Why did the Church ban the Divine Mercy devotion from 1959 to 1978?
The short answer
Faulty translations from the Polish made St. Faustina's writings appear doctrinally suspect, so the Holy See suppressed the devotion for about twenty years. Once the translations were corrected, the ban was lifted — largely through the work of the Archbishop of Krakow, who became John Paul II that same year.
Faulty translations
Because of poor translations from the original Polish, St. Faustina's writings seemed doctrinally suspect, and the Holy See suppressed the resulting devotion for about twenty years.
Lifted
When the translations were corrected, the ban was lifted. This depended heavily on the work of the Cardinal Archbishop of Krakow, who in 1978 — the year the suppression ended — was elected Pope John Paul II.
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