The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

The story behind of the celebration

+ Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus—as we understand it today—can be traced back to the late Middle Ages, particularly to the writings of Saint Gertrude the Great. 

+ A feast of the Sacred Heart was first celebrated in France, under the direction of Saint John Eudes, founder of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary (the Eudist Fathers), in 1670. 

+ The saint most associated with this devotion is the Visitation nun Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, whose visions and mystical experiences were shared by her spiritual director, Saint Claude la Colombiere. 

+ The liturgy for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart invites us to reflect on the love and mercy of God revealed in Christ who “gave himself up for us with a wonderful love / and poured out blood and water from his pierced side, / the wellspring of the Church’s Sacraments” (from the Preface for Masses of the Sacred Heart). 

For prayer and reflection

“Open yourselves to this love and take it ‘to the ends of the earth,’ giving testimony of the goodness and mercy that flow from the Heart of Jesus.”—Pope Francis 

Prayer

Grant, we pray, almighty God,
that we, who glory in the Heart of your beloved Son
and recall the wonders of his love for us,
may be made worthy to receive
an overflowing measure of grace
from that fount of heavenly gifts.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

(from The Roman Missal)
Saint profiles prepared by Brother Silas Henderson, S.D.S.