The Marian Fathers extend a warm invitation to come to Eden Hill on April 6 and 7 to experience this annual celebration. Admission is free. Online bus registration has closed, but private vehicles are welcome with no registration required. Details here.
Sunrise over Eden Hill as Divine Mercy Weekend begins! Jesus, We Trust in You!
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 7:00 a.m.
"Snow begone – and earthquakes!" says the Great Mercy Pope, St. JohnPaul II. Clear skies to start our Divine Mercy Weekend! We hope you can join us!
It takes a small army of Marian Fathers and Brothers, lay employees, and volunteers to host Divine Mercy Weekend – and communication is vital. Zeke Chichester is in charge of distributing radios and headsets and keeping everyone connected.
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 8:30 a.m.
Saint Faustina is here! And ready to take a selfie with pilgrims, who can post the photos to our social media with the hashtag DMS24. Check it out on our Facebook and Instagram all weekend long!
California, here they come! Representing San Francisco and Los Angeles are these Filipino pilgrims, bundled up for the cool 35-degree weather!
First stop for most pilgrims this weekend is the Information Tent, and ready to help are Melissa, Celeste, and Ellen. The most common question? "What time is Mass?" Answer: 4:00 p.m. Vigil Mass today, 1:00 p.m. Mass tomorrow!
Kurt Nichols, one of the Stockbridge Police Department's finest, is on patrol this morning. His role this weekend? "Anything and everything!"
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 8:30 a.m.
The line begins to form at the Confession tent. Remember that you do not have to go to Confession this weekend to receive the extraordinary graces offered on Divine Mercy Sunday, if you have already been to Confession and are in a state of grace.
Ellen and Tom Heghmann from St. Aidan's Parish in Rockland County, New York, are volunteering at the Confession tent, keeping the lines moving!
Denise Soucy (left), traveled from Maine. Her husband insisted she come to Eden Hill while he stayed home to shovel 20 inches of snow! At right, Dana Beagle from Fenton, Michigan, gets ready for the Mercy Weekend Conference, which begins at 9:30 a.m.
This is the third Divine Mercy Weekend for Tom and Anne Sparks from Olympia, Washington. "We're always excited," Anne says. "We return because of the deep spiritual experiences we've had."
Our Intercessory Prayerline is open, and Miriam and Barbara are taking calls. Call 1-800-804-3823 or send a prayer petition here.
Our first speaker: Jim Wahlberg, actor, director, producer, and author of The Big Hustle.
“I’m not here to speak about myself. I’m here to speak about Jesus,” said Jim Wahlberg. “Once I had no understanding of God’s love, or mercy, or grace. I got raised with, ‘God’s gonna get you; God’s watching you.’”
Wahlberg explained that, for years, he felt that everyone else was holy, and he wasn’t. He shared what God had done in his life, taking him from a childhood marred by early alcoholism, drug abuse, and crime to an encounter with Mother Teresa in prison that began the process of turning his life around. That story is told in The Big Hustle.
“I wrote this book three years ago and I’ve never been able to get through the dedication without getting emotional,” Wahlberg said, reading tributes to the women in his life, including his mother, his wife, and the Blessed Virgin Mary. Jim also paid tribute to his fellow speakers, the Very Rev. Chris Alar, MIC, provincial superior of the Marian Fathers and the master of ceremonies, and the Very Rev. Donald Calloway, MIC, vicar provincial of the Marian Fathers.
Wahlberg said, “I’m here with priests that are holy men, strong men, men that wear their faith not only on their collar, but on their sleeve. Men you want to lead you into battle, and we’re in a battle, right?”
“Please remember nothing’s too big for God,” concluded Wahlberg. “God bless you.”
“Jesus Christ is the ultimate model of manhood. He’s the way out of this for us,” said Fr. Calloway. “If Jesus imitated Joseph, don’t you think we should?”
He spoke bluntly about the challenges practicing Catholics face in the present day in a secularizing society, trapped in the consequences of the sexual revolution and the culture of death. “We’re all about mercy. It’s what we do here. But not to the detriment of courage, justice, and holiness.”
“I believe in this time of anthropological crisis, God has revealed to us in extraordinary ways the importance of St. Joseph,” he explained. “So it makes perfect sense God is bringing into our times St. Joseph. He is a major way out of this disaster.”
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 11 a.m.:Join us for First Saturday devotions!
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 12 Noon
Time for a break! Our Divine Mercy Gift Shop Tent is teeming with customers, with a wide array of devotional items, Marian Press books, and artwork.
Time for a lunch break, too! Hotdogs and wurst are new this year.
God bless our volunteers! Jerry, Kevin, and Edgar from St. Ferdinand's Church in San Fernando, California, are Eucharistic ministers and ushers this weekend.
Volunteering in the First Aid Tent are Essie and Bob Sorogon and Yay and Lani Libang from Dublin and Chino Hills, California.
Pilgrims from St. Peter's Church in Waldorf, Maryland, a group that has been coming up to Divine Mercy Weekend for many years. Welcome back!
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 1:30 p.m.
Great to see the Youth Group from St. Anthony Church in Everett, Massachusetts, posing with St. Faustina!
Pilgrims from St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church in Queens, New York, posed in front of the statue of Jesus, the Divine Mercy, "We all come here for special reasons in our hearts, so they will be fulfilled, and to light candles for our departed loved ones," says Amy (right).
Deacon Hernst Bellevue and his wife, Yanick, from St. Martha Church in Uniondale, New York, have been coming to the National Shrine since the 1990s. Today they are part of a large parish pilgrimage. "Divine Mercy is my spirit," Deacon Hernst says. "It keeps me in touch with the Lord, and helps me into a deeper relationship with Him."
Peter and Erin Markavage, two of our favorite employees and volunteers! Peter is the "Peter James" often mentioned by Fr. Chris Alar during his Saturday "Explaining the Faith" talks.
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 2:00 p.m.
The Most Rev. Joseph Roesch, MIC, Superior General of the Marian Congregation, and the Very Rev. Chris Alar, MIC, Provincial Superior, rehearse for tomorrow's Divine Mercy Sunday Pre-Show, live on EWTN at 12 Noon EDT. Don't miss it!
Father Michael Callea, MIC, Provincial Secretary, led the recitation of the Divine Mercy Chaplet.
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 4:00 p.m.
The Vigil Mass for the Feast of Divine Mercy begins, celebrated at the Mother of Mercy Outdoor Shrine. Father Matthew Tomeny, MIC, Rector of the National Shrine, is the celebrant.
Father Andy Davy, MIC, director of postulant formation and one of 50 official preachers for the National Eucharistic Revival, gave a spirited homily.
Father Andy focused his talk on the fire of Divine Mercy, which overcomes the dark fire of the devil and his allies. Through the divine fire that pours forth from the side of Christ, the rays of Divine Mercy that represent the Blood and Water by which we are washed clean of our sins and sanctified, Jesus opens every locked door and sets all captives free.
“As the missionaries of mercy go forth,” proclaimed Fr. Andy, “the world becomes more warm and more filled with mercy, and you become a light. You become an extension of that bridge of the rays of Divine Mercy."
