A novena of songs inspired by St. Faustina
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Many of you began the Divine Mercy novena last Friday in preparation for Divine Mercy Sunday. To enter into the Spirit, at Cecilia we decided to make a “novena” of songs, a Divine Mercy Playlist with nine songs to accompany you in your prayer. Some of the songs are directly inspired by the writings of St. Faustina, others not, but they all bear the same message: God’s endless mercy awaits.
New Every Morning | Audrey Assad
It’s a song of God’s mercies, which are new every morning. Years ago, Audrey wrote, “I am free to walk in the light. Maybe yesterday I forgot him, or maybe I sinned against him, but today is new, and so am I. I’ve got to live like I’m new, for faith and the Word of God tell me that God has made me so.”
Lord Have Mercy | Greg&Lizzy
Greg Boudreaux, of Greg&Lizzy wrote, “One of the great mysteries, beauties, and ironies of our Christian faith is that the thing we need the most is also the thing we do not deserve, the thing we could never earn. It is mercy.” The song, part of the Vigil Project, leads us with humility and courage to cry out to God for the mercy we so desperately need.
Glory Bound | Matt Maher
Matt Maher’s song from his latest album takes a fresh look at the old Woody Guthrie song, “This Train is Bound for Glory,” which sends the message that there is no room on the train for anybody but the saved. Matt wanted to change this false narrative that limits God’s grace: “There are so many great men and women throughout history who have had conversions at the end of their lives! That’s how audacious and scandalous grace is.”
We cannot forget the words St. Faustina wrote in her diary, “All grace flows from mercy, and the last hour abounds with mercy for us. Let no one doubt concerning the goodness of God; even if a person’s sins were as dark as night. God’s mercy is stronger than our misery.”
Simon (Petros) | Alanna Boudreau
The music video for the song begins with the quote from Hans Urs von Balthasar, “Peter knows that he is known in both his love and his treason: Lord, you know everything: you know that I love you (Jn 21:17).” Like Peter, the Lord knows us in both our love and our treason; and like with Peter, He comes to us in all of our humanness and our poverty and calls us to great things.
He Makes All Things New | Teresa Peterson
Teresa was inspired by the scene in The Passion of the Christ where Jesus falls carrying the cross, and as he gets up, he and his mother look at each other for a moment. He gains his footing and says, “See, Mother, I make all things new.” The song reflects the hopeful joy of being made into a new creation in God’s mercy.
Drown Us in Your Love | Michael James Mette
This song draws its inspiration directly from the writings of St. Faustina where she writes, “The greater that I sin, the less you keep a count of them.” God is always willing to forgive, no matter how far we’ve fallen from grace. Artist Michael James Mette felt this message is especially important today, “when the evil one tries to confuse people with so many labels. It can be easy for these things to become a part of our identity; however, our only true identity lies as a child of God. God’s grace is always greater than our sin.”
Novena | RabelzTheMC
The style of this Catholic hip-hop artist’s song is a bit of a departure from the rest of our list, but the message and the inspiration remain the same: God’s mercy is always there for us. RabelzTheMC shares how God’s mercy turned his life around, making all things new.
Misericordes Sicut Pater | Offical Year of Mercy Hymn
The official hymn for this Extraordinary Holy Year of Mercy. The title, Misericordes Sicut Pater, is drawn from Luke 6:36, “Be merciful, as your Father is merciful. The song, which was performed by the Sistine Chapel Choir, recounts God’s merciful interventions throughout salvation history and calls out to God for peace and grace and joy.
The Divine Mercy Chaplet | Fr. Rob Galea
Last, but certainly not least, we round off our novena with the Divine Mercy Chaplet itself, sung by Fr. Rob Galea, together with Natasha and Gary Pinto. The lyric video helps those that are new to the chaplet follow along and enter into prayer.
–Libby Reichert
