How Miracles spread: St. Faustina to St. John Paul to Us

After being shot and miraculously surviving, St. John Paul the Great was among the first to read the newly edited and approved “Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska” as well as the sealed secrets of Fatima.

Faustina wasn’t yet officially a saint when John Paul read her full diary but he knew of her soon after her death when he was a young university student and as a chemical worker during World War II. As a bishop in the 1960s, he initiated the investigation into her cause for sainthood and as Pope, he would make her the first saint of the 21st century.

The three word Gospel from Jesus: At her former convent during the worst of World War II, Wojtyla first saw the Divine Mercy Image that Jesus Himself asked Faustina to commission along with the three words He wanted the world to know: “Jezu Ufam Tobie,” or “Jesus, I Trust in You.”

A young John Paul prayed there for answers and today that convent is the Divine Mercy Sanctuary and next door is the John Paul II Center where his work is honored and studied by people from around the world.

Catholic scholars believe St. Faustina foresaw the rise of John Paul as she spoke with Jesus, writing: ““As I was praying for Poland, I heard the words: ‘I bear a special love for Poland, and if she will be obedient to My will, I will exalt…