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THE STORY OF IMAGE OF MERCIFUL JESUS

The house in which the first image of Merciful Jesus was painted In the distance,
there is a church converted by the soviet authorities into a prison, which remained in operation until 2008.

Fr Sopocko commissioned the image of Merciful Jesus at the beginning of 1934 to be painted
by a Vilnius artist, Prof. E. Kazimirowski. His apartment and studio were in the same building
where Fr Sopocko lived. During the whole period when the picture was being painted,
Sister Faustina would visit the studio and give details of the image. Fr Sopocko personally saw
to it that the image was painted exactly as she instructed. He fitted the size of the canvas on which he commissioned the image to the old frame he got from one of the parishioners. The painting process took about half a year, and when the image was ready, Fr Sopocko wanted to make sure
it was placed properly. So he requested sister Faustina to ask Jesus: (see Fr Sopocko Memoirs).

"Once, my confessor (Father Sopocko) asked me where the inscription should be placed, because there was not enough space in the picture for everything. I said I would pray and give him an answer the following week. When I left the confessional and was passing before the Blessed Sacrament, I received an inner understanding about the inscription. Jesus reminded me of what He had told me the first time, namely, that these words must be clearly in evidence: Jesus, I trust in You" (Diary, 327).

"Paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the signature:
Jesus, I trust in You" (Diary, 47).

"I am offering people a vessel with which they are to keep coming for graces
to the fountain of mercy. That vessel is this image with the signature:
Jesus, I trust in You" (Diary, 327).

This inscription, which is an important part of the cult to the Divine Mercy, was written on a separate panel by Fr Sopocko and placed in the bottom part of the picture’s frame. Then, as Our Lord Jesus explicitly ordered through Sister Faustina, Fr Sopocko began making efforts to place the image
in St Michael’s Church in Vilnius, where he held the post of rector.

As a result, on April 4th 1937, with the consent of Metropolitan Archbishop of Vilnius,
Romuald Jałbrzykowski, the painting of the Most Merciful Saviour, after it had been positively reviewed by experts, was hung next to the high altar in St. Michael’s Church, where it was worshipped by the faithful for eleven years.
A second expert committee set up on the Archbishop’s order stated that “the image is painted
in an artistic manner and is a valuable contribution to contemporary religious art".
(The Commission’s Report about the assessment and conservation of the image of the Most Merciful Saviour in St. Michael’s Church in Vilnius as of May 27th, 1941, signed by the following experts: Professor of History of Art, M. Morelowski, Professor of Dogmatics Fr L. Puchaty, and conservator
Fr P. Śledziewski, PhD) (see Fr Sopocko Memoirs).

The Image in St Michael’s Church (1937-1948)

In 1948, after St Michael’s Church had been closed by the soviet authorities, the painting
(without the frame and inscription) was secretly and illegally bought from a Lithuanian
worker who was removing the temple’s furnishings. The purchase was made by two women
(a Pole and a Lithuanian) who were well aware of the possible consequences they could suffer
from the soviet authorities. They took the rolled-up painting out of the church and hid it for some time in the attic to avoid danger.
Later on, they passed the painting to the Church of the Holy Ghost, where all the moveable
property from the closed church was deposited. The parish priest of the Church of the Holy Ghost,
the Rev Jan Ellert was not interested in keeping the image. Hence, in 1949, it was taken
by the Rev Jozef Grasewicz, a friend of Fr Sopocko (who was taking care of the image behind
the scenes) to a parish in Nowa Ruda. Despite many changes in the Church administration,
the painting remained in Nowa Ruda for about forty years.

