“From the Archives” The Divine Mercy Image in the Basilica
The distinctive, large image of the Divine Mercy hanging on the wall of the confessional in the north transept of the Basilica of Saint Mary is the Vilnius image of the Divine Mercy, created in 1934 by the Polish artist Eugene Kazimirowski. It is the only image painted under the direction of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, the Apostle of Divine Mercy. The original painting currently hangs in the cathedral in Vilnius, Lithuania.
The Basilica’s Divine Mercy print was donated in 2005 by parishioners Lynne and Harry Dolton and Mary and Jeffrey Petrino. They worked closely with Father John Melmer, then parochial vicar at Saint Mary, on its size, framing and location. The canvas print was obtained during a visit by the Petrinos to the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, MA. It is a special glicee print made by the Marian Press (run by the Association of Marian Helpers) in Stockbridge. Before it was framed, the print was blessed in Stockbridge by Father Seraphim Michalenko, MIC, the great advocate of the Divine Mercy devotion and vice-postulator of the cause for Saint Maria Faustina.
Our framed Divine Mercy also has a strong link to Saint Mary parishioner Noelle Hammad, a “stalwart of the Faith,” according to former pastor Father Dennis Kleinmann. She was very dedicated to the Divine Mercy devotion and coordinated and organized our annual Holy Hour on Divine Mercy Sunday. After a long illness, Noelle died in December 2005. Providentially, she died the day after the donated image of the Divine Mercy was installed at Saint Mary.
“It seemed as if she had been waiting for this,” wrote Father Kleinmann in his bulletin column. “She truly found consolation in the love, mercy and grace of God.”
– Diane Maple, Bulletin Editor
In 2020, to commemorate the 225th anniversary of our parish, we started “From the Archives” as a weekly feature online and in our bulletin to spotlight the history of Saint Mary’s. Due to its popularity, we are continuing the series in 2021. An archive of the features is located here.