Annum Sacrum
Pray The Litany Of The Sacred Heart Today!
Annum sacrum (meaning 'Holy Year') is an encyclical by Pope Leo XIII on consecrating the entire world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It was delivered in Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome on 25 May 1899, in the twenty-second year of his pontificate.
Te Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Latin: Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind." This devotion to Christ is predominantly used in the Catholic Church, followed by high-church Anglicans and some Western Rite Orthodox. The Latin Church's liturgical Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is celebrated on the third Friday after Pentecost. The 12 promises of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus are also extremely popular.
The devotion is primarily concerned with what the church deems to be the long-suffering love and compassion of the heart of Christ towards humanity. The popularization of this devotion in its modern form is derived from a Roman Catholic nun from France, Margaret Mary Alacoque, who said she learned the devotion from Jesus during a series of apparitions to her between 1673 and 1675, and later, in the 19th century, from the mystical revelations of another Catholic nun in Portugal, Mary of the Divine Heart, a religious sister of the congregation of the Good Shepherd, who requested in the name of Christ that Pope Leo XIII consecrate the entire world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Predecessors to modern devotion arose unmistakably in the Middle Ages in various facets of Catholic mysticism, particularly with Gertrude the Great.
Words of the prayer
As ordered by Pius XI, in the encyclical Quas Primas (December 11th, 1925) and published by the Sacred Congregation of Rites:
Most sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Thy altar. We are Thine, and Thine we wish to be; but, to be more surely united with Thee, behold each one of us freely consecrates himself today to Thy most Sacred Heart. Many indeed have never known Thee; many too, despising Thy precepts, have rejected Thee. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus, and draw them to Thy Sacred Heart. Be Thou King, O Lord, not only of the faithful who have never forsaken Thee but also of the prodigal children who have abandoned Thee; grant that they may quickly return to their Father's house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger. Be Thou King of those who is deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof, and call them back to the harbour of truth and unity of faith, so that soon there may be but one flock and one Shepherd. Be Thou King of all those who are still involved in the darkness of idolatry or of Islamism, and refuse not to draw them all into the light and kingdom of God. Turn Thine eyes of mercy toward the children of that race, once thy chosen people. Of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Saviour; may It now descend upon them a laver of redemption and life. Grant, O Lord, to Thy Church assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations, and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry: Praise to the divine Heart that wrought our salvation; to It be glory and honour forever. Amen.
An Act of Consecration to The Sacred Heart of Jesus
I give myself and consecrate to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ, my person and my life, my actions, pains and sufferings, so that I may be unwilling to make use of any part of my being other than to honour, love and glorify the Sacred Heart. My unchanging purpose is to be all His and do all things for His love while renouncing whatever is displeasing to Him with all my heart. I, therefore, take You, O Sacred heart, to be the only object of my love, the guardian of my life, my assurance of salvation, the remedy of my weakness and inconstancy, the atonement for all the faults of my life and my sure refuge at the hour of death.
Be then, O Heart of goodness, my justification before God the Father, and turn away from me the strokes of his righteous anger. O Heart of love, I put all my confidence in You, for I fear everything from my wickedness and frailty, but I hope for all things from Your goodness and bounty.
Remove from me all that can displease You or resist Your holy will; let your pure love imprint Your image so deeply upon my heart, that I shall never be able to forget You or to be separated from You.
May I obtain from all Your loving kindness the grace of having my name written in Your Heart, for in You I desire to place all my happiness and glory, living and dying in bondage to You.
Amen.
An Act of Consecration to The Sacred Heart of Jesus
I give myself and consecrate to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ, my person and my life, my actions, pains and sufferings, so that I may be unwilling to make use of any part of my being other than to honour, love and glorify the Sacred Heart. This is my unchanging purpose, namely, to be all His and do all things for His love while renouncing whatever is displeasing to Him with all my heart. I, therefore, take You, O Sacred heart, to be the only object of my love, the guardian of my life, my assurance of salvation, the remedy of my weakness and inconstancy, the atonement for all the faults of my life and my sure refuge at the hour of death.
Be then, O Heart of goodness, my justification before God the Father, and turn away from me the strokes of his righteous anger. O Heart of love, I put all my confidence in You, for I fear everything from my wickedness and frailty, but I hope for all things from Your goodness and bounty.
