease My wrath; you are to recite it for nine days in succession on the beads of the rosary in the following manner: First, you will say one OUR FATHER, HAIL MARY, and THE APOSTLES’ CREED. Then, on the OUR FATHER beads, you will say the following words: “Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.” On the HAIL MARY beads, you will say the following words: “For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.” Finally, you will say these words three times: “Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world.”” (Saint Faustina’s “Diary”, 476).
Those who recite the Divine Mercy Chaplet offer to God the Father the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ as an atonement for their sins, the sins of their loved ones, and those of the whole world. By uniting with the sacrifice of Jesus, they appeal to the greatest love that Our Heavenly Father has for His Son and, through Him, for all humanity.
When the faithful pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet with deep trust in God and fulfill the necessary conditions for every good prayer (humility, perseverance, obedience to God’s will), they can expect the fulfillment of Christ’s promises associated with this prayer.
These promises are especially connected with the hour of death:
the grace of a happy and peaceful death – these graces are granted not only to those who recite the Chaplet but also to the dying, next to whom this prayer is recited. The Lord Jesus said to Saint Faustina: „At the hour of death, I defend as My own glory every soul that recites this Chaplet; or when others recite it for the dying, the indulgence is the same. When the Chaplet is recited by the bedside of a dying person, God’s anger is appeased, and the soul is encompassed by boundless mercy, and the depths of My mercy are stirred for the sake of My Son’s sorrowful Passion“ (Diary, 811).
the grace of conversion and forgiveness of sins – the Lord Jesus also promised the grace of a good death even if the Chaplet is recited only once. However, again, an attitude of trust in God and mercy towards one’s neighbor is necessary. Jesus said to Saint Faustina: „Priests will recommend it to sinners as their last hope of salvation. Even if there were a sinner most hardened, if he were to recite this Chaplet only once, he would receive grace from My infinite mercy“ (Diary, 687).
general promise – states: „My daughter, encourage souls to recite the Chaplet which I have given you. In the recitation of this Chaplet, it pleases Me to grant everything that is asked of Me“ (Diary, 1541). We must remember that what we ask for must conform to God’s will. For what is not in conformity with His will may not be good for us, and especially not for our eternal happiness. On another occasion, Jesus said to Saint Faustina: „(…) by reciting this Chaplet, you bring mankind closer to Me“ (Diary, 929), and further: „Souls who recite this Chaplet will be embraced by My mercy during their lifetime and especially at the hour of death“ (Diary, 754).
The Chaplet of Divine Mercy, as a prayer, has a profound theological meaning. It is addressed to God the Father, to whom we offer “The Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your Most Beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ,” meaning Jesus Christ wholly and entirely, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world, and because of His sorrowful Passion, we implore God’s mercy for ourselves and for the whole world. In fact, these words clearly reflect the decree of the Council of Trent concerning the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist (1551). From the third chapter of the decree, we can read: “Immediately after the consecration, the true Body of our Lord and His true Blood, together with His soul and divinity, are present under the forms of bread and wine.” During every Holy Mass, Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection become present on the altars of the entire world. He offered Himself for the sins of all people, of course in His human nature (with Body and Blood, and also with Soul), but from the moment of the Incarnation, His human nature is united with His divine nature (with Divinity) in one Person. By uttering the words “Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity,” we truly unite ourselves with the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, which was offered on the cross for our redemption.
The words “Your Most Beloved Son” refer to the most powerful argument we could possibly use when imploring God’s mercy, as they point to God’s love for His Only Begotten Son and, through Him, for all people. In the phrase “have mercy on us and on the whole world,” the word “us” means both the person praying the chaplet and those for whom he or she wishes and ought to pray, while the expression “the whole world” refers to all people living on earth and also those in Purgatory. Therefore, when we pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, we perform a beautiful spiritual act of mercy towards our neighbors.
In a broader sense, “mercy” refers to God wherever He reveals Himself in His external activity, meaning in creation, redemption, and the elevation of creation to a state of grace. However, God’s mercy is especially expressed in His disposition to deliver people from all possible distress of sin and moral decay. Indeed, it is God’s forgiveness that takes away our sins, and in this context, God’s mercy goes much further. The latter is primarily directed towards the fundamental human value, human dignity, and it seeks to save, purify, and elevate this dignity, delivering it from all distress of sin and error. Consequently, by uttering the words “be merciful” (which is a translation from the original “miej miłosierdzie”), we ask God the Father to do much more than simply forgive us our sins. By praying for His kind, patient, compassionate, generous, forgiving, and faithful love, we express deep trust that God in His mercy will never cease to elevate and heal the whole world from the distress of sin and error. The word “have mercy” (which is a translation from the original “zmiłuj się”) refers to the penitential rite with which every Holy Mass begins. It is a moment when we ask God the Father to forgive us our sins so that we may worthily participate in the Eucharist, during which we receive the Body of Christ.