Pius XII, ‘Haurietis Aquas’, May 15, 1956

“…Since there is in the Sacred Heart a symbol and a sensible image of the infinite love of Jesus Christ which moves us to love one another, therefore is it fit and proper that we should consecrate ourselves to His most Sacred Heart-an act which is nothing else than an offering and a binding of oneself to Jesus Christ, seeing that whatever honor, veneration and love is given to this divine Heart is really and truly given to Christ Himself.”

Leo XIII, ‘Annum Sacrum’, 25th day of May, 1899

“Is not the sum of all religion and therefore the pattern of more perfect life, contained in that most auspicious sign and in the form of piety that follows from it inasmuch as it more readily leads the minds of men to an intimate knowledge of Christ Our Lord, and more efficaciously moves their hearts to love Him more vehemently and to imitate Him more closely?”

Pius XI, ‘Miserentissimus Redemptor’ 8 May, 1928

————-
Reproduced from the ‘Popes’ Quotes” free e-zine,
“Issue #61: The Sacred Heart”, only at www.KEYSofPETER.org

La Colombiere, a 17th-century French Jesuit who was the spiritual adviser to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, and an Apostle of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, was solemnly canonized on May 31st (1992) at a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica.

In his homily, the Pope noted that France during St. Claude’s life had many of the characteristics of today.  There was “high human culture” on one side, and “cruel conflict and human poverty” on the other.  Also, “the clergy and religious orders were often decadent: As a result the people remained far from the light of faith, the benefits of the spiritual life and of ecclesial communion.”

Into this milieu came St. Claude, “a true companion of St. Ignatius,” who “resolutely took the way of holiness… rejecting all tepidness.”

In the course of his assignments, he met St. Margaret Mary, who entrusted Fr. La Colombiere with the mission of establishing devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a cause he took up with all his strength.  In the years left to him, said the Pope, La Colombiere “interiorized these infinite riches.

“His spiritual life then developed in the perspective of the ‘reparation’ and ‘infinite mercy’ so underscored at Paray-le-Monial.  He gave himself completely to the Sacred Heart ‘ever burning with love.’   Even in trials he practiced forgetfulness of self in order to attain purity of love and to raise the world to God…

“The past three centuries,” the Pope said, “allow us to evaluate the importance of the message which was entrusted to Claude La Colombiere.  In a period of contrasts between the fervor of some and the indifference or impiety of many, here is a devotion centered on the humanity of Christ, on His presence, on His love of mercy, and on forgiveness.

“The call to reparation, characteristic of Paray-le-Monial, can be variously understood, but essentially it is a matter of sinners, which all human beings are, returning to the Lord, touched by His love, and offering a more intese fidelity in the future, a life aflame with charity.  If there is a solidarity in sin, there is also a solidarity in salvation.  The offering of each is made for the good of all…

“Devotion to the Heart of Christ would be a source of balance and spiritual strengthening for Christian communities so often faced with increasing unbelief over the coming centuries: an impersonal conception of God will spread; individuals, moving away from a personal encounter with Christ and the source of grace, will want to be the sole masters of their history and to become a law unto themselves, to the point of being ruthless in pursuing their own ambitions.

“The message of Paray, accessible to the humble as well as to the great of this world, answers such aberrations by clarifying the relationship of the person to God and with the world in the light which comes from the heart of God: in conformity with the Churchs Tradition, it turns his gaze toward the cross of the world’s Redeemer.”

The Pope further said that Catholics who are truly attached to the Sacred Heart will not “be seduced by forms of meditation which turn in on the self without welcoming the presence of the Lord… (and) conceptions of the sacred which only mask a tragic spiritual emptiness.”

Devotion to the Sacred Heart is also an essential component of the Holy Father’s hopes for the “new evangelization” called for by the Church.

“For evangelization today,” he said, “the Heart of Christ must be recognized as the heart of the Church: It is He Who calls us to conversion, to reconciliation.   It is He Who leads pure hearts and those hungering for justice along the way of the Beatitudes.  It is He Who achieves the warm communion of the members of the one Body.  It is He Who enables us to adhere to the Good News and to accept the promise of eternal life.  It is He Who sends us out on mission.  The heart-to-heart with Jesus broadens the human heart on a global scale.”

Citing the works of three predecessors, Popes Leo XIII,  Pius XI and Pius XII, Pope John Paul II encouraged Catholics to see in the true devotion to the Sacred Heart the “spiritual answer to the difficulties which the Faith and the Church are facing.”

——————————-
This article re-printed from a newspaper cutting.
The Sacred Heart Institute respects all rights reserved to the original author.

• “to set up in the place of honor in each household a representation of the Sacred Heart, in recognition of the supreme rights of Jesus Christ over the family as a whole, and over each of its members;
• “to recite family prayers each evening before it, and to renew each night, by the lips of the father or mother, the consecration made on the first day;
• “to be faithful in the practice of holy Communion and as far as possible, in that of the Holy Hour at the First Friday of the month;
• “to meditate upon the lessons and examples given to us by the Sacred Heart;
• “to have recourse to this fount of graces, in the family joys, as well as in its sorrows, in good as well as in evil days, in sufferings, in reverses, in partings, amid the tears shed at the grave-side, and amid the smiles bestowed upon the cradle; in a word, amid the all the events tht interrupt the normal and regular course of family life.”

