The Diocese of La Crosse is in the midst of holding a Divine Mercy Novena that will end on Divine Mercy Sunday.

A little more than halfway through the nine-day prayer service, Tuesday’s session was dedicated to those who have fallen away from the Church.

"Today bring to Me the Souls of those who have separated themselves from My Church, and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy,” the diocese posted online, quoting the guidance for the day's prayer. “During My bitter Passion, they tore at My Body and Heart, that is, My Church. As they return to unity with the Church My wounds heal and in this way they alleviate My Passion.” 

The post went on to ask Jesus and the Eternal Father to have mercy on those who have, for whatever reason, turned their backs on the Church and asked that the fallen be guided back into the fold, with one part reading: "Most Merciful Jesus, Goodness Itself, You do not refuse light to those who seek it of You."

Divine Mercy Sunday celebrates God's love for us, a love that has been revealed through Scripture and in the writings of the saints. 

In the 1930s, as mankind was experiencing an “eclipse of the sense of God," Jesus appeared to St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, a Polish nun, according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Jesus emphasized mankind's need for the message of Divine Mercy and implored, at least 14 times, the establishment of a Feast of Mercy (Divine Mercy Sunday).

St. Faustina recounted these messages in her diary, the bishops council says. In one entry, she wrote His words as follows: "My daughter, tell the whole world about My inconceivable mercy. [...] It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.” 

The feast day offers a renewal of baptismal promises and a cleansing from sin, The Divine Mercy says. Jesus told St. Faustina that in preparation for a Feast of Mercy, the faithful should make a complete Confession, and then should receive Holy Communion on the feast day itself. 

St. Faustina subsequently instituted the Divine Mercy Chaplet. The Divine Mercy describes the prayer as one that follows the pattern of the Rosary, but on the "Our Father" beads, pray instead: "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." On the "Hail Mary" beads, pray instead: "For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.”