The Reign of the Sacred Heart: Solemnity of Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Ezekiel 34:11-16; Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6; Romans 5:5b-11; Luke 15:3-7)

On December 27th, 1673, in the wake of the Thirty Years War and the continued divergence of the Protestant movement away from the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist and the Liturgy, Saint Mary Margeret Alacoque was given a vision of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ while praying before the Blessed Sacrament.

This is what she wrote in her diary:

“Our Lord made me rest for several hours on His sacred breast ... After that I saw this divine Heart as on a throne of flames, more brilliant than the sun and transparent as crystal. It had Its adorable wound and was encircled with a crown of thorns, which signified the pricks our sins caused Him. It was surmounted by a cross which signified that, from the first moment of His Incarnation, that is, from the time this Sacred Heart was formed, the cross was planted in It; that It was filled, from the very first moment, with all the bitterness, humiliations, poverty, sorrow, and contempt His sacred humanity would have to suffer during the whole course of His life and during His holy Passion. He made me understand that the ardent desire He had of being loved by men and of drawing them from the path of perdition into which Satan was hurrying them in great numbers, had caused Him to fix upon this plan of manifesting His Heart to men, together with all Its treasures of love, mercy, grace, sanctification and salvation ... . This devotion was a last resort of His love .… [He] wished to favour men in these last centuries with his loving redemption, in order to withdraw them from the empire of Satan, which He intended to destroy, and in order to put us under the sweet liberty of the empire of His love.”

There would be a total of three such visions.  In these visions, Jesus expressed His yearning for His love to be returned with love.  Jesus requested that we make reparation to His Heart for the ingratitude of mankind.  Jesus asked us to honor Him and put all our trust in Him alone.  He implored that we honor and love God the Father more.

He wants to reign over families and nations everywhere.  He wants to saturate all of humanity with the grace that flows from His Heart.  

Through a devotion to His Sacred Heart, Jesus made the following promises:

1. I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their homes.
3. I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
4. I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all, in death.
5. I will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings.
6. Sinners will find in my Heart the source of an infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Lukewarm souls shall become fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
9. I will bless every place in which an image of my Heart is exposed and honored.
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in my Heart.
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Fridays in nine consecutive months the grace of final perseverance; they shall not die in my disgrace, nor without receiving their sacraments. My divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.

There are many ways we can increase a devotion to the Sacred Heart in our lives.  I share a few now:

1. Make a morning offering prayer consecrating your day to the Sacred Heart.
2. Prominently display an image of the Sacred Heart in your home.
3. Carry or wear a Sacred Heart Badge.
4. Commit to Eucharistic Adoration on a regular basis.
5. Practice the First Friday devotion.
6. Enthrone your home to the Sacred Heart.
7. Consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart.
8. Pray the Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
9. Pray the Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
10. Pray, fast, and give alms in reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Ultimately, Jesus wants to pour out His entire self to us through the Eucharist, through the Sacred Heart.  But for us to receive the gift of divine love, we must allow ourselves to pour out our entire self to Him in our acts of worship in the Mass as well as our acts to love our neighbor.  This pouring out of self in self-deferential love is ultimately what communion is all about.  

Over time, a devotion to the Sacred Heart can help us increase in our humility to be able to pour out ourself into Him and, in turn, open ourselves up to allow Him to pour Himself into us…filling us with the Flame of Love.  

When we are truly set ablaze by the Flame of Love, there is nothing we shall want.

Thanks be to God!

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