The Most Famous Portrait of Jesus Found

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Wait! What? The original image of the Divine Mercy—the one that St. Faustina had commissioned was found, and it’s in Vilnius, Lithuania?

Shrine in Vilnius

The Divine Mercy Shrine in Vilnius. Photo credit: Springtime productions, LLC.

I had always assumed that the widely-known image of the Divine Mercy by Adolf Hyla, which hangs above the tomb of Saint Faustina in the Divine Mercy Shrine in Kraków, Poland, was the original painting. It turns out it’s not, and a new documentary The Original Image of the Divine Mercy by Daniel diSilva takes viewers on a fascinating mission to discover why the original image was hidden away for so long.

Sr. Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938)

In 1925, Maria Faustina Kowalska joined the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Warsaw. Sr. Faustina experienced visions from Christ, and the bulk of her visions took place in her cell in small convent house in Vilnius. In one of her visions, Christ instructed Sr. Faustina to paint a picture of him to represent His Divine Mercy. Sr. Faustina tried to paint what she had seen in a vision, but she was unable. In the confessional, sometime in 1933, she revealed her vision to her confessor, Fr. Michal Sopocko (who is now a blessed).

“In the evening, when I was in my cell, I saw the Lord Jesus clothed in a white garment. One hand raised in the gesture of blessing, the other was touching the garment at the breast. From beneath the garment, slightly drawn aside at the breast, there were emanating two large rays, one red, the other pale. In silence I kept my gaze fixed on the Lord; my soul was struck with awe, but also with great joy. After a while, Jesus said to me, paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the signature: Jesus, I trust in You. I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel, and throughout the world. I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish. ... 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. ... By means of this image I will grant many graces to souls" (Diary, 47-48, 327, and 742).

Sr. Faustina asked Fr. Sopocko to help her find an artist. Before moving forward, he had Sr. Faustina evaluated by a psychiatrist and consulted with her superiors. After Fr. Sopocko determined Sr. Faustina was of sound mind, he found an artist that was willing to paint Sr. Faustina’s vision.

Eugeniusz Kazimirowski didn’t know what he was in for when he agreed to paint the Divine Mercy, considering Sr. Faustina was asking him to paint her vision of God. After several months, the original painting was completed (1935), however, the Divine Mercy devotion was yet to be approved by the Vatican. This would happen in 2000 with the canonization of Sr. Faustina by Pope John Paul II.

How the Film was Born

On Set at the Lithuanian Embassy to the vatican in Rome2

Daniel diSilva, director. Photo credit: Springtime productions, LLC.

Daniel diSilva, the director of The Original Image of the Divine Mercy, was compelled to make this film after hearing of the painting’s controversial history. The relic was neglected, abandoned more than once, and nuns even risked arrest to retrieve it. Then, for two years the original painting was some two doors down from Vilnius' Divine Mercy Shrine, but the priests at the shrine were unable to move it. Now, this is a mystery worth knowing about! 

The Documentary

Consequently, Daniel diSilva, along with his production team, traveled throughout Europe in search of the untold story of the original painting—and also to the United States, seeking out the meaning of the mercy. Their mission was to uncover why other renderings of the Divine Mercy image became renowned while the original image remains in obscurity, why this painting is the most faithful rending of Sr. Faustina’s vision, and how it fits into the Year of Mercy.

The film reads like a who’s who of Catholics with commentary from Bishop Robert Barron, Fr. Dwight Longenecker, George Weigel, Christoph Cardinal Schönborn of Vienna, Stanisław Cardinal Dziwisz of Kraków, and even musician Harry Connick Jr. and Catholic comedian Jim Gaffigan to name some.

Bildschirmfoto 2015-06-17 um 17.55.15

The Film Will Propagate the Message

I think audiences will like The Original Divine Mercy Image because it's an intriguing and artistically made documentary. It never lost my attention. I also think people will leave this film wanting to know more about Sr. Faustina, the image, and the devotion. However, some viewers may be frustrated with the many unanswered questions that the film is riddled with. This is partly because those in the know are unwilling to “kick up dust,” as diSilva says or because they are unable [Look for my interview with diSilva in Catholic Digest this summer].

diSilva is currently writing a book and because he won't be under contractual constraints, he plans to flesh out all of the details he was unable to put in his film.

See where the film is being shown or bring it to your church or theater.

Watch the film's trailer:

Learn about the Divine Mercy Devotion, Divine Mercy chaplet and the novena that starts on Good Friday.

Update: Now available on DVD.

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