The visual message of the proclamation of Divine mercy a challenge for the sensitivity of modern man

The image of the Divine mercy is a visual message of the Divine mercy proclamation and a concrete challenge to the sensitivity of modern man. The image of the Merciful Jesus is one of the most globally recognised religious representations of the 20th and 21st centuries and one of the most important elements of the cult of Divine mercy having its origin in the revelations of Sister Faustina Kowalska. The first Divine mercy painting was made in Vilna in 1934 by Eugeniusz Kazimirowski. Over the years of the twentieth century, many artists have attempted the not easy task of painting the image of the Merciful Jesus. Among the essential components of the image that Blessed Rev. Michael Sopoćko mentioned are the rays, the gaze, the signature “Jesus I trust in You”, the arrangement of the figures and the background. In the Divine mercy devotion, the image fulfills a dual role, assigned to it by Jesus Himself. The first as a vessel with which people can draw graces from the sources of mercy and as instruments through which Jesus Himself grants graces. The second role of the image was defined by Jesus as a sign reminding people of the demand to trust and do mercy. Today’s man, living in a world so dominated by consumerism, individualism and virtual reality, often experiences a weakened sensitivity to the needs of others. In this context, works of mercy as to the body and as to the soul become a special challenge for him. This has been repeatedly reminded by the last three Popes – St John Paul II, Bene­dict XVI and Francis – when visiting the Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Krakow’s Łagiewniki and praying before the grace-famous image of the Merciful Jesus.