The painting in Nowa Ruda, present-day Belarus (1949-1986)

In 1970, the local communist authorities in Nowa Ruda decided to convert the church into
a warehouse. However, the painting remained in the desolate church, and that for a seemingly trivial reason: it was hung in a high place and the ladder was not long enough. Fr Sopocko
was then in Poland and could not return to Lithuania. As he was deeply concerned about the image, he asked the Rev Grasewicz to move it to a different, safer place. His confidential request to place the painting in the Gate of Dawn in Vilnius, where it was displayed to the public for the first time,
did not reach the Rev Grasewicz until 1982 (after the death of Fr Sopocko). At that time, the vicar
at the Gate of Dawn was the Rev Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, who deemed that idea unfeasible
and proposed that the painting be placed in the Church of the Holy Ghost, the Rev Aleksander Kaszkiewicz being its parish priest. The Rev Kaszkiewicz was initially unwilling to comply,
but eventually agreed to hang the picture in the Church of the Holy Ghost.

One November night in 1986, the picture in Nowa Ruda was secretly replaced with a copy that had been prepared beforehand, so as not to draw the attention of the communists. With the assistance
of some Sisters of the Mother of Mercy (from the Gate of Dawn), the canvas was removed from
the stretcher, rolled up and, the same night, taken first to Grodno, and then to the Church
of the Holy Ghost in Vilnius.

In the Church of the Holy Ghost the Rev Kaszkiewicz commissioned the restoration of the image
and the defects were painted over. This substantially changed the image of Jesus’ face,
and a red inscription “JESUS, I TRUST IN YOU” was added. Moreover, in order to fit the painting
to the recess in the altar, the bottom of the image was folded-up, and an oval part was added
at the top.

Those changes considerably diverged from the artistic composition of the image made by Prof. Kazimirowski in collaboration with sister Faustina and Fr Sopocko. It was a drastic
interference, which substantially lowered the value of the painting.

The image in the Church of the Holy Ghost in Vilnius (1987-2005)
before and after the restoration

During the conservation works in 2003, the original form of the picture was reconstructed.
The painting was thoroughly restored and remained in the Church of the Holy Ghost until
September 2005. This church is the parish church for the Polish people who live in Vilnius.
Holy Masses and other services are said there only in Polish.

At the beginning of 2004, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Vilnius decided to move the image
of Merciful Jesus to a small church nearby, which was being converted into a Divine Mercy Shrine. The temple was supposed to become a place of adoration and prayer for the worshippers
of the Divine Mercy, irrespective of their nationality. The prayer services in the shrine were
entrusted to the Congregation of the Sisters of Merciful Jesus, who had already fulfilled this
function in the Church of the Holy Ghost.
People in the Parish of the Holy Ghost felt emotionally attached to the image and did not accept
the Archbishop’s decision, so they tried to keep the picture, protesting day and night for seventeen months. The reason for their protest was the fact that the proposed temple was small and located
in an inconvenient place, and thus it could not provide enough room for every worshipper
of the Divine Mercy in Vilnius to pray.
What is more, there are many other large and beautiful churches in Vilnius. The protesting people asked the Vilnius Archbishop to change his decision – declaring that they would agree to moving
the image of Merciful Jesus to St. Michael’s Church, where in 1937 it was placed following
the Lord Jesus’ direct instructions, which were revealed through sister Faustina.
In spite of that, without any attempt to reach agreement with the protesting people and without appropriate liturgical ceremony, the painting of Merciful Jesus was suddenly taken away.

On April 18th, 2004, the day of the Divine Mercy, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Vilnius,
Cardinal Audrys Juozas Backis re-consecrated the renewed Church of the Holy Trinity in Vilnius
as a Shrine of the Divine Mercy. In September 2005, the first image of Merciful Jesus was placed there. Now all the services, including weddings and baptisms are offered there, as in any
other church.

DIVINE MERCY SHRINE
12 Dominikonu St, Vilnius.

The Vilnius Metropolitan Archbishop chose the house in which the first image of Merciful Jesus
had been painted to be the Convent of the Congregation of Sisters of Merciful Jesus. The house,
due to generous donations, was adopted to meet the needs of the Congregation.