Remove from me all that can displease You or resist Your holy will; let your pure love imprint Your image so deeply upon my heart, that I shall never be able to forget You or to be separated from You.
May I obtain from all Your loving kindness the grace of having my name written in Your Heart, for in You I desire to place all my happiness and glory, living and dying in bondage to You.
Amen.
Alacoque said that in her apparitions, Jesus promised specific blessings to those who practice devotion to his Sacred Heart.
I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life.
I will give peace to their families.
I will console them in all their troubles.
I will be their refuge in life and especially in death.
I will abundantly bless all their undertakings.
Sinners shall find in my Heart the source and infinite ocean of mercy.
Tepid souls shall become fervent.
Fervent souls shall rise speedily to great perfection.
I will bless those places wherein the image of My Sacred Heart shall be exposed and venerated.
I will give priests the power to touch the most hardened hearts.
Persons who propagate this devotion shall have their names eternally written in my Heart.
In excess of the mercy of my Heart, I promise you that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who will receive Communion on the first Friday, for nine consecutive months, the grace of final repentance: they will not die in my displeasure, nor without receiving the sacraments, and my Heart will be their secure refuge in that last hour.
Paray-le-Monial is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. Since 2004, Paray-le-Monial has been part of the Charolais-Brionnais region. It is nicknamed the "city of the Sacred Heart" and its inhabitants are called Parodiens and Parodiennes.
English: Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, religious of the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary
Français : Sainte Marguerite-Marie Alacoque, moniale de l'Ordre de la Visitation de Sainte-Marie
Jesus Himself
To Sainte Faustine Kowalska
Kowalska wrote that on the night of Sunday, 22 February 1931, while she was in her cell in Płock, Jesus appeared wearing a white garment with red and pale rays emanating from his heart. In her diary (Notebook I, Items 47 and 48), she wrote that Jesus told her:
Paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the signature: "Jesus, I trust in You" (in Polish: "Jezu, ufam Tobie"). I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel and then throughout the world. I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish.
Margaret Mary Alacoque, VHM (French: Marguerite-Marie Alacoque) (22 July 1647 – 17 October 1690), was a French Catholic Visitation nun and mystic who promoted devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in its modern form.
Alacoque reportedly received several private revelations of the Sacred Heart at the monastery, the first on 27 December 1673 and the final 18 months later. The visions revealed to her the form of the devotion, the chief features being the reception of Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month, Eucharistic adoration during a "Holy hour" on Thursdays, and the celebration of the Feast of the Sacred Heart. She stated that in her vision, she was instructed to spend an hour every Thursday night in meditation on Jesus' Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. The Holy Hour practice later became widespread among Catholics.
On 27 December 1673, the feast of St. John, Margaret Mary said that Jesus had permitted her to rest her head upon his heart and then disclosed to her the wonders of his love, telling her that he desired to make them known to all mankind and to diffuse the treasures of his goodness and that he had chosen her for this work.
Initially discouraged in her efforts to follow the instruction she had received in her visions, Alacoque eventually convinced her superior, Mother de Saumaise, of the authenticity of her visions. She was unable, however, to convince a Benedictine and a Jesuit whom Saumaise had consulted. Nor was she any more successful with many of the members of her community.
On 16 June 1675, Alacoque reported three specific requests from France directly from his spiritual talks. These will have political and religious repercussions and will successively be realized under the royal, imperial and republican French regimes:
The first message is addressed to kings: "He desires to enter pompously and magnificently into the house of princes and kings, to be honoured, as much as he has been outraged, despised and humiliated in his passion ... that the adorable Heart of his divine Son was received ... to establish his empire in the heart of our Great Monarch, from which he wants to serve for the execution of his designs."
The second message is: "to build a building where the painting of this divine Heart will be, to receive the consecration and the homage of the King and the whole court ..."
The third message asks the King: "to be painted on his standards and engraved on his weapons to make him victorious over all his enemies, by bringing down at his feet the proud and superb heads, to make him triumphant to all the enemies of the Holy Church."
