Week 3:  Keeping Jesus Company, and Being in His Company

This is the third in a series of brief articles to draw attention to the 350^th anniversary (1674 – 2024) of the devotion to Jesus’ Sacred Heart, to be celebrated Friday, June 7^th (or Sunday June 9^th). We left off talking about what our Lord wants devotion to him to look like. Continuing: it’s more than “a nice thing to do,” or “a good idea,” or something you fit into your schedule when you “have the time” or “feel inspired.” None of these sentiments express the urgency of finding love and of being with the beloved. Nor do they come close to expressing the depth of commitment involved in this particular invitation to love. Further, devotion to the Sacred Heart is not even something we do in order to receive the earlier named (last week) “promises” in regard to taking up this devotion. It is also more than that.

For this matter, let us scrutinize  Jesus’ own words about love and what he wants to effect, when he addressed himself to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, and through her, us:

 “Behold the Heart which has so loved men that it has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself, in order to testify Its love … I promise you that My Heart shall expand Itself to shed in abundance the influence of Its Divine Love upon those who shall thus honor It, and cause It to be honored.”

“I feel this more than all I suffered during My Passion. If only [people] would make Me some return for My love, I should think but little of all I have done for them and would wish, were it possible, to suffer still more. But the sole return they make for all My eagerness to do them good is to reject Me and treat Me with coldness. Do thou at least console Me by supplying for their ingratitude as far as thou art able.”

“Announce it and let it be announced to the whole world, that I set neither limit nor measure to my gifts of grace, for those who seek them in my Heart.”

The full quotations (and additional supporting ones) are too long to be printed, here; the above will have to suffice. While devotion to Jesus’ heart was known long before this time, “devotion to the Sacred Heart” as we now seek to identify  it must first of all be recognized as the relationship between Jesus and St. Margaret Mary, herself. She was a chosen vessel he deigned to work through, and she is still our Lord’s example when extending the devotion to us. Many times he said he was using her to promote this devotion—how better than by her voluntary subjection and suffering rather than as a disinterested, paid, publicist engaged in mass marketing. And she indeed lived out the devotion in accordance with his plans. So we are unable to avoid taking her as a special patron saint when we are drawn to practice devotion to the Sacred Heart. Practicing this devotion involves us in their relationship just like every other devotion similarly has the witness of the saint(s) it was entrusted to. And, quite obviously, she was praying for and offering sacrifice for all of us, as the Lord directed her, who would come after her, too.  With this point delivered, we can now formulate an answer to our attempt to identify this devotion.

Devotion to the Sacred Heart  is a deep awareness of Jesus’ historical passion and present-day love for us, such that we respond with the following:

(a) We offer our own daily sufferings to the Father in union with and imitation of Jesus’ sufferings under the image of his Sacred Heart–offered once for mankind but,  in the Mass, continually extended to each one of us.

(b) We keep a schedule for attending Mass–every Sunday–including worthy reception of the Eucharist at least once a month, and at least on First Fridays.

(c) We set aside weekly blocks of time to spend in church–outside of Mass–either in private adoration before the closed tabernacle,  or publicly when there is formal exposition / benediction. Suggested are Thursdays but really it is whatever works for you.

(d) We allow ourselves to spontaneously experience the drift of our thoughts toward Jesus’ Sacred Heart, when in the empty moments of our day we have the chance to relax and think about nothing in particular. (For example: when driving, waiting in line, on hold on the phone, doing the dishes, cutting the lawn, other monotony, etc.)  Then, as the pressures of daily life slowly steal the moment away, we finish with a declaration of love, for example, saying “Praise you, Jesus. Thank you for the love of your Sacred Heart,” or the equivalent sentiment, as we return to thinking about secular things.

(e) We spread devotion to the Sacred Heart by means of promoting the specific story of St. Margaret Mary and Jesus’ revelations to her about his Heart and the love he has for us.

Although there is much in this devotion which is “old”–incorporating elements in regard to the Sacraments and even other “competing” devotions, one thing in particular is “new.” It is the idea that doing the above with the intention of consoling Jesus and sharing the concerns of his Heart for others can bring those parties grace in a way that would not otherwise be  granted.

Theologically, this novelty is related to  reparation. The term “reparation” means offering one’s sufferings to God the Father for the salvation of others. It is what Jesus himself did on Calvary to “repair” the damage done to our souls by sin. And now he calls us to do the same, in union with him and his Calvary, for others via mutual consolation: Him-you, and you-Him. Simply sharing this intention of his in those scheduled as well as spontaneous opportunities has the effect–by His direct action–of extending grace to others with whom we might not be familiar or even know.

Of course, the question arises as to how one can plan or prepare for the mentioned spontaneity. We don’t have to worry about it, God is responsible for such moments throughout the day. What is under our control and thereby open to our participation is whether to push away the moment  in favor of returning to one’s mental planning of the next secular event in one’s day or seeking some other, shallow, distraction (news, music, memories, imaginations, etc.) vs. allowing one’s thoughts to dwell for a moment on Jesus his love for souls.

Now, as with most things, “there is good news and there is bad news.” The good news is that a properly  catechized individual has everything he or she needs for this devotion, lacking only the story as it developed via conversations between Jesus and St. Margaret Mary. These can be found in print or online. Simple solution. But the bad news is there is a condition, a pre-requisite, a dependency involved. Actually, it is not specific to this devotion; rather, it is required for attempting any of the devotions recommended by the Church. It is this:

One must be in the state of grace or determined to get there as soon as possible via the Sacraments of Baptism and Confession. In regard to this particular devotion to the Sacred Heart, it isn’t “consoling” for Jesus when someone is going from sin to sin, to then compound such pride with presumption. Reparation isn’t something you can do when you are yourself in need of sanctifying grace, just like a doctor or nurse cannot operate on themselves.

It’s not God’s fault that there are sometimes conditions for the acceptable practice of religion, and in this case a “pre-requisite” for pleasing Jesus with one’s devotion. It is the sinful resistance to grace which establishes fault. Thus is again proven the reflexive principle that a perversion of will can needlessly complicate anything! Let us ask this devotion’s particular saint to render her assistance in overcoming all things which would bar people’s progress toward the Sacred Heart.

“Saint Margaret Mary, we take you as our patroness to help us practice devotion to Jesus’ Sacred Heart as he himself explained it to you and desired you to teach it to us. Amen”

References for additional reading:
https://ewtn.co.uk/chpop-7-powerful-prayers-guaranteed-to-increase-your-devotion-to-the-sacred-heart-of-jesus/

https://traditionalcatholicprayers.com/2019/10/08/prayers-to-the-sacred-heart-of-jesus/

Article 1: Devotion to the Sacred Heart, Introduction
Article 2: The Twelve Promises
Article 3: Keeping Jesus Company, and Being in His Company
Article 4: His Love Is Real and Brings Us Hope