Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

The tradition of the Sacred Heart devotion grew from the revelations
of Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a French Visitation nun
who had a series of visions for two years from 1673-1675. During these
visions, Jesus showed her His exposed Heart, the symbol of his great
love for the world, and gave her twelve great promises to pass along to
the faithful. Our Lord told St. Margaret Mary that those who devoted
themselves to His Sacred Heart would receive many special graces.
No one believed St. Margaret Mary when she began to talk about
her visions of Jesus, and she suffered much ridicule and hostility within
her own community. Finally, her confessor, Blessed Claude de la Colmbiere, a Jesuit priest
came to believe in her visions and helped assure their authenticity. St. Margaret Mary died in
1690 and was finally canonized in 1920.
Devotion to the Sacred Heart spread after her death. In 1856, the Feast of the Sacred Heart
officially was established by the Church. This special feast always falls on the Friday following
the Feast of Corpus Christi. Pope Leo XII consecrated the world to the Most Sacred Heart of
Jesus in 1899. Probably the most popular part of the devotion to the Sacred Heart is attendance at
Mass on the First Friday of the month for nine consecutive months.
Our Lord promised St. Margaret Mary that those who received the Eucharist during these
Liturgies would be blessed with the "grace of final repentance.

The 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Revealed to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque:

1. "I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life."
2. "I will establish peace in their homes and families"
3. "I will comfort them in their afflictions."
4. "I will be their secure refuge during life, and especially at the hour of death."
5. "I will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings."
6. "Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy."
7. "Tepid souls shall grow fervent."
8. "Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection."
9. "I will bless every place where a picture of My Heart shall be set up 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, never to
be blotted out."
12. "I promise thee in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to
all those who receive Communion on the First Friday in nine consecutive months, the grace of
final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving the Sacraments; My
Divine heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment."

SACRED HEART NOVENA

MEDITATION

Devotion to the Sacred Heart, as we know it, began about the year 1672. On repeated
occasions, Jesus appeared to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, a Visitation nun, in France, and
during these apparitions He explained to her the devotion to His Sacred Heart as He wanted
people to practice it. He asked to be honored in the symbol of His Heart of flesh; he asked for
acts of reparation, for frequent Communion, Communion on the First Friday of the month, and
the keeping of the Holy Hour.
When the Catholic Church approved the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, she did
not base her action only on the visions of Saint Margaret Mary. The Church approved the
devotion on its own merits. There is only one Person in Jesus, and that Person was at the same
time God and Man. His Heart, too, is Divine -- it is the Heart of God.
There are two things that must always be found together in the devotion to the Sacred
Heart: Christ's Heart of flesh and Christ's love for us. True devotion to the Sacred Heart means
devotion to the Divine Heart of Christ insofar as His Heart represents and recalls His love for us.
In honoring the Heart of Christ, our homage lingers on the Person of Jesus in the fullness of His
love. This love of Christ for us was the moving force of all he did and suffered for us -- in
Nazareth, on the Cross, in giving Himself in the Blessed Sacrament, in His teaching and healing,
in His praying and working. When we speak of the Sacred Heart, we mean Jesus showing us His
Heart, Jesus all love for us and all lovable.
Jesus Christ is the incarnation of God's infinite love. The Human Nature which the Son of
God took upon Himself was filled with love and kindness that has never found an equal. He is
the perfect model of love of God and neighbor.
Every day of His life was filled with repeated proofs of "Christ's love that surpasses all
knowledge" (Eph 3:19). Jesus handed down for all time the fundamental feature of His character:
"Take My yoke upon your shoulders and learn from Me, for I am meek and humble of Heart"
(Mt 11:29). He invited all, refusing none, surprising friends and rivals by His unconditional
generosity.
The meaning of love in the life of Jesus was especially evident in His sufferings. Out of
love for His Father He willed to undergo the death of the Cross. "The world must know that I
love the Father and do just as the Father has commanded Me" (Jn 14:31).
The love that Jesus bore toward us also urged Him to undergo the death of the Cross. At
the Last Supper, He said, "There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends"
(Jn 15:13)
The Heart of Jesus never ceases to love us in heaven. He sanctifies us through the
Sacraments. These are inexhaustible fountains of grace and holiness which have their source in
the boundless ocean of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

NOVENA PRAYER

Divine Jesus, You have said, "Ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and it
shall be opened to you." Behold me kneeling at Your feet, filled with a lively faith and
confidence in the promises dictated by Your Sacred Heart to Saint Margaret Mary. I come to ask
this favor: (Mention your request).

