Dear Friends,

I would like to share with you how the WJMP came to be. On September 30, 1994, the Lord placed on my heart to establish and form a religious order of women.

On April 16, 2019, Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron gave his approval and blessing for the women interested in discerning their call to begin living in community at the Divine Mercy Center. May 13, 2019 marked the inception of The Women of Jesus’ Merciful Passion and this call from the heart of Jesus became a reality.

The Archbishop commented, “it is a gift to have them [the Women of Jesus’ Merciful Passion] present in the Archdiocese of Detroit, and I am fully aware of the many lives that have come to know our Merciful Lord through the ministry of The Shrine of Jesus the Divine Mercy over these years. I am confident this movement will take on a renewed energy through the recent formation of the Women of Jesus’ Merciful Passion.”

I am so grateful to the Lord for all the good He is bestowing on this community. Please pray for these women, and pray for more vocations to the religious life – that more women will heed the call of the Lord to give their lives in service to Him and His Kingdom!

Sincerely,

Catherine M. Lanni
Mother Foundress

The Charism the the Women of Jesus’ Merciful Passion will follow is Holy Hospitality and Spiritual Direction. Holy Hospitality means everything to our Mother Foundress Catherine Lanni. It’s so important in our current times when people constantly complain that they are so busy and just don’t have enough time for anything after their job commitment and immediate family routines. Multitasking is the norm. Listening and direct eye contact seems to be a forgotten thing of the past. A warm bowl of soup and a cup of coffee or tea feeds not only the body but the soul as well. It warms the heart and makes the person feel loved. Using as best as possible, fresh ingredients is important for the body and soul as well. The effort put into cutting, peeling, slicing, simmering and cooking low and slow, pays off. In this process, one exercises patients and charity!

Spiritual Direction is the practice of Sacred listening and discerning as we accompany a person on their pilgrimage of life, helping the individual to have greater clarity on what God is saying to them or doing in their life or which direction one should move in. This can make a significant difference in a person’s life. Spiritual directors don’t “tell a person” what to do, but rather accompany them on their pilgrimage of life. As one opens their heart to express what they sense or think, the process of prayerful discernment helps them to grow spiritually and deepens their awareness and relationship with God. It is not counseling or psychotherapy. The focus is the person’s relationship with God.

By living daily, as a way of life, the Rule of the Ten Evangelical Virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary helps us to embody the very likeness of the Blessed Virgin Mary – who is The Queen of Peace, Purity, Prudence, Humility, Faithfulness, Devotion, Obedience, Poverty, Patience, Mercy and Sorrow. Through the eyes of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we become not only an embodiment of The Blessed Mother, but an actual refuge for those we encounter through Holy Hospitality and those who entrust their spiritual life to our direction.

Our Spirituality is Divine Mercy and Our Lady of Sorrows. We strive to spread the message of Divine Mercy as revealed by Jesus to St. Maria Faustina Kowalska. We are seeking holiness through following the Rule of the Ten Evangelical Virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary as we perform the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy and help people come to know our Merciful Lord.