The house in which the first image of Merciful Jesus was painted
Now it serves as a CONVENT OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE SISTERS OF MERCIFUL JESUS.
6 Rasu St, Vilnius.

The Congregation of Sisters of Merciful Jesus was established by Blessed Michal Sopocko
and is a multinational community which pursues its charisma of proclaiming the Divine Mercy
and imploring God to grant it to the world through word, deed, and prayer in 36 convents.
The Congregation was established in 1941 in Vilnius, in accordance with the will of the Lord
Jesus revealed to sister Faustina. In 2008, the Congregation was approved as a religious order
under Papal Law. (see Congregation).

In June 1935 in Vilnius Sister Faustina wrote in her Diary:

“God demands that there be a Congregation which will proclaim the mercy of God to the world and, by its prayers, obtain it for the world" (Diary, 436).

“I desire that there be such a Congregation” (Diary, 437).

THE CONSERVATION OF THE PAINTING

The first image of Merciful Jesus which was placed on a side altar at the Church of the Holy Ghost
in Vilnius in 1987 did not draw much attention from either pilgrims or the Church authorities.
The lack of proper conditions for exposition of the image added to the further disadvantageous changes in its physical substance. It was not until July 2001 that, upon the consent of Fr Miroslaw Grabowski, the parish priest of the Church of the Holy Ghost, the Congregation of the Sisters
of Merciful Christ were able to establish a new place, accepted by the Vilnius Curia, and take
proper care of this exceptional and invaluable painting.
For many years now the congregation has been trying to promote the first image of Merciful Jesus, the one which was painted in the aura of God’s true miracle – the prayer and suffering
of St Faustina, her presence and collaboration.
Thanks to the Sisters’ efforts and devotion, in April 2003 a thorough restoration of the painting
was made in the chapel of the Sisters’ convent in Vilnius. All the repainted areas and stains (resulting from moisture and attempts at chemical cleaning) were removed and all defects were repaired. As a result of this restoration, the original image of Merciful Jesus was reconstructed.

Some of the defects in the canvas on which the image was painted could not be removed
in any other way than by applying patches glued to the canvas on the underside. This concerned
the marks of the multiple removal of the canvas off the stretcher (nail holes) and the 4 cm
of the bottom part that was folded up (in order to fit the painting to the relief in the altar
in the Church of the Holy Ghost). Those defects, though they are invisible upon the picture presentation, constitute some of the characteristic features of the painting.

The folded-up bottom stripe
(One can see the nail holes which were made in the process of changing the stretchers)

On the initiative of the organizers and sponsors of the 2003 conservation works (see Copy of agreement) – the Foundation of the Apostles of Merciful Jesus in Łódź – in March 2004 in the Church
of the Holy Ghost a professional photographic session of the painting was held.
Since that time, photocopies of 20 cm slides of the first image of Merciful Jesus have been
distributed for public evangelization (see High resolution images for printing).

“By means of this Image I shall be granting many graces,
so may every soul have access to it" (Diary, 570).

PHOTOGRAPHIC DOCUMENTATION

Part of the painting before the restoration	Removal of the extra paint layers from the parts of the painting
After the removal of extra paint layers from the repainted areas	Part of the painting after the restoration

The painting before the restoration	After the removal of extra paint layers from the repainted areas

The painting after the restoration

Removal of the extra paint layers from the parts of the painting which had been altered

Courtesy of the conservator’s archive from 2003

Despite the thorough restoration, the condition of the painting remains considerably impaired.
It should be displayed in adequate conditions following the conservator’s advice. The restoration was conducted by Ms Edyta Hankowska-Czerwinska of Wloclawek, e-mail: edycja@autograf.pl,
art conservator, graduate of the Art Department of the Copernicus University of Torun.

On August 3rd, 2009 in the Divine Mercy Shrine, Vilnius conservator Edyta Hankowska-Czerwinska conducted a periodic check-up of the condition of the painting. She found it to be good and stated that the picture did not require any conservation.

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