There is a very interesting category of saints in the Church we call "mystics", many of whom are women who received extensive visions and
revelations from God. Among these saints are St. Faustina, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Hildegard, and this Wednesday's saint -- St. Gertrude the Great. St.
Gertrude was a Benedictine nun who lived from 1256-1302 in Germany. Here's an excerpt from an episode of her life which powerfully illustrates
God's mercy.

"She was praying one day for people who had harmed the community by pillaging, and were causing great trouble in other ways also, when the loving and merciful Lord appeared to her. It seemed to her as though one of his arms were causing him great pain; it was twisted as though it
were dislocated and almost helpless. And the Lord said: 'Consider what torture I should feel now if someone were to hit me with a blow of the fist on this arm. I am afflicted by just such pain by all those who, without compassion on the peril to which the soul of your persecutors are exposed, frequently recount the defects of these their enemies and the injuries they have inflicted. They do not remember that these people too are members of my body (cf. I Cor. 12). All those, on the other hand, who are moved by loving compassion and who implore me in my mercy to convert them and to reform their lives from error, are like those who put soothing ointment on this arm. And as for those who are kind enough to advise them to amend their ways, they are like skilful doctors who gently manipulate the arm and restore it to its natural position ... because they belong to the body of the church, of which it is my glory to be the head. ... [A]s long as they can still be reconciled to the Church by absolution, my love obliges me to take care of them, as I have an ineffable desire for their repentance and I long for their conversion to me.'"

The mystics had such an intimate and powerful experience of Jesus' love that their hearts were aflame with the love of God. Here's a prayer St.
Gertrude composed which reflects that reality:

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, fountain of eternal life, Your Heart is a glowing furnace of Love. You are my refuge and my sanctuary. O my adorable and loving Savior, consume my heart with the burning fire with which Yours is aflamed. Pour down on my soul those graces which flow from Your love. Let my heart be united with Yours. Let my will be conformed to Yours in all things. May
Your Will be the rule of all my desires and
actions. Amen."

And, finally, as we pray for the souls in purgatory during this month of November, here's a prayer St. Gertrude composed for the souls in purgatory.

"Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in
purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen."