The Divine Mercy Chaplet

A bit of context

This is the prayer Jesus gave to St. Faustina for sinners and for the dying, asking that we offer the Father the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of His Son, and beg mercy for the whole world.

You pray it on an ordinary set of rosary beads, and it takes only about seven minutes, but do not let its simplicity fool you, because Jesus attached great promises to it, especially for souls who are dying and for the hardest cases, the ones who seem furthest from Him. Many people pray it for a loved one who has wandered, or at the bedside of someone near death.

You do not need to feel anything, you only need to show up and trust.

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Let's Pray

Take your rosary beads and find a quiet place, and we will go slowly.

1. Begin with the Sign of the Cross. 

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2. An opening prayer, if you wish. 

You can begin by praying these words three times: O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of mercy for us, I trust in You.

3. On the first beads, pray the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Creed.

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come;

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us;

and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou amongst women,

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,

now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth,

and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

born of the Virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died and was buried;

He descended into hell;

on the third day He rose again from the dead;

He ascended into heaven,

and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;

from there He will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

4. On each large bead, offer the Son to the Father.

There are five large beads, one before each set of ten. On each one, pray: Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.

5. On each of the ten small beads, ask for mercy.

For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

6. Repeat for all five decades. 

One large bead, then ten small beads, five times around. Let the words carry you, and if your mind wanders, just come back, because that is not failure, that is prayer.

7. To close, pray three times: 

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

8. Rest for a moment. 

Before you get up, name the person or the need you carried into this prayer, hand them to Him, and then go in peace.