Sometime around 1681, Alacoque felt compelled to write a personal testament, passionately donating her life entirely to Jesus with her blood. With the permission of her superior, she used a pocket knife to carve the name of Jesus into her breast and used the blood to sign the document. The following account recalls this event:
She herself wrote out the donation and signed this humble formula: 'Sister Peronne-Rosalie Greyfie, at present Superioress, and for whom Sister Margaret Mary daily asks conversion with the grace of final penitence.' This done, Sister Margaret Mary implored Mother Greyfie to allow her, in turn, to sign, but with her blood. The Mother having assented, Sister Margaret Mary went to her cell, bared her breast, and, imitating her illustrious and saintly foundress, cut with a knife the name of Jesus above her heart. From the blood that flowed from the wound, she signed the act in these words: 'Sister Margaret Mary, Disciple of the Divine Heart of the Adorable Jesus.'
Upset by the fact that the wounds which she had cut into her breast were beginning to fade, she attempted to reopen the original wounds on more than one occasion using a knife. But, having failed to open them to her liking, she decided to burn her chest with fire. This incident placed her in the infirmary: "Trembling and humbled, she went to acknowledge her fault. Mother Greyfie, true to her custom, apparently paid little attention to what Margaret said but ordered her in a few dry words to go to the infirmary and show her wound to Sister Augustine Marest, who would dress it."
She eventually received the support of Claude de la Colombière, the community's confessor for a time, who declared that the visions were genuine. In 1683, opposition in the community ended when Mother Melin was elected Superior and Margaret Mary was named her assistant. She later became a Novice Mistress and saw the monastery observe the Feast of the Sacred Heart privately, beginning in 1686. Two years later, a chapel was built at Paray-le-Monial to honour the Sacred Heart. Observation of the feast of the Sacred Heart spread to other Visitation convents.
In 1689, Alacoque received a private request from Jesus to urge the King of France, Louis XIV, to consecrate the nation to the Sacred Heart so that he may be "triumphant over all the enemies of the Holy Church." Either Louis XIV never received the letter, or he refused to reply.
Alacoque died on 17 October 1690.
Margaret Mary Alacoque
Bridget of Sweden
Bridget of Sweden, OSsS (c. 1303 – 23 July 1373) born as Birgitta Birgersdotter, also Birgitta of Vadstena (Swedish: heliga Birgitta), was a Swedish widow, mystic, saint, and the founder of the Bridgettines. Outside Sweden, she was also known as the Princess of Nericia and was the mother of Catherine of Vadstena.
Bridget is one of the six patron saints of Europe, together with Benedict of Nursia, Cyril and Methodius, Catherine of Siena and Teresa Benedicta of the Cross.
At age ten, Bridget envisioned Jesus hanging on the cross. When she asked who had treated him like this, he answered:
They who despise me and spurn my love for them.
The Passion of Christ became the center of her spiritual life from that moment on. The revelations which she had received since her childhood now became more frequent, and the records of these Revelations celestes ("Celestial revelations"), which were translated into Latin by Matthias, canon of Linköping, and her confessor, Peter Olafsson, before Alvastra, acquired a great vogue during the Middle Ages. These revelations made Bridget a celebrity and a controversial figure to others.
Her visions of the Nativity of Jesus would influence later depictions of the Nativity of Jesus in art. Shortly before her death, she described a vision which included the infant Jesus lying on (not in) clean swaddling clothes on the ground and emitting light himself, and she described the Virgin as blond-haired and kneeling in prayer precisely as she was moments before the spontaneous birth, with her womb shrunken and her virginity intact. Many depictions followed this scene; they included the famous ox and donkey and reduced other light sources to emphasize the "child of light" effect. The nativity was treated with chiaroscuro through the Baroque. Other details frequently seen, such as Joseph carrying a single candle that he "attached to the wall" and the presence of God the Father above, also originated in Bridget's vision.
The pose of the Virgin kneeling to pray to her child, to be joined by Saint Joseph, technically known as the "Adoration of the Child," became one of the most common depictions in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, mainly replacing the reclining Virgin in the West. A few earlier depictions of the Virgin which show her with an ox and a donkey (scenes which are not described in the gospels) were produced as early as 1300, before Bridget was born, and have a Franciscan origin, by which she may have been influenced because she was a member of the Franciscan order.