Then this soul, as it were, like one intoxicated, could not contain herself, but standing before the face of God, exclaimed, “How great is the Eternal Mercy with which You cover the sins of Your creatures! I do not wonder that You say of those who abandon mortal sin and return to You, ‘I do not remember that you have ever offended Me.’ Oh, ineffable Mercy! I do not wonder that You say this to those who are converted, when You say of those who persecute You, ‘I wish you to pray for such, in order that I may do them mercy.’ Oh, Mercy, who proceeds from Your Eternal Father, the Divinity who governs with Your power the whole world, by You were we created, in You were we re-created in the Blood of Your Son. Your Mercy preserves us, Your Mercy caused Your Son to do battle for us, hanging by His arms on the wood of the Cross, life and death battling together; then life confounded the death of our sin, and the death of our sin destroyed the bodily life of the Immaculate Lamb. Which was finally conquered? Death! By what means? Mercy! Your Mercy gives light and life, by which Your clemency is known in all Your creatures, both the just and the unjust. In the height of Heaven Your Mercy shines, that is, in Your saints. If I turn to the earth, it abounds with Your Mercy. In the darkness of Hell Your Mercy shines, for the damned do not receive the pains they deserve; with Your Mercy You temper Justice. By Mercy You have washed us in the Blood, and by Mercy You wish to converse with Your creatures. Oh, Loving Madman! was it not enough for You to become Incarnate, that You must also die? Was not death enough, that You must also descend into Limbo, taking thence the holy fathers to fulfill Your Mercy and Your Truth in them? Because Your goodness promises a reward to them that serve You in truth, You descended to Limbo, to withdraw from their pain Your servants, and give them the fruit of their labors. Your Mercy constrains You to give even more to man, namely, to leave Yourself to him in food, so that we, weak ones, should have comfort, and the ignorant commemorating You, should not lose the memory of Your benefits. Wherefore every day You give Yourself to man, representing Yourself in the Sacrament of the Altar, in the body of Your Holy Church. What has done this? Your Mercy. Oh, Divine Mercy! My heart suffocates in thinking of you, for on every side to which I turn my thought, I find nothing but mercy. Oh, Eternal Father! Forgive my ignorance, that I presume thus to chatter to You, but the love of Your Mercy will be my excuse before the Face of Your loving-kindness.”

From The Dialogue of Saint Catherine of Sienna

There is nothing that man needs more than Divine Mercy — that love which is benevolent, which is compassionate, which raises man above his weakness to the infinite heights of the holiness of God.

In this place we become particularly aware of this. From here, in fact, went out the Message of Divine Mercy that Christ himself chose to pass on to our generation through Blessed Faustina.

And it is a message that is clear and understandable for everyone. Anyone can come here, look at this image of the merciful Jesus, His Heart radiating grace, and hear in the depths of his own soul what Blessed Faustina heard: “Fear nothing. I am with you always” (Diary, 586).

And if this person responds with a sincere heart: “Jesus, I trust in you,” he will find comfort in all his anxieties and fears. In this “dialogue of abandonment,” there is established between man and Christ a special bond that sets love free. And “there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear” (1 Jn 4:18).

Pope Saint John Paul II

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Our Lord, before He began his ministry, was tempted by Satan in the wilderness. The temptation that He faced was exactly that which we ourselves face, and which our first parents faced in Eden. It’s temptation of the world, the flesh and the devil. And equally, Our Lady endured these temptations as well. The fact that she had consecrated her virginity to God was itself a challenge, but it was one that she triumphed, for which reason the Church doesn’t just call her a virgin but Ever Virgin, and in particular, Virgin of Virgins because of the particular victory that she had.

The greater battle that she had to face was, in fact, in the confrontation with Satan, the temptation to doubt, because that was the temptation by which Eve was overcome; she doubted God’s word. God had said, “you shall not eat of it. The day you eat of it you will die.” God was very definite and very clear on this matter but Eve doubted this, and she said to the serpent, “God said we shouldn’t eat of it. Perhaps we might die.” Our Lady likewise, at the foot of the cross, stood there, and the possibility of doubt did arise when her son expired, and His dead body was placed in her arms. What grief she must have endured. The grief that she endured was of such intensity that most of the mystics, especially those who have written about the life of Our Lady, said that if God had not kept her alive, she would have died of grief.

But that is not where the battle ended because, on Holy Saturday, no one believed He would rise from the dead. The authorities thought the body might be stolen, but they didn’t believe He would rise from the dead. The Apostles certainly did not believe. And even when He did rise, they doubted, they were skeptical.

And so, Our Lady alone believed. And all of Holy Saturday she was tormented by Satan. He was trying to seduce her into believing that Christ would not rise, that God would not keep His word, that everything that happened was but again to be played. But no, she stood manfully and she won the victory, believing firmly that her son, who is God, would rise. And rise from the dead He did, rising on that Easter Sunday. To whom else would He first appear, if not to her? Yet scripture doesn’t tell us He appeared to her, but we can be absolutely certain that He did, and she would be, of course, being the first to rejoice in the resurrection of her son, for she had been faithful up until this moment, and indeed for the rest of her life, for which reason the Church calls her Virgin Most Faithful.

Father Linus Clovis, homily on Our Lady of Akita

And now we must ask ourselves: Are we willing to respond like Nineveh? Because we are not better than Nineveh. We are witnessing corruption that is deep … systemic … and gravely evil.  

Therefore, what must we do? We must do what they did! 

And for this reason, we are launching what we are calling the Nineveh Fast.  

This is not a political effort. It is not a campaign of human solutions. It is turning to God. A cry to heaven. A recognition that what we are facing cannot be solved by human strength alone.  

This effort will begin on Friday, March 27^th, and will continue on the fourth Friday of each month, for the next eight months – for a total of nine days of fasting.  

Each of these days will be offered:  

* In reparation for grave sins – especially those committed against the innocent. 
* In petition for God’s mercy upon our nation and our world. 
* In prayer for healing for those who have suffered abuse and exploitation.
* And in supplication for the conversion of hearts – especially those in positions of influence. 

This is an invitation to all. The great and the small. The known and the unknown. Just as in Nineveh. 

How should this fast be observed? Each according to their ability. Some may undertake a stricter fast – bread and water. Others may follow the traditional practice: One full meal … and two smaller meals. And for those unable to fast from food, other sacrifices may be offered. But it must be united to prayer. 

We encourage: 
Holy Mass 
The Rosary 
The Divine Mercy Chaplet 
Eucharistic Adoration 
The Divine Office 
Spiritual reading 

Because fasting without prayer becomes only hardship.  

And for those who feel called to take part in this – you can go to NinevehNovena.org to learn more.  

Bishop Strickland