Cardinal Billot, April 26, 1915
Taken from “Theology of the Enthronement”,
National Center of the Enthronement.

Enthronement Materials available here: http://sacredheartlegion.com/enthrone.htm

Now an inspiring series on EWTN!  Join us today as a Sacred Heart Ambassador, receive special benefits in return!  Only at www.SacredHeartLegion.com

See the viewing schedule here!

HAPPENING NOW:

New EWTN series: the ‘Twelve Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus’

Join EWTN Program host Raymond de Souza every Monday and Friday EST for your half hour of spiritual, historical and social exploration into the most crucial devotion of our times.

EWTN official trailer:
http://www.ewtn.com/wings/2011/02242011Feature.htm

Every weekly episode deals with a different promise of the Sacred Heart
and applies it to the needs of the Church and Society today. Visit: www.SacredHeartLegion.com and inform your friends!

March viewing times:

US AND CANADA:
Fridays – 10:30 AM EST
Mondays – 6:00 PM EST

AFRICA:
Tue. 6:30 AM, 10:30 AM, 4:00 PM.
Wed. 3:30 AM, 6:00 PM, 10:00 PM.
Fri. 12:00 Midday, 4:00 PM , 9:30 PM.

AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND OCEANIA:
Via satellite: beginning in
APRIL (Sydney time)
Friday: 7:30 PM.
Thursday: 1:30 PM
Monday: 1:00 AM

ONLINE:
Tuesday 10:00 AM
Saturday 2:30 AM

LATIN AMERICA, EUROPE AND ASIA
Check your corresponding time zones against Eastern Standard Time in the USA as your reference point.

God bless!

Most images of the Sacred Heart depict Him as the Resurrected Christ, His pierced Heart and hands opened to us in love.   The Sacred Heart Institute offers a special image to Legion members , and any other Catholic interested in Enthronement.

‘The Thorn Crowned Savior’ represents Christ as King, seated in celestial majesty on His throne, His right hand raised  in blessing.   He continues to be the glorious, resurrected Son of God, brimming with love and light.

Here, Christ Jesus is depicted re-crowned with thorns, to remind us of our need to make reparation for the sins mankind continues to commit against Him.  Within the last four hundred years, He has appeared to visionaries, pleading, begging and bleeding for reparation. Even though He is resurrected, we have crowned His Heart and Head with fresh pain and sorrow.

The inspiration for this image comes from a set of prayers taken from the Holy Hour of Reparation to the Sacred Heart, principally observed on the first Fridays of each month.

Download this Image in high resolution. │  Download the Holy Hour PDF

We invite you to join us and pray:

VENERATION OF THE THORN-CROWNED SAVIOR

And platting a crown of thorns, they put it up on His head. They began to spit upon Him, and they gave Him blows. Others smote His face and said: ‘Prophesy, who is it that struck Thee?’ ”

O holy Redeemer! Thou art clothed with a scarlet cloak, a reed is placed in Thy hands for a scepter, and the sharp points of a thorny crown are pressed into Thy adorable head.

My soul, thou canst never conceive the sufferings, the insults and indignities offered to our Blessed Lord during this scene of pain and mockery.

I therefore salute Thee and offer Thee supreme homage as King of Heaven and earth, the Redeemer of the world, the Eternal Son of the living God.

O my afflicted Savior! O King of the world, Thou art ridiculed as a mock king. I believe in Thee and adore Thee as the King of kings and Lord of lords, as the supreme Ruler of Heaven and earth.

O Jesus! I devoutly venerate Thy sacred head pierced with thorns, struck with a reed, overwhelmed with pain and derision.

I adore the Precious Blood flowing from Thy bleeding wounds. To Thee be all praise, all thanksgiving and all love for evermore.

O meek Lamb, Victim for sin! May Thy thorns penetrate my heart with fervent love, that I may never cease to adore Thee as my God, my King and my Savior.

V. Behold, O God, our Protector,
R. And look upon the face of Thy Christ.

O my beloved Savior, at sight of Thy most holy face disfigured by suffering, at the sight of Thy Sacred Heart so full of love, I cry out with St. Augustine: “Lord Jesus, imprint on my heart Thy sacred wounds, so that I may read therein sorrow and love: sorrow, to endure every sorrow for Thee; love, to despise every love for Thee.”  Amen.

We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee, because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

We don’t ask that. We ask what the Sacred Heart asks.

The Sacred Heart wants to start with you. Not your neighbor, friend or gent down the street. You. Your love of the Sacred Heart needs to be your burning light and animating guide. On fire with humble zeal, you reach out to your friends, family and then parish.

Few will have the zeal to organize networks and diocesan meetings, to coordinate speaking tours and conferences. But everyone has the strength and a floodtide of graces waiting to help them start with themselves.

No one converts a nation. No one reaches thousands of people through his own fervor. We can only reach our nearest and dearest. The Institute exists to help apostolates create a ripple effect of millions of individuals reaching to families, families spreading into parishes, parishes making up dioceses, dioceses making up nations, nations making up the world.

That’s how everything starts. That’s how the Church started. That’s how it will always be.

And it will always start with you.