I sat captivated by Fulton Sheen’s insights on sin and the human psyche. His commanding voice quieted a moment as he prophesied: “Just think how many mentally disturbed women we are going to have in the United States… when the guilt of abortion begins to attack the mind and soul… Years from now, the guilt will come out in a peculiar way, though at present there may not be any.” A piercing knowledge entered my heart–the expansion of homosexuality, transgenderism, therians– these are the generational fruits of the unacknowledged guilt of abortion.
As the video concluded, the women watching Fulton Sheen’s talk on Confession with me conversed as a haunting thought echoed through me. How are we not, as the Body of Christ, praying for healing for all these women? The idea of beginning a movement to pray for these souls took hold of my heart and wouldn’t let go even after everyone filtered home. I called one of the women in our group, Mary Burton. She ran a beautiful prayer ministry that saw miracles around the world, and believed deeply in Jesus’ mercy and healing.
As we discussed Fulton Sheen’s prophetic words, our hearts burned with the desire to heal all these hurting souls. Wounds from sin and the trauma that leads us to those places of darkness and keeps us trapped ripple out to those around us. Each abortion involves not only a woman, but also the man, the doctors and nurses, the friends who counselled them or drove them to their appointment. What about the receptionist at the hospital, and the worker who cleans the rooms and disposes of the baby? The number of souls wounded by this evil bloomed before us into a Gordian knot unsolvable by human effort.
But we do have to begin with human effort.
Jesus came so that we could turn to God for healing and be reconciled to His Father, Our Father, in heaven.
That night, knowing Jesus’ desire to convert, heal, and reconcile these souls far outstripped ours, we founded the Kiss of Mercy Prayer Apostolate to heal the world from abortion.
We kept things intentionally small and simple, inspired by the saints’ confidence in God’s merciful and loving heart:
Bl. Fulton Sheen’s prophetic knowledge and intense belief of the saving power of Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection.
St. Faustina’s teaching on Jesus’ unfathomable ocean of mercy confirming that there is no soul outside of Jesus’ loving reach. While crocheting, St. Faustina asked Jesus to save a soul for every stitch, and He granted her request (St. Faustina’s Diary 961).
St. Therese of Liseux’s Little Way that promises every little act of love has eternal consequences. She tells us that our littleness is a sure path to God’s heart. We also invoke the patronage of her parents, Louis and Zelie.
Who better to undo the Godian knot of abortion than Our Lady Undoer of Knots? And with the feast of St. Joseph around the corner, we decided to officially launch our apostolate under his protection, on March 19, 2016. We received the Imprimatur for the Kiss of Mercy Prayer on January 25, 2017.
Kiss of Mercy Prayer
(To be recited after kissing an image of Jesus)
Jesus, I trust in you. May my kiss, with Your grace,
Convert, heal, and reconcile to the Father,
One soul wounded by abortion. Amen.
Recite one Hail Mary.
Jesus began his ministry by declaring in the temple the words from Isaiah that “The Spirit of the Lord…has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free” (Luke 4:18). We do not just want people to see abortion is wrong–that would leave a broken world. Jesus came to heal, and we wish for every soul that is suffering from the pain and weight of abortion to experience reconciliation with the Father, and total healing. This is how the chain of evil is broken. This is why the prayer lists, “convert, heal, and reconcile to the Father.” All three are necessary for the pain to recede and all things to be made new.
The Kiss of Mercy is not about achieving political ends. It is about knowing that Jesus came to save us, and that His resurrection and healing are more real and more powerful than our sin. This apostolate is about drawing souls back to the loving embrace of their Father God, who is running up the road to meet them. It is about restoring souls to the joy and peace of being children of God through little acts of love; a kiss for Jesus, a prayer, and He saves another soul.
On August 10, 2026, our home state of Massachusetts legalized abortion up to birth for any reason. There are zero restrictions; it is based solely on the doctor’s “medical judgement”. The horror of the evil this unleashes brings more than death and sin; it has also threatened Faith and tempted people to see God as powerless. Seeing the crowds of cheering women makes a soul wonder, how can this be? The women who cheer are mothers who have in their own home the evidence that those lives in the womb are children who will hang on monkey bars, race their friends on bikes, and ask for a third cup of water to avoid going to bed. The women who cheer are obstetricians who have handed newborn babies to the arms of their waiting parents. What insanity is this? It is what happens when we do not bring our wounds to God to heal.
Prayer is always the answer. This spring I read Dr. Sean Tobin’s book Big God, Little Devil, and was reminded that the devil is a mere creature, not an equal sparring partner with Jesus. Dr. Tobin calls us to live from Christ’s victory, rather than for Christ’s victory. He calls us to stand in our position as sons and daughters of God and claim that spiritual authority won for us by Christ. Our power in the spiritual world is based on Christ’s righteousness, and God’s adoption of us through our baptism. When Gov. Healy signed this heinous bill and it became law, it was not because she was powerful. That power came from her position as governor. We, too, wield power, but ours is immeasurable. Ours comes from our position as children of God, which Christ won for us by his righteousness, death and resurrection. How our prayer changes when we stand in that position and ask God as His child!
Simplicity. Confidence. Faith. Jesus heals, and has already won the victory. Please join us in praying the Kiss of Mercy prayer.
Kiss of Mercy prayer cards can be ordered at KissofMercy.org.
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Image: Unsplash
