Charisma Merciful Gaze
While he was contemplating in prayer the face of Our Lady, Father Alexandre saw in his heart two tears flowing from the eyes of the Virgin.
At that moment, he understood that one of the tears represented Our Lady’s suffering for the priests who are lost in their vocation, and the other tear represented Mary’s suffering for the families, that face so many divisions and problems nowadays. This is how the charisma of the Merciful Gaze was defined: to go out of judgment to love, taking care and defending priests and families through the Works of Mercy.
Priests are a gift from the Heart of Jesus and their callingcomes from His Heart. The task of taking care of priests was given to Mary through the person of Saint John, The Evangelist. Like Our Lady, The Merciful Gaze member serves, defends and takes care of those who have received the Sacrament of Holy Orders.
The family, which is an extension of the Sacrament of Matrimony, has been attacked and faced several tests by social and cultural changes recently.
A lot of families are still faithfull to the values and teaching of the Catholic Church. The members of Merciful Gaze Community help not only by praying for them but also through the Works of Mercy.
The images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Merciful Jesus were chosen by Father Alexandre, as these images represent the charisma and the motto of the Community: Jesus’s Mercy through Mary.
Our Lady of Guadalupe’s presence is shown not only in Father Alexandre’s life, but also in the charisma and lives of all the members of Olhar Misericordioso. Five centuries ago Mary has expressed Her Maternal Love, on the image that was miraculously painted on the cloak of the indian Juan Diego.
The image of Merciful Jesus symbolizes the Mercy of God towards all His children. Jesus asked Saint Faustina Kowalska to venerate His Mercy through the image’s representation, which is the Risen Christ bringing peace to all men through His Passion and Death on the Cross.
The members of Merciful Gaze, carry a sign as a form of their belonging to the community. The sign is a medal that shows on one side the face of Our Lady of Guadalupe,and on the other side the painting of Merciful Jesus. Convenant members wear a black cord and life members wear a white cord.
The Community is centered on the merciful gaze of Mary, Who throughout Her life was enveloped by the Gaze of Jesus. In a special way, Mary saw the Heart of Her Son pierced by the lance on the Cross and from it flowed Blood and Water, which are sources of salvation. Therefore, each member of Olhar Misericordioso becomes a missionary of the Mercy of Jesus, imersed in the Gaze of Mary Most Holy. Thus the motto of the Community is: All for Jesus, nothing without Mary.
Members of Olhar Misericordioso’sfamily seek to reflect the kindness and mercy of Jesus and Mary. The members are recognized by their gentle and merciful love.
Devotions
The Sacred Heart of Jesus and The Immaculated Heart of Mary
In His Apparitions to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, Jesus revealed His burning desire to save sinners. He asked Saint Margaret to institute a Liturgical Feast to honor Him. Jesus also asked her to offer The Holy Eucharistic Communion in reparation for the offenses commited against the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This Holy Eucharistic Communion should take place every first Friday of each month during nine months. After the Saint’s death in 1690, this devotion was spread all over the world.
This devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was encouraged by countless saints and also in the apparitions in Fatima. The Angel of Portugal in his three apparitions to the little shepards Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco, mentioned clearly the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Angel told them: “The Hearts of Jesus and Mary are attentive to the voice of your supplications”.
After the apparitions of Fatima, the devotion to The Immaculate Heart of Mary was joined to the devotion of The Sacred Heart of Jesus, and was honored throughout the world.
On December 10, 1925, in Spain, Our Lady revealed to Sister Lucia, the devotion of first five Saturdays Holy Eucharistic Communion, in reparation for the offenses commited also against The Immaculated Heart of Mary.
It is impossible to truly love The Sacred Heart of Jesus if I do not love The Immaculate Heart of Mary. On the Miraculous Medal presented by the Virgin Mary to Saint Catherine Labouré – the two Hearts are engraved on the reverse side: The Heart of Jesus surrounded by thorns and The Heart of Mary pierced by a sword.
