Pope Francis made his own the prayer of the Divine Mercy chaplet at the end of the general audience this April 12.
Noting how the world is afflicted by war -- what the Pope calls World War III fought piecemeal -- he prayed, "For the sake of your sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world."
The Pope made this prayer in greetings to the Polish-speaking faithful, noting that this Sunday is Divine Mercy Sunday, "established by St. John Paul II, as desired by the Lord Jesus through St. Faustina Kowalska almost a century ago."
He said:
Today, when the world is being afflicted more and more by wars and is moving away from God, we need the Mercy of the Father above all.
Therefore, let us raise a prayer to Christ: "For the sake of Your sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and the whole world." I bless you from the heart.
The Pope also spoke of the feast in his greeting to Italian-speaking pilgrims, saying that it is a feast when we "celebrate God's mercy, it is Mercy Sunday."
"The Lord never ceases to be merciful," the Pope assured. "Let us think of the Mercy of God who always welcomes us, always accompanies us, never leaves us alone."
Pope Francis has repeatedly expressed his devotion to the spirituality of mercy promoted by his Polish predecessor. In fact, it was this liturgical feast that he chose to celebrate, on April 27, 2014, the double canonization of John Paul II and John XXIII.
As well, one of his rare outings from the Vatican during the first lock-down due to the Covid-19 pandemic was to celebrate, on April 19, 2020, the Mass of the Divine Mercy in the Church of San Spirito in Sassia.
