Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Dear friends:

I found myself this month of June having to prepare a retreat day and a conference for two communities of nuns within my religious institute. June is the month of the Sacred Heart, so to prepare, I delved into this devotion through some articles and by re-reading of Pope Pius XII’s Encyclical Letter Haurietis Aquas, (the name of the letter is taken from Isaiah’s 12: 3: “You shall draw waters with joy out of the Savior’s fountain”).

This devotion, which the Pope called “a perfect profession of the Christian religion” and “the most effective school of divine love,” has a profound Scriptural foundation: it is based on the Old Testament idea of the covenant between God and his people. The sacred writers, particularly the prophets, expressed God’s love for his people with images of father-son love or spousal love, thus anticipating the idea of the New Covenant realized through the love of Christ in his Paschal Mystery. The new covenant pre-announced by the old is not written in tablets, but in our hearts: the mystery of redemption is above all a mystery of love. Thus, the New Testament presents the love of Christ’s heart particularly through his Passion.

Promises to Those Who Honor His Heart

We have not seen Christ, but we have the gift of faith and the sacraments. The Lord is among us through faith and truly present in the Eucharist, the latter being a memorial of his divine love poured out into our hearts through his death and resurrection. Long story short: devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is not optional, but necessary for our faith and personal sanctification. Here are the promises for those who honor his Heart as they were given to St. Margaret Mary of Alacoque:

1) I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life.

2) I will bring peace to their families.

3) I will console them in their sorrows.

4) I will be their safe refuge in life, and especially in the hour of death.

5) I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.

6) I will bless those places wherein the image of my Sacred Heart shall be exposed and venerated.

7) Sinners shall find in my Heart the fountain, the infinite ocean of mercy.

8) Tepid souls shall become fervent.

9) Fervent souls shall rise to great perfection.

10) I will give to priests the power to touch the most hardened hearts.

11) Persons who propagate this devotion shall have their names written in my Heart, and it will never be erased.

12) In the excess of my mercy, my all-powerful love will grant to all those who will receive Communion on the First Fridays, for nine consecutive months, the grace of final perseverance, they will not die without my grace, nor without the reception of the sacraments. My Heart will be their safe refuge in that last hour.(1)

May the Heart of Christ and the Immaculate Heart of Mary always inspire us to love God and neighbor.

God bless you all.

_{[1] This is called the “Great Promise.” The conditions to receive this grace are three: 1. Receive Holy Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months; 2. Have the intention of honoring the Sacred Heart of Jesus and of obtaining final perseverance; 3. Offer each Holy Communion as an act of atonement for the offences committed against the Sacred Heart and the Blessed Sacrament.}

[Gn 12:1-9; 33:12-13, 18-19, 20 and 22; Mt 7:1-5]