Why my lolo Bienvenido Tantoco is so devoted to the Divine Mercy

One of Lolo Bienvenido Tantoco’s enduring legacies to the family is his love for family.  Lolo always makes sure that his family stands strong and united. And he draws his own strength and zest for life from his unflinching devotion to the Lord — specifically, the Twin Sacred Hearts and the Divine Mercy.  The family and the Rustan Group of Companies have always been devoted to the Sacred Heart.  Weekly Masses are celebrated in the stores and whenever a new store is opened, it is blessed and dedicated to the Sacred Heart whose image is enshrined in the store.

It was after Lolo went on a pilgrimage to Krakow, Poland in 2010 that he started propagating the devotion to the Divine Mercy.  My cousin Donnie (Tantoco) was with him in Krakow and he shared with us what Lolo told him about the Divine Mercy:  “Donnie, I remember now why I bought and wanted to own the Divine Mercy. It was Pope John Paul II who told me about it personally. I was so touched by what he told me about the Divine Mercy. The Pope was the archbishop of Krakow, that’s where we are now. He understood very well the meaning of the Divine Mercy. I bought it because of him. I knew it had to come from someone I respect.” 

The image of Divine Mercy is the painting of a vision of Jesus which St. Faustina saw on Feb. 22, 1931 while she was living in her monastery in Plock, Poland. Jesus specifically instructed her to have the vision painted and asked that the painting would have the words “Jesus, I trust in You” clearly inscribed on it. He explained that it would be the image for His new feast celebrating His Divine Mercy, which He wished to establish in the Catholic Church through His revelations to St. Faustina. 

The promises of Jesus

Jesus also made specific promises to those who venerated the image of Divine Mercy. He told St. Faustina, “These rays shield souls from the wrath of My Father. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him. (Diary 299)

“I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish. I also promise victory over its enemies already here on earth, especially at the hour of death. I Myself will defend it as My own glory. (Diary 48)

“I am offering people a vessel with which they are to keep coming for graces to the fountain of mercy. That vessel is this Image with the signature: ‘Jesus, I trust in You.’ (Diary 327)

“By means of this Image I shall be granting many graces to souls; so let every soul have access to it. (Diary 570)

“By means of this Image I shall grant many graces to souls. It is to be a reminder of the demands of My mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works.” (Diary 724)( Taken from the http://www.divinemercy.org )

Every nook and cranny of the Tantoco home has a revered image of the Divine Mercy. With the help of Dr. Cuanan, Lolo commissioned a painting by Antonio Leaño which is now in his chapel.

There’s a gigantic framed image of the Divine Mercy which Lolo also gave away to friends, family members, and churches.

There are tons of booklets and prayerbooks in stock for Lolo to give away as part of his propagation of the devotion to the Divine Mercy.

More framed images come in assorted sizes and designs.

This was a souvenir made by Tita Nena (Vargas-Tantoco) for Lolo to give away.

Collecting images of the Divine Mercy can be so addicting — I already have three in my house.  I made an altar specifically for the Divine Mercy.  Included with the Divine Mercy photo is a photo of Sr. Faustina and a folder. Lolo says to always put the two together and to make sure we read the story behind it to better understand the devotion to the image.

 Images in all sizes — small, medium, and large.   He is so cute!

For his 92nd birthday, Lolo had this image made for 14,000 people, who included all the employees of the Rustan Group of Companies — that was his way of celebrating his birthday! I made sure I got one, too. 

Early this year, my dad and mom went to Cagayan de Oro and they discovered the Shrine of the Divine Mercy in El Salvador, Misamis Oriental.  They did not know about this, but when they asked the Starbucks partners in the store what they could see in the area, they mentioned the shrine.  Completed in 2008, the shrine came about through a tripartite agreement among the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro, the Divine Mercy Foundation, and the Marian Congregation.  The statue stands 50-feet tall plus 25 feet for the stand.  This is the tallest Divine Mercy statue in Asia and most probably in the world. Not many people know about this shrine and I am hoping that through this article, more people will start a devotion to the Divine Mercy and make a pilgrimage to El Salvador. 

This is just a few minutes away from Cagayan de Oro, very near the Laguindingan Airport.  I suggested to my parents that we should go as a family and give this as our birthday gift to Lolo on his birthday last April.  Due to our busy schedule, we were only able to go now and it was such a blessing that the day we chose (Sept. 8) was the birthday of Mama Mary.  Exactly six years ago, this statue was blessed on the birthday of Mama Mary.  Lolo was visibly overjoyed!  We only stayed in Cagayan de Oro overnight just to see this and Lolo made sure we stopped by again just before flying out.

When we arrived, we were met by Monsigñor Elmer Abacahin, one of the spiritual advisers of the Divine Mercy Foundation.  We passed by the back of the shrine because the main entrance would have meant climbing 170 steps plus another 130 steps to get to the church.

Picture-pretty view from the top of the statue

Behind the statue is a circular church, The Church of Mercy, which has a sculpture of the crown of thorns of Jesus on the roof.  The inspiration of the church is the passion of Christ.

In the area surrounding the shrine, there was no water so the people prayed and hired someone to help locate water. Their prayer was answered — a spring was later found in the area.

They also sell containers for you to take home as much holy water as you want.

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For more information on the Shrine of the Divine Mercy in El Salvador, visit its website at http://www.divinemercyhills.net. For more information on the Divine Mercy, visit http://www.divinemercy.org

The rays of the Divine Mercy are made out of stained glass and metal mirrors.  They are not just rays but one hundred steps to go up to the heart of the Divine Mercy.  You can go up and pray there.  No photos allowed.  But before going up you have to attend a seminar, where you will be briefed on the rules and guidelines for the visit.

At the request of her spiritual director, St. Faustina asked the Lord about the meaning of the rays in the image. She was told:

“The two rays denote blood and water. The pale ray stands for water, which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for blood, which is the life of souls. These two rays issued forth from the depths of My tender mercy when My agonized Heart was opened by a lance on the Cross. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him (299). By means of this image I shall grant many graces to souls. It is to be a reminder of the demands of My mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works (742) (from the http://www.divinemercy.org )