“[Let] the greatest sinners place their trust in My mercy. They have the right before others to trust in the abyss of My mercy. My daughter, write about My mercy towards tormented souls. Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me. To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask. I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion, but on the contrary, I justify him in My unfathomable and inscrutable mercy. Write: before I come as a just Judge, I first open wide the door of My mercy. He who refuses to pass through the door of My mercy must pass through the door of My justice…” -Jesus, in private revelation given to Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (Diary #1146)
“When once I asked the Lord Jesus how He could tolerate so many sins and crimes and not punish them, the Lord answered me, ‘I have eternity for punishing [these], and so I am prolonging the time of mercy for the sake of [sinners]. But woe to them if they do not recognize this time of My visitation. My daughter, secretary of My mercy, your duty is not only to write about and proclaim My mercy, but also to beg for this grace for them, so that they too may glorify My mercy.’ ” -Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (Diary #1160)
“Let us love Jesus for His divine greatness, for His power in Heaven and on earth, for His infinite merits, but also and above all out of gratitude. Had He not been so good towards us but more severe, how much less we would have sinned! But when sin is followed by profound sorrow, with an honest resolution of never sinning again, an intense understanding of the great pain we have given to the mercy of God; when having rent the hardest fibers of our hearts we manage to shed scalding tears of repentance and love, then, my son, the sin itself becomes a stepping-stone which brings us closer, which raises us up, which leads us to Him more securely.” –Saint Padre Pio
“The long-suffering and patience of God our most merciful Father towards mankind, is admirable indeed, far surpassing that of masters towards their servants, nay, that of parents towards their children, though both are men, and sprung from the same original. And first, God is long-suffering towards offenders, waiting for their amendment with incredible patience; sometimes bearing from the spring of their youth, to the winter of old age, the violation of His Laws, and the rending of His Name in pieces; and all this whole, showering down His blessings upon them from Heaven, giving them rain and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness, as the Apostle writes (cf. Acts 14:17). And what master, or parent, is there amongst men, so meek and gentle, who, feeling himself contemn’d and affronted days without number, by a son or servant, would not at last discard them? But the mercifulness of God is not overcome by the malice of men, but He still exercises patience, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance, as St. Peter affirms in his second epistle (cf. 2 Peter 3:9).” -Saint Robert Bellarmine (“Steps of Ascension to God”, The Fourteenth Step)
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of My heavenly Father. What is your opinion? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the nintety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray. In just the same way, it is not the Will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.” (Matthew 18:10-14)
“For there are three ways of performing an act of mercy: the merciful word, by forgiving and by comforting; secondly, if you can offer no word, then pray—that too is mercy; and thirdly, deeds of mercy. And when the Last Day comes, we shall be judged from this, and on this basis we shall receive the eternal verdict.” -Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (Diary #1158)
