Dan Valenti's Mercy Journal

There's no easy way to say it: In St. Faustina's battle against staggering odds, we can find the inspiration to persist in our own struggles.

Recently, I spent a weekend catching up on yard work. I mowed, swept, shoveled, raked, and weeded. Call it spirituality amongst the dandelions.

Pain and suffering are universal experiences, says His Excellency the Most Rev. Zygmunt Zimowski, top Vatican prelate on healthcare issues. Archbishop Zimowski says the answer to dealing productively with these experiences can be found in God.

Mercy would be the logical next step for this Pope, given the intimate and intense role that God's mercy played in his personal life.