The “Eternal Father” prayer is the central offering of the Divine Mercy Chaplet, a devotion revealed to St. Faustina Kowalska in the 1930s. It offers the sacrifice of Jesus Christ—His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity—to God the Father as atonement for the sins of the individual and the entire world.
This prayer originates from the private revelations given to St. Faustina Kowalska in Poland during the 1930s, which she recorded in her diary, "Divine Mercy in My Soul". The devotion was championed by Pope St. John Paul II, who canonized St. Faustina in 2000 and established the Second Sunday of Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday. The prayer's offering reflects the Church's teaching on the singular value of Christ's sacrifice, which is "sufficient to atone for the sins of all" (CCC 616).
Theologically, the “Eternal Father” prayer allows the faithful to participate in the priestly office of Christ. By offering the Son to the Father, we unite our own prayers with the perfect and eternal sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, made present in the Eucharist. It is an act of profound trust in God's mercy, acknowledging that only the merits of Christ's Passion can atone for sin. This prayer places the believer in the role of an intercessor for all humanity.
This prayer is the foundation of the Divine Mercy Chaplet, which is often prayed at 3:00 PM, the hour of Jesus' death. It is especially fitting to pray on Divine Mercy Sunday, the Second Sunday of Easter, and on the feast of St. Faustina (October 5). Believers offer it for specific intentions, such as for the conversion of sinners, for the souls in purgatory, for the sick and dying, and in atonement for personal and global sins.
15-Second Preview
Free
0 min 15 sec audio
Sign in to save prayers to your library and download audio
Ave Audio