These two hearts will always remain united and it is impossible to consider them separately. Through The Immaculate Heart of Virgin Mary, the members of Olhar Misericordioso immerse their lives, their sufferings, their joys and the challenges of the mission God enthrusted to them in the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The Divine Mercy
Características
Immersed in the unfanthanoble mystery of God’s Mercy, through Mary’s Merciful Gaze, the members of the Community Merciful Gaze will be part of f the Church by helping their brothers and sisters through prayers, words and works of mercy.
The devotion to the Divine Mercy is deeply related to the devotion of The Sacred Heart of Jesus. “The essence of the devotion to God’s Mercy consists in a Christian attitude of trust toward God and of an active love for one’s neighbour “Our Lord said: I desire trust from My creatures.”(Diary of Saint Faustina no 1059)
Jesus asks Saint Faustina for Works of Mercy, through actions, words and prayers. ““I require you to make acts of mercy, which are to come from your love for Me. You are always and everywhere to show mercy unto your neighbours; you may not withdraw, excuse or absolve yourself from this.” (Diary of Saint Faustina no 742).
Jesus further asks Saint Faustina to request from His devotees to fulfill each day at least one act of love . Spreading the devotion of The Divine Mercy does not require-many words but an attitude of faith and trust in God.
Even though is a very simple Diary, it helps Christians to get closer to the unexplained mystery of Christ’s Love. We find in Saint Faustina’s Diary the following form of worship the Divine Mercy.
The Image of the Merciful Jesus
The painting of The Merciful Jesus is seen as image of The Divine Mercy. This image is also a sign to remind us our Christian duty to trust God and love our neighboor.
Jesus tells Saint Faustina in her diary these words: “By means of this image I shall grant many graces to souls. It is to be a reminder of the demands of My Mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works” (Diary of Saint Faustina no 742).
“The two rays denote Blood and Water. The pale ray stands for the Water which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for the Blood which is the life of souls…These rays shield souls from the wrath of My Father. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter.” (Diary of Saint Faustina no 299).
The soul is purified by the Sacraments of Baptism and Reconciliation, while the Eucharist nourishes it abundantly: the two rays signly the Sacraments and all the Graces of the Holy Spirit Whose Biblical symbol is water, and also the New Convenant of God with men, in the Blood of Christ.
Feast of Mercy
-“I desire that there be a Feast of Mercy” .(Diary of Saint Faustina no 49).
The Feast of Mercy occupies a privileged place among all forms of devotion. It is celebrated on Sunday right after Easter Sunday. It reveals the profound theological meaning that exists between the Paschal Mystery and the Mystery of God’s Mercy. At the request of Jesus, the Novena to the Divine Mercy begins on Good Friday and ends on Saturday before the Mercy Sunday Feast.
The Divine Mercy Rosary
Those who pray the Rosary offer the Almighty Father the Body , Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ in attonement for all mankind’s sins by uniting themselves in Jesus’s Sacrifice. In this prayer they call for mercy for themselves and for the whole world, and by doing so they also perform a Work of Mercy.( Diary of Saint Faustina no754)
The Hour of Mercy
Jesus asked Saint Faustina to venerate the hour of His Holy Death by saying the following: “I remind you, My daughter, that as often as you hear the clock strike the third hour, immerse yourself completely in My mercy, adoring and glorifying it; invoke its omnipotence for the whole world, and particularly for poor sinners; for at that moment mercy was opened wide for every soul. In this hour you can obtain everything for yourself and for others for the asking; it was the hour of grace for the whole world-mercy triumphed over justice. “ (Diary of Saint Faustina no1572).
In the preface of Saint Faustina’s Diary, she says that in the Far East they have even built watches in which 3 o´clock in the afternoon is marked in a special way . Thus reminding the faithful of the hour of Christ’s death on the Cross , and calling their attention to the “ Great Hour of Mercy”.
