Sanctuary of Divine Mercy

The Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy first opened its Kraków house for women in the 19th century. Its unusual role in the history of Kraków’s spirituality began with St Faustina, who joined the congregation in 1925 as Helena Kowalska. She was hardworking and withdrawn and hardly stood out from others, yet it was Faustina who was endowed with the holy gift of Christ’s revelations. Christ made Faustina the ambassador and the apostle of Divine Mercy. Her visions contributed to the creation of a painting of the image of Christ known as “I trust in Jesus”, the second copy of which is now open to public contemplation in the congregation’s chapel. The mystic sister died in sanctity in 1938.

The cult of Faustina and Divine Mercy began to develop dynamically after Faustina’s beatification in 1993. The small chapel in Kraków-Łagiewniki attracted many pilgrimages and in 2000 John Paul II canonized Faustina and announced the first Sunday after Easter to be the Sunday of Divine Mercy. The growing popularity of this place of pilgrimage resulted in the expansion of the sanctuary. The newly built church was consecrated in 2002 by John Paul II and during the consecration mass the pope entrusted the whole world to Divine Mercy.
Today, the shrine attracts thousands of visitors (approximately 50 thousand in 2008) who come to pray before the painting of Jesus and the relics of the saint. It has also become the world’s largest centre of the cult of Jesus Christ.


Altar in the Sanctuary of Divine Mercy in Kraków, photo by Artur Żyrkowski

For more information about the shrine, booking group visits, lectures, mass reservations, visits to the viewing tower and the Communio Sanctorum chapel please call:
phone +48 12 252 33 11, +48 12 252 33 33, fax +48 12 263 79 97
e-mail: pielgrzymki@milosierdzie.pl

Convent Gate
pnone +48 12 266 58 59, fax +48 12 266 23 68

Reservation of accommodation, meals, conference facilities and recollections
phone +48 12 252 33 00, fax +48 12 263 79 97
e-mail: recepcja@pastorallodge.com.pl

Access:

• Public transport – trams: 8, 19, 22, 23 and 40
• By car via ul. Zakopiańska; turn right into ul. św. Faustyny (parking for cars only) or turn into ul. Turowicza and then again into ul. Motarskiego (parking for coaches); pavement access from the parking to the Basilica
• By coach – follow the road sign to the coach parking at ul. Motarskiego; the parking is linked with the Basilica with a footpath Click here to learn more about St Sister Faustina and the Shrine

• ul. Motarskiego, phone +48 12 266 23 68, +48 12 252 33 00
• ul. Turowicza 9, FUTURE Car Park Centre, phone + 48 513 777 679, +48 12 429 49 03 (office)