To whom can I turn if not to You, Whose Heart is the source of all graces and merits? Where
should I seek if not in the treasure which contains all the riches of Your kindness and mercy?
Where should I knock if not at the door through which God gives Himself to us and through
which we go to God? I have recourse to You, Heart of Jesus. In You I find consolation when
afflicted, protection when persecuted, strength when burdened with trials, and light in doubt and
darkness.
Dear Jesus, I firmly believe that You can grant me the grace I implore, even though it should
require a miracle. You have only to will it and my prayer will be granted. I admit that I am most
unworthy of Your favors, but this is not a reason for me to be discouraged. You are the God of
mercy, and You will not refuse a contrite heart. Cast upon me a look of mercy, I beg of You, and
Your kind Heart will find in my miseries and weakness a reason for granting my prayer.

Sacred Heart, whatever may be Your decision with regard to my request, I will never stop
adoring, loving, praising, and serving You. My Jesus, be pleased to accept this my act of perfect
resignation to the decrees of Your adorable Heart, which I sincerely desire may be fulfilled in
and by me and all Your creatures forever.

Grant me the grace for which I humbly implore You through the Immaculate Heart of Your most
sorrowful Mother. You entrusted me to her as her child, and her prayers are all-powerful with
You. Amen.

OFFERING

My God, I offer You all my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings in union with the Sacred Heart
of Jesus, for the intentions for which He pleads and offers Himself in the Holy Sacrifice of the
Mass, in thanksgiving for Your favors, in reparation for my sins, and in humble supplication for
my temporal and eternal welfare, for the needs of our holy Mother the Church, for the conversion
of sinners, and for the relief of the poor souls in purgatory.

LITANY OF THE MOST SACRED HEART OF JESUS

V- Lord, have mercy.

R- Lord, have mercy.

V- Christ, have mercy.

R- Christ, have mercy.

V- Lord, have mercy.

R- Lord, have mercy.

V- Jesus, hear us.

R- Jesus, graciously hear us.

(After each petition, the faithful respond “have mercy on us.”)

God, the Father of Heaven,

God, the Son, Redeemer of the world,
God, the Holy Spirit,
Holy Trinity, One God,
Heart of Jesus, Son of the Eternal Father.
Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mother,
Heart of Jesus, substantially united to the Word of God,
Heart of Jesus, of Infinite Majesty,
Heart of Jesus, Sacred Temple of God,
Heart of Jesus, Tabernacle of the Most High,
Heart of Jesus, House of God and Gate of Heaven,
Heart of Jesus, burning furnace of charity,
Heart of Jesus, abode of justice and love,
Heart of Jesus, full of goodness and love,
Heart of Jesus, abyss of all virtues,
Heart of Jesus, most worthy of all praise,
Heart of Jesus, king and center of all hearts,
Heart of Jesus, in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,
Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father was well pleased,
Heart of Jesus, of whose fullness we have all received,
Heart of Jesus, desire of the everlasting hills,
Heart of Jesus, patient and most merciful,
Heart of Jesus, enriching all who invoke you,
Heart of Jesus, fountain of life and holiness,
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our sins,
Heart of Jesus, loaded down with opprobrium,
Heart of Jesus, bruised for our offenses,
Heart of Jesus, obedient to death,
Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance,
Heart of Jesus, source of all consolation,
Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection,
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation,
Heart of Jesus, victim for our sins,
Heart of Jesus, salvation of those who trust in you,
Heart of Jesus, hope of those who die in you,
Heart of Jesus, delight of all the Saints,

V-Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world.

R- spare us, O Lord.

V-Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,

R- graciously hear us, O Lord.

V-Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,

R- have mercy on us.

V-Jesus, meek and humble of heart.

R- Make our hearts like to yours.

V-Let us pray. Almighty and eternal God, look upon the Heart of your most beloved Son and
upon the praises and satisfaction which he offers you in the name of sinners; and to those who
implore your mercy, in your great goodness, grant forgiveness in the name of the same Jesus
Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you forever and ever. Amen.

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, filled with infinite love, broken by my ingratitude, pierced by my
sins, yet loving me still - accept the consecration that I make to You of all that I am and all that I
have. Take every faculty of my soul and body. Draw me, day by day, nearer and nearer to your
Sacred Heart, and there, as I can bear the lesson, teach me Your blessed ways. Amen.