Dear Parishioners,
In the Catholic
Church, the month of June is traditionally
dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I think it is no mere coincidence
that the secular world puts an emphasis on something contrary to Christ and the
teaching of His Church. Rebellious human beings would rather act defiant to
God’s design and try to tell God how they should be allowed to live and act.
The first deadly sin—pride—once again rears its ugly
head.
For fourteen years of my life I had worked at a
high school named for Our Lord’s Sacred Heart. The motto of
the school was: Fac Cor Nostrum Secundum Cor Tuum. (The
translation of the Latin: Make our hearts like unto Thine or Make
our hearts like Your Heart.)
The image of the Sacred Heart centers
on a devotion to Jesus’ physical heart as representing His Divine Love for all
humanity. The Sacred Heart is often depicted in Christian art as a flaming
heart shining with divine light. It is bleeding, pierced by the
lance-wound, surrounded by a crown of thorns, and surmounted by a cross. The
wounds and crown of thorns allude to the manner of Jesus' death, while the fire
represents the transformative power of Christ’s love.
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque is associated with the devotion to the
Sacred Heart. She entered the Visitation Convent in 1671 and six years
later Christ appeared to her in a vision in which she said: "I could
plainly see His heart, pierced and bleeding, yet there were flames, too, coming
from it and a crown of thorns around it. He told me to behold His heart
which so loved humanity. Then He seemed to take my very heart from me and
place it there in His heart. In return He gave me back part of His flaming
heart."
In all, there were four revelations, during
which the now-familiar Twelve Promises
of the Sacred Heart were
made:
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 and 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.
Now that you have a brief history, what truly
matters is whether or not we are becoming more Christ-like and whether our
hearts reflect Christ’s love for us.
The simple prayer said — Make my heart like Your Heart — should
remind us of the task in front of each of us.
Fr. Ed Namiotka
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