Michaeł Sopoćko was born on November 1, 1888, in Nowosady (Juszewszczyzna), then under Imperial Russia. He left his parish and went to Warsaw in order to avoid the imminent arrest by German authorities that were sieged the area. There he became a military chaplain (priest) for the Polish army. While serving as chaplain, he enrolled in the Faculty of Theology at the University of Warsaw. He graduated from there with a doctoral degree, as well as he concluded his studies at the National Pedagogical Institute.

One of the most significant events of Father Michael Sopocko’s life occurred in 1933, when he became the spiritual director of Sister (now Saint) Faustina. She wrote about him in her diary, expressing the exact words of Our Lord: "…is a priest according to My Heart (...). Through him it pleases Me to proclaim the worship to My mercy" (Diary, 1256). Father Sopocko continued to assist Sister Faustina after his transfer to Łagiewniki, Poland, where she died on October 5, 1938.

As her confessor, Fr. Michael Sopocko undertook a thorough evaluation of the mystical experiences of Sr. Faustina concerning the devotion to the Divine Mercy. In obedience to his orders, she recorded her experiences in her "Diary”, which is now an extraordinarily valuable document of Catholic mysticism.

Sister Faustina received revelations from Our Lord Jesus Christ even before she arrived to Vilna. She spoke with Fr. Sopocko about instructions she received during these revelations, which were to paint the picture of our Merciful Savior, to establish The Feast of the Divine Mercy on the first Sunday after Easter, and to found a new congregation with the mission to promote the devotion to the Divine Mercy (The Congregation of Sisters of the Merciful Jesus). The Divine Providence entrusted her those tasks.

At the request of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, Blessed Michael Sopocko, commissioned the artist Eugenio Kazimirowsky to paint the Image of the Merciful Jesus. He painted it in 1934 in Vilna, Lituania, under the direction of Sr. Faustina. Father Sopocko’s floor, and Kazimirowsky’s floor and his studio were in the same building. For six months Sr. Faustina went to the studio of the artist in order to give instructions and details about the image. Fr. Sopocko took charged personally to check the image so that it would be painted exactly as instructed. In June of 1934, the Image was ready. Father Sopocko then asked Sr. Faustina what text should be engraved under the painting. These are the words: “ Jesus, I trust in You” (Diary 327).

Fr. Michael Sopocko died on February 15, 1975 (Saint Faustina’s Day), in his apartment on Poleska Street. Popularly acclaimed for his sanctity, he was buried in the parish cemetery in Biatystok. Following the inauguration of the process for his Beatification, his body was moved to the Church of the Divine Mercy on November 30, 1988.

Thirty-three years after his death, Fr. Sopocko (1888-1975), the great promoter of the Divine Mercy message, and confessor of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, was raised to the honors of the altar at a special Beatification Mass on Sunday, Sept. 28, in Bialystok, Poland. An estimated 80,000 people attended the Mass, which was celebrated by His Excellency Archbishop Angelo Amato, prefect for the causes of saints, and the personal delegate of Pope Benedict XVI, Holy Father who joined the Joy of Bialystock and Vilna Diocesis.

The tomb of Blessed Fr. Michael Sopocko is located in Bialystock, Poland.