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The miraculous story of the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Sagar (India)
Sagar is a mission diocese in the central Indian State of Madhya Pradesh. It has an area of 40,000 km. Six million people, mostly Hindus, live here. The Catholic population is less than 3,900. In 2006 Pope Benedict XVI elected Monsignor Anthony Chirayath as its third bishop. The newly appointed Bishop Chirayath found his diocese devoid of minimum infrastructure for his priests, sisters and the Catholics. To remedy this precarious situation he decided to go on mission appeal to Europe and to the United States.
In the beginning of October 2007 Bishop Chirayath flew to San Francisco. In the evening of Friday 5th October he was guest of Joseph Martin (name changed). At 9 p.m. he was working on his laptop perusing through his email and suddenly something happened to him. For some moments his mind went blank. Divine Mercy then appeared to him and told him that he must build a shrine to Divine Mercy in his diocese. Then he saw thousands of devotees flocking to the feet of Divine Mercy and Him blessing them. Never before had he thought about Divine Mercy. Humanly speaking there was no reason to connect him to Divine Mercy. He said he was not dreaming because it was only 9 p.m. and he was working on his computer. But it was a very possessive thought. He did not share it with anyone that evening.
Next morning, Saturday 6th October, he flew from San Francisco to Sioux Falls. At 10 am, during a stopover in Minneapolis - St. Paul International Airport, as soon as he activated his cell phone, a man totally stranger to him, never heard of him, never seen him, called him from 1500 km. away in Charlotte in North Carolina, to his mobile phone and asked to speak to the Bishop of Sagar, because he had an urgent message for him. The man on the other end said that his name was Joseph. He said that the previous evening at 9 O’clock he was praying to Divine Mercy and he had a vision of a Shrine of Divine Mercy in Sagar. He saw thousands of people going to this shrine to get the blessings of Divine Mercy.
Bishop was speechless. He recollected his experience of the previous evening at 9 O’clock. Bishop Chirayath asked him “How could this be? This cell phone number is strictly personal known only to a handful of people. Bishop told him: I do not know you. I have not seen you, nor heard of you and where did you get my telephone number?” He then explained to him how he got his mobile number. Bishop told him then what had happened to him on the previous evening at 9 O’clock.
But the man from Charlotte continued to say that his vision was so vivid, that the shrine was there, people were going there to this shrine and they were getting the blessings of Jesus. Bishop told him then that even to build a small Shrine he needed a little money. The man asked how much money you need. Bishop said the he needed at least 3000 dollars to build a small Shrine, very small one. The man told the bishop: “I will send you right now 5000 dollars and if you need more money I will give you, but do not stop the project, it has to be realized. God is with you. You must realize this project”. Next day the bishop received from him through a wire transfer 5000 dollars.
That was not enough. On the fourth day, i.e. on 9th morning, the bishop gets an email from Fr. Robin Devassy Pullokkaran stationed in Khajuria, a priest of his diocese who wrote to him saying that he heard from Fr. Bobby Emprayil VC, a visitor to Khajuria speaking to Fr. Denny Pandimattam VC about a vision he had on the previous night about a Shrine of Divine Mercy that would come up in Khajuria. Fr. Bobby said that the shrine was attracting thousands of people to receive the blessings of Jesus. Three days the same vision to three different people totally strangers to each other living in continents apart worried the bishop.
Before returning to India Bishop Chirayath went to visit the National Shrine to Divine Mercy in Stockbridge (MA), in the United States. It was a Friday 26th October. Fr. Anthony Gramlich MIC, Rector of the Shrine, invited him to celebrate the 2.00pm Mass for pilgrims. In his homily the bishop shared with the congregation his experience of Friday 5th October. They all were wonder struck. Before the final blessing the Rector of the Shrine stood up and told the congregation that he has something to add to what the bishop said during the homily. He said that Friday 5th October, when the bishop had the mystical experience of Divine Mercy, was the feast of St. Faustina, which the bishop did not know till that moment. After the Mass Fr. Gramlich gifted him a six feet picture of Divine Mercy printed on canvas with copyright to reproduce it. This miraculous picture is enshrined in the Adoration Chapel of the shrine in Khajuria.
Soon after the bishop’s return to his diocese, the clergy had their annual retreat in Khajuria, which was directed by Fr. Augustine Mundakkatt VC, who centered his conferences on the devotion to Divine Mercy. In this way he prepared the whole diocese - all the clergy first of all - in the devotion to Divine Mercy. The sequence of the visions of Divine Mercy to three people convinced the bishop to erect a shrine. He inaugurated the shrine On November 9, 2007 in an existing small chapel in the village of Khajuria in the Diocese of Sagar. The shrine was named Dayasagar, which means Ocean of Mercy (Daya = Mercy, Sagar = Ocean, Sagar also name of the diocese). Dayasagar is another name in Hindi given in the Bible for Merciful Jesus. On that day in the presence of almost all the priests of the diocese and very many Sisters and lay faithful Bishop Chirayath dedicated his diocese to Divine Mercy. On the same day Bishop declared it an Eparchial Shrine (CCEO Can. 868).
On the same day the shrine was entrusted to the care of the Vincentian Fathers of St. Thomas Rewa Province (India). Bishop Chirayath signed an agreement with Fr. Varghese Puthussery VC, Superior General of the Vincentian Congregation and Fr. Mathew Pothalil VC, Provincial Superior of St. Thomas Vincentian Province, Rewa for the service of their priests at the shrine. Attached to the shrine is a Renewal Centre for all those who desire to spend time in silence, prayer, adoration and retreat. On July 15, 2008, three Adoration Sisters of Nirmal Rani Province, Thrissur (India) started Perpetual Adoration in the shrine chapel. Individuals and groups are coming regularly to pray at the feet of Divine Mercy. Several miraculous healings are reported. Special prayers are offered daily at the shrine for those who make request. On October 2008 the Relic of St. Maria Faustina was installed in the Adoration chapel. It was received through the kind favour of Bishop Richard Karpinski, Aux. Bishop of Lubin, from the Superior General of the Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy in Warsaw (Poland).
To accommodate increasing number of pilgrims Bishop decided to build an outdoor shrine. Initially the idea was to put up an eight feet tall statue of Divine Mercy on top of an outdoor stage, but when Fr. Vincent Akkara, accompanied by Louis Padinjarekaran, went to Kerala in search of an artist who could make a 6 feet tall statue of Divine Mercy, they met Artist Pauly Nalappadan in Koratty who suggested that he would make a 30 feet statue in thermosetting polymer at the cost of Rs. 10 lacs, which when completed became 43 feet tall, India’s tallest statue of Divine Mercy. He was paid Rs. 12 lacs later. The statue was blessed on 30th September 2013 by Cardinal George Alenchery, Major Archbishop of the Syro Malabar Church in the presence of sixteen bishops and Archbishops and over 6000 pilgrims of all faiths coming from India and abroad. On 2 nd October 2014 Bishop Chirayath canonically approved ad experimentum (Prot.No. 6.071/2014) the pious association of the laity known as “Apostles of Divine Mercy” (ADM) in order to promote the devotion of Divine Mercy.
Prayer requests may be sent to: Rector, Divine Mercy Shrine, Khajuria, PB No.31, Sagar Cantt:, M.P., India – 470001. Cell. 7697543243; 6260749409. Email: dayasagar091107@gmail.com