The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

 The Sacred Heart by Ira Thomas,

Prayer of Reparation to the Sacred Heart

O sweet Jesus, Whose overflowing charity for me is requited by so much forgetfulness, negligence and contempt, behold us prostrate before Your alter (in Your presence) eager to repair by a special act of homage the cruel indifference and injuries, to which Your loving Heart is everywhere subject.

Mindful alas! that we ourselves have had a share in such great indignities, which we now deplore from the depths of our hearts, we humbly ask Your pardon and declare our readiness to atone by voluntary expiation not only for our own personal offenses, but also for the sins of those, who, straying for from the path of salvation, refuse in their obstinate infidelity to follow You, their Shepherd and Leader, or, renouncing the vows of their baptism, have cast off the sweet yoke of Your Law. We are now resolved to expiate each and every deplorable outrage committed against You; we are determined to make amends for the manifold offenses against Christian modesty in unbecoming dress and behavior, for all the foul seductions laid to ensnare the feet of the innocent, for the frequent violations of Sundays and holidays, and the shocking blasphemies uttered against You and Your Saints. We wish also to make amends for the insults to which Your Vicar on earth and Your priest are subjected, for the profanation, by conscious neglect or terrible acts of sacrilege, of the very Sacrament of Your Divine Love; and lastly for the public crimes of nations who resist the rights and teaching authority of the Church which You have founded. Would, O divine Jesus, we were able to wash away such abominations with our blood. We now offer, in reparation for these violations of Your divine honor, the satisfaction You once made to Your eternal Father on the cross and which You continue to renews daily on our altars; we offer it in union with the acts of atonement of Your Virgin Mother and all the Saints and of the pious faithful on earth; and we sincerely promise to make recompense, as far as we can with the help of Your grace, for all neglect of Your great love and for the sins we and others have committed in the past. Henceforth we will live a life of unwavering faith, of purity of conduct, of perfect observance of the precepts of the gospel and especially that of charity. We promise to the best of our power to prevent other from offending You and to bring as many as possible to follow You.

O loving Jesus, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our model in reparation, deign to receive the voluntary offering we make of this act of expiation; and by the crowing gift of perseverance keep us faithful unto death in our duty and the allegiance we owe to You, so that we may one day come to that happy home, where You with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, God, world without end. Amen.

Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (The story of the apparitions of the Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary can be found here. But, for the story in her own words, her autobiography is in print and can be obtained here.) In response to those who consecrate themselves and make reparations to His Sacred Heart:  He will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life. He will establish peace in their homes. He will comfort them in all their afflictions. He will be their secure refuge during life, and above all, in death. He will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings. Sinners will find in His Heart the source and infinite ocean of mercy. Lukewarm souls shall become fervent. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection. He will bless every place in which an image of His Heart is exposed and honored. He will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in His Heart. In the excessive mercy of His Heart, His all-powerful love will grant to all those who  receive Holy Communion on the First Fridays in nine consecutive months the grace of  final perseverance; they shall not die in His disgrace, nor without receiving their sacraments.  His divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment. The devotions attached to these promises are: Receiving Communion frequently First Fridays: going to Confession and receiving the Eucharist on the first Friday  of each month for nine consecutive months. Many parishes will offer public First Friday  devotions; if they do, you must perform First Fridays publicly. If it isn’t so offered in your parish,  you can do this privately, going to Confession, receiving the Eucharist, and offering your  prayers for the intention of the Church. Holy Hour: Eucharistic Adoration for one hour on Thursdays. (“Could you not watch one hour with me?”) Holy Hour can be made alone or as part of a group with formal  prayers. Enthronement of the Sacred Heart (as follows) Enthronement of the Sacred Heart Enthronement of the SaFather Mateo Crawley-Boevey, a South American priest  of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesusand Mary, was inspired by  God, after his instantaneous cure at Paray-le-Monial, to preach everywhere  the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart to verify this promise of the Saviour given  to St. Margaret Mary:  "I will bless every dwelling where an image of My Heart is both exposed and  honoured."  Enthronement of the Sacred Heart is a solemn act of a family giving formal  recognition of the kingship of Christ over their family and home and the official,  ceremonial beginning of a family's commitment to live out the effects of their  recognition of Christ's Kingship. During the Enthronement ceremony, a  blessed image of the Sacred Heart is hung in the most prominent place in  the house and Sacred Scripture is placed before it.  You can print out the  traditional form of the Enthronement in a Microsoft Word .doc format - - 8 pages -- click here). To Celebrate the Day * A beautiful coloring page of the Sacred Heart can be found here. And another one of the Sacred  Heart andSt. Margaret Mary can be found here. * Lacy has some nice ideas to celebrate the day over at Catholic Icing. * Catholic Cuisine, as always, has some wonderful, yummy ideas for eating well on this day. *  Today, here at the Davis house, we started the day with holy Mass, and will renew our  Consecration to the Sacred Heart at rosary time this evening.  Our statue of the Sacred Heart  (an unusual one, with a Child Jesus signifying His Heart) will take center stage on the dining  room table at dinner tonight (probably quiche with sweet red peppers cut and shaped into hearts on the  top).  Then, for dessert this evening, we'll have strawberry shortcake.  It's a nice cool and easy  dessert,  strawberries are traditional symbols for the heart, and who doesn't  love strawberry  shortcake? Happy Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to Everyone! See the Valentine He offers us? What do we give Him in return?