United in the Sacred Heart of Jesus
In the Catholic tradition, while May is known as “the month of Mary”, June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Since the 17th century, when Father Claude de la Colombière was given the mission of promoting this devotion which is essentially based on the love and mercy of Jesus, the Jesuits have upheld this tradition and adapted it over the years.
During the month of June, but particularly on the feast of the Sacred Heart on 7 June, here is a prayer that can help us appreciate Jesus’ love for us.
Lord Jesus Christ, you became one of us to reveal to us how much your Father loves each one of us. You reached out in love to the sinner and humble of heart. Your heart was full of compassion for the sick and disabled, for the bereaved, for the oppressed and the poor, and for all who felt the burden of their humanity too heavy to bear.
Be with us in our weakness and help us to raise our hearts and minds to you in trust. Give us loving hearts like yours so that we too may spread your love in the circles in which we move. Make our hearts gentle and humble so that we may have compassion for those who are less fortunate than ourselves.
Replace our hearts of stone with hearts of flesh. Open our eyes to the goodness and beauty in all your people and in all your creation. Bless us with hearts that are always ready to forgive.
Amen.
[Source: Missionaries of the Sacred Heart – Ireland]
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To pray to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is to respond to His love by expressing our own love for Him and for all that He cherishes. During the month of June, we are especially encouraged to dedicate our prayers to the Sacred Heart.
On Sunday 31 July, Fr Arturo Sosa, Superior General of the Jesuits, brought to a close the Ignatian Year, with which the Society of Jesus commemorated the 500th anniversary of the conversion of Ignatius of Loyola. Fr Sosa did so by inviting his listeners to “commit themselves generously to the service of others, with total dedication”.
The renewal of the consecration of the Society of Jesus to the Heart of Jesus challenges us to reflect on the relevance of this devotion in our lives.
This consecration will not only conclude the Ignatian Year, but continue to foster the current of grace which has been flowing in people’s hearts since May 2021. Father General chose this consecration of the Society to the Sacred Heart. For Jesuits, it unites word and symbol in a special way.
