Two New Saints

Prior to the holy mass, the introductory part is marked by a procession. To begin with, pictures of two new saints, due to be canonized today, St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II, are enthroned. Mr. and Mrs. Caesar, Filipinos, lead the procession with the picture of St. John XXII, followed by Mr. and Mr. Ajo Tomas, Indian, with the picture of St. John Paul II, each accompanied by audio meditation by Fr. Aurelius Pati Soge.

Pope John XXIII was the man behind the Vatican Council II, an enormous step to the renewal of the Church in modern history. “Open the windows and let the fresh air come in”, said Pope John XXIII, initiating the council that has change the shape of the world since. He encouraged men and women to step into the world, being engaged into all aspect of human lives, to help the society to define its true identity. The Council proved to be a major wind of change that brought the new hope to the world.

Meanwhile, St. John Paul II is considered the major executor of this renewal. In 1978, this Polish Cardinal, Karol Józef Wojtyła, was elected pope, who chose to be named John Paul II. Like a megastar he travelled around the world to send the messages of peace, harmony and unity among nations. He played the crucial roles of cracking down the communism, which led to the establishment of many new states for sovereign nations. The most touching part of his spiritual endeavor was to build the bridge between social, political and religious differences. No surprise, as the world for once witnessed, that his death had gathered all political opponents, even bitter enemies, around his coffin, as they eventually realized, that the world would be poorer at the departure of this great man. He was the one that brought the Divine Mercy Devotion to the spotlight of Christian heritages.

The image of Divine Mercy

Mr. and Mrs. Dretivoni, Fijian couples, have the honor to bring the picture of the Divine Mercy. One decade of chaplet of Divine Mercy is musically recited when the picture is being brought along the alley. The congregation spontaneously rises up and faces the image of the Divine Mercy, singing the chaplet, creating a glorious moment of solemn procession. The Divine Mercy devotion comes to the stage through a Divine revelation to St. Faustina Kowalska, a polish nun. This simple and quite uneducated nun certainly did not think of having an extraordinary contribution to the spiritual life of the Church. She recorded the whole vision in her diary, and later related her spiritual experience to the attention of many. Thanks to the spiritual openness of the late Pope John Paul II, who helped developing this devotion, which has been proven since to be one of the most popular spiritual movement in the church. This is the reason, why the canonization of the two new saints takes place on the Divine Mercy Day, partly to honor the great promoter of this devotion, John Paul II. .... NEXT