Turn to any page of St. Faustina's Diary, and you'll find spiritual gems. Like this one:[W]hen I took off the cover to let the potatoes steam off, I saw there in the pot, in the place of the potatoes, whole bunches of red roses, beautiful beyond description. (65)

On this feast of St. Padre Pio, the Church reminds us of one of the most beloved saints of modern times, a humble Capuchin friar marked by extraordinary gifts, suffering, and faith. Fr. Chris Alar reflects on today’s Gospel (Luke 8:19–21), where Jesus tells us that His true family are those who “hear the word of God and act on it.” Few lived this more radically than Padre Pio.

The pinnacle of God's gift of mercy is Divine Mercy Sunday, the very feast that Christ Himself wanted to establish on the Sunday after Easter. Although St. Faustina recorded this in her diary during the 1930s, the feast itself was not officially recognized in the Church until the year 2000 by Pope St. John Paul II.Father Donald Calloway, MIC, explains the promises of this extraordinary feast.