Devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Jesus appeared to Saint Margaret Mary in Paray Le Monial, Fance and He instructed her to promote devotion to His Most Sacred Heart throughout the whole world and revealed to her the Image of His Sacred Heart. The Sacred Heart picutre was placed in a prominent postion and was the focal point in every Catholic home. Beneath every Sacred Heart picture burned a little red light which kept the faith alive in people's hearts and in their homes and it represented the flame of love which burns constantly for the Love of us in the Heart of Jesus. Each family knelt and prayed the family Rosary and prayed constantly to The Sacred Heart of Jesus in all their difficulties and when people entered that home they knew it was a Catholic home.

The First Fridays and the Twelve Promises of Jesus to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque

 

Our Lord appeared to Saint Margaret Mary Alocque who lived in the South of France in Paray le Monial from 1647 to 1690.
During these apparitions Jesus instructed Saint Margaret Mary to promote His Sacred Heart, from which flows the all consuming Fire of Gods Love. He requested that a special Feast Day be observed on the Friday after the Feast of "Corpus Chrisit" (the Body and Blood of Christ). The Feast of the Sacred Heart is now celebrated in June. Jesus also requestd that the faithful observe First Friday devotions to the Sacred Heart for nine consecutive months. For each First Friday of the month, each individual is instructed to receive the Sacraments of Communion and Reconciliation. (Reconciliation/Penance should be completed within eight days of the First Friday of the month). During First Fridays, persons should pray in reparation for sins against the Sacred Heart, particularly for sins of ingratitude and irreverence for the Blessed Sacrament. To those who faithfully observe this Devotion to His Sacred Heart, Jesus promises abundant Graces to carry out all obligations and the Grace of final repentance before death.
Our Lord appeared to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque in 1699 and asked her to begin the observation of the First Friday of every month, specifically asking her to receive the Eucharist on nine consecutive First Fridays. Jesus asked "that He be honoured for His Love under the symbol of the Sacred Heart for man's ingratitude." For those who did Him this honour, He made Twelve Promises.

The Twelve Promises of Our Lord 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 houses.
  3. I will comfort them in their afflictions.
  4. I will be their strength during life and above all during death.
  5. I will bestow a large Blessing on all their undertakings.
  6. Sinners shall find my Heart the source and the infinite Ocean of Mercy.
  7. Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
  8. Fevent souls shall quickly mount to perfection.
  9. I will Bless every place where a picture of My Heart shall be set up and honoured.
  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 you in the excessive Mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful Love will grant to all those who communicate on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the Grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their Sacraments;My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.

    Prayer of Saint Magaret Mary

     

    Dear Sacred Heart of Jesus, how You desire to be continually with us, offering Yourself again and again in the Consecration of the Mass and remaining silent, humbe, and obscured in the Blessed Sacrament! How ungrateful am I for this great Fift of Divine Presence in the Eurcharist. Grant me the Grace of true contrition for my sins of inattention, distraction, and abandonment of You who desire to be always with me. Forgive me my ingratitude and indifference. Forgive me for the times when I have receive You in Communion when my soul was filthy with the stain of sin. By giving Yourself to me so unreservedly, you allow me to subject You, the Giver of all Good Gifts, to my faithlessness and my perversions. For the times I have subjected You to the darkness of my heart and sullied Your Purity and Grace with my inconsitency, please Forgive me. Be my Strength again. Defend me against the seduction of the world. Fortify me against my unbridled passions. Free me from the deception of the eveil one. Hide me in yor Sacred Heart, where my restlessness finds calm and my anxieties melt awy. Transform me in Your Mercy and renew me in the Gift of Diving Love that I may once agin become a blessing to all I meet. Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have Mercy on me, Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee. Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I consecrate my life to you. Amen.

                                                    

CONSECRATION TO MY HEART

In this month of My Heart I should like to see many of you renew your consecratio to Me. Many have forgotten the sheer joy of their consectration to Me and I would remind them of it. Let this consecration to My Heart resound around this world in an echo that all will hear it and know it for the world has returned to its coldness towards Me.
Let your prayer be thus:
My Jesus, this day I look upon Your Heart with my little love and I see the coldness of men towards it. This day I consecrate myself to You and to the Promises of Your Most Sacred Heart. Let these tender Words of Love said from my heart add some warmth to it. Let it yield once again all the Blessings of Love that it promised before upon mankind to enable him to see the error of his ways.
My God, You are Love itself; you are tenderness itself and I offer you my heart this day in reparation for the sins of mankind to afford some confort to Your Heart that Loves incessantly. Oh, Adorable Heart of Love, find in me a willing heart that wishes to touch Your great Heart with a little love.
I give myself to You and I implore Your Love upon this world. Amen.

ACT OF LOVE TO THE SACRED HEART

O, Most Loving Heart of my only love, Jesus, not being able to love, honour and glorify thee according to the extent of the desire which thou hast given me to do so, I invite Heaven and Earth to join with me; I unite myself with the burning seraphim to love thee. O, Heart all burning with Love, mayest Thou inflame Heaven and Earth with Thy most Pure Flames and consume all that they contain in order that all creatures may breathe only by Thy Love! Grant me either to die or to suffer, or at least change me completely and make me all heart in order to love Thee, consuming myself in Thy burning Ardour. O, Divine Fire. O, All Pure Flames of the Heart of My only Love, Jesus, Burn me without pity, consume me and I will not resist. O!why dost Thou spare me since I deserve only fire and since I am fit only for burning? O, Love of Heaven and Earth, come, come into my heart and inflame me! O, Devouring Fire of The Divinity, come, descend upon me! burn me, consume me in the midst of Thy most lively flames which make those live who die in them. Amen.

THE LITTLE ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

I ----------------------------, give and consecrate to the Sacred Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ, my person and my life, my actions, penances and sufferings, not wishing to make use of any part of my being for the future except in honouring, loving and glorifying that Sacred Heart.
It is my irrevocable will to be entirely His and to do everything for His Love and I renounce with my whole heart whatever might displease Him.
I take Thee, then, O, Most Sacred Heart as the sole object of my love, as the protector of my life, as the Pledge of my salvation, as the Remedy of my frailty and inconstancy, as the Repairer of all the defects of my life and as my secure refuge at the hour of my death.
Be then, O, Heart of Goodness, my justification before God The Father and remove far from me the thunderbolts of His Just Wrath. O, Heart of Love, I place my whole confidence in Thee while I fear all things from my malice and frailty, I hope all things from Thy Goodness.
Consume then in me whatever can displease or be opposed to thee and may Thy Pure Love be so deeply impressed on my heart that it may be impossible that I should ever be separated from Thee, or forget Thee.
I implore Thee, by Thy Goodness, that my name may be written in Thee, for in Thee I wish to place all my happiness and all my glory, living and dying in very bondage to Thee, Amen.
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