Although we can not comprehend the unfolding of the Divine Mercy Shrine
(As Isaiah said, Chapter 55: 8 – “For my thoughts are not your thoughts and your ways are not my ways”), we believe that this is the time to reveal His mystery of Mercy by establishing a Divine Mercy Shrine on the West Coast. With complete trust and hope, we took a gigantic step of our faith to begin planning to build a Divine Mercy Shrine on the West Coast.

The Divine Mercy Eucharistic Society purchased 100 acres of land--on rolling hills overlooking the greater Bay Area for a total of $ 3.3 million. This property is located on Sheridan Road in Sunol, CA, adjacent to I-680 North. Mr. Salvatore Caruso, a licensed professional architect with his office in Santa Clara County, has volunteered his time to design the plans of the proposed Divine Mercy Shrine. Even the owner of the property was instrumental by allowing us to purchase the land.

We have received many confirmations from God that this mission of promoting His message of Mercy is what He wants us to do. We believe there is no better way to share the power of the message of God's mercy and to touch the hearts and minds of people throughout the Bay Area, Northern California, and beyond than by building a Shrine to last for generations to come. It is now our responsibility to move forward and build this House of God, without delay, for the sole purpose and motive of the salvation of souls through the perpetuation of the Divine Mercy message.

The purpose of the Shrine and the Retreat House:

To proclaim and introduce people to the mystery of God’s mercy. The Shrine will become a beacon of mercy for all.

The Shrine will be a place of new beginnings and a visible source of renewed hope, learning, healing, reconciliation, and a New Evangelization for God’s people of all ages, races, and religious affiliations for generations to come.

It will bear witness to the Divine Providence of God to His servants.

It will also serve as a visible sign of God’s continuing covenant with us in our day.

The Shrine and Retreat Center will provide services, place of prayer and action for these visitors during this time of war, confusion, despair and uncertainty about the future

A place of service and contemplation for priests who will serve at the Shrine.
A place of acceptance for the laity of faithful who will help with service tasks and maintain the site.
Serene pilgrimage opportunities for meditation and solitude for people of all beliefs who seek changes in their life and inner peace.
A resting place for those searching and wondering about who God is to them and their meaning of life, either as followers of faith or as non-believers.
A starting point for new congregations of laity interested in the teaching and charisma of God’s Mercy.
Another Perpetual Adoration Chapel that will be accessible anytime to all who seek the wonder of the beautiful spaces of nature that surround the Shrine.
An annual, large, jubilant celebration of the Feast of the Divine Mercy, on Mercy Sunday, with Feast Day Masses conducted by our own Bishops, priests and religious as well as guests from other parts of the region and nation.
A place for learning, workshops and seminars for the modern family, and spirituality center rooms for other congregations from throughout the Bay Area.

All this having been said, the Divine Mercy Shrine will benefit the Bay Area Dioceses as well as the whole church.

We have great faith that the Divine Mercy Shrine, in the Oakland Diocese, will be a pilgrimage place for the people throughout the world seeking for the power of the Divine Mercy.
In faith that with the multitude of prayers which will be said at the Divine Mercy Sanctuary and with various in-depth teachings on God’s mercy there, God will grace many people with restored spirits that will give them strength and power to carve out new pathways for their relationships with families, communities, and parishes. This will open the way for spiritual and temporal blessings to all.
We fully trust in Jesus that many people, with their renewed spirits, will receive the zeal of true Apostles of Divine Mercy, and that they will then go back as witnesses and evangelizers to their own families, parishes, and communities in the Bay Area or beyond. People will come to the Shrine to be spiritually nourished and then permanently part of the evangelization of the whole Church. Ideally, each parish would have its own Divine Mercy group which will support the pastor in the evangelization of the parish.
In God’s providence, the First Apostolic Congress on Mercy will take place in Rome in 2008. The Divine Mercy Eucharistic Society has become part of the process of declaring the Mercy of God throughout our continent. We even hope that the Divine Mercy Eucharistic Society will be able to host a future Divine Mercy World Congress in our Diocese. This would bring people from around the world to the Bay Area.
We understand that a large percentage of Catholics have fallen away from the practice of the faith, and some of them have even left the Church. We, clergy and the lay people, have to bring all to God through every possible means. We have experienced the power and the reality of Christ’s mercy touching our lives. Therefore, we are committed to proclaim Him to others and draw them to Him in the Church.

It is everyone’s mission to build the kingdom of God in our time. We believe that building the Divine Mercy Shrine is an effective way to proclaim the power of God’s Mercy. It will become a visible sign of God’s continuing covenant with us, as a response to the call of the Holy Father Pope John Paul II’s message in June 1997:

New Architectural Designs (2 GB)

General Information

This page is the home of all the information about the Shrine. It will have updates on the construction progress, and photos, plus many other features. Here are some of the Architectural designs with inspired explanations of the designs. Some features are not evident in the pictures, but use your imagination and envision the word descriptions that follow:

THE DIVINE MERCY HILLS. This aerial view of the Divine Mercy Shrine site shows the placement of the shrine/church and some of the other buildings such as: the Retreat Center on the topmost right and the religious house on the left side of the retreat center. The church has 5 domes, which represent 5 wounds of Jesus. The dark shade on the right of the church is the parking lot..

BUILDING THE DIVINE MERCY SHRINE ONE BRICK AT A TIME
A view from the entrance gate on Sheridan Road. The walkways (Pathways to the Fountain of Mercy) from Sheridan Road to the front of the church will be made of bricks where all of our Co-Buildersf names will be permanently etched and individually memorialized.

A closer view from the entrance gate on Sheridan Road.

FOUNTAIN OF UNFATHOMABLE MERCY. A view of the Plaza. The Crucifix will have waterfalls at the back; waters from the left and right sides of the falls will be flowing to the middle foot of the cross going to the pool (fountain) in the middle of the plaza. The waterfalls will be cascading on red granite stones on the left and white granite stones on the right (refer to the Image of Divine Mercy). The stairs are semi-circle shape, (Alpha and the Omega, First and the Last). The Conference Hall will be under the church. Both sides of the church will be accessible for handicapped.

An aerial view showing the natural cross formation of the Divine Mercy Hills. The walk way from the entrance gate to the front of the Crucifix will have the trees and roses to form the 20 decades of the rosary: the trees will be the "Our Father" beads and the rows of 10 rose trees in between the trees are the "Hail Mary" beads.