Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Today is the solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. The devotion is getting extra attention this year as the U.S. bishops consecrated the United States to the Sacred Heart yesterday as part of their observance of the country’s 250th anniversary. The feast is celebrated on the third Friday following Pentecost.

The devotion of the Sacred Heart is a newer devotion, though it can be traced back to older devotions of the wounds of Christ and His redemptive love. The Sacred Heart focuses on Jesus' immense, boundless, and sacrificial love for humanity. In 1673, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a nun in France, began having visions. Over the next few years, these visions revealed to her the devotion of the Sacred Heart.

The Sacred Heart of Jesus is depicted as a pierced or bleeding heart surrounded by flames, crowned with thorns, with a cross on top. Each element has its own meaning. The pierced heart represents Jesus’ humanity, His love, and the pouring forth of His grace. The flowing blood represents his pierced side, blood and water flowing like His outpouring of mercy. Blood and water also represent the elements of the sacraments Eucharist and baptism. The flames represent the burning desire for humanity to be reconciled to Him. The crown of thorns represents His sacrifice and suffering for humanity. The cross represents our redemption through His suffering.

While I don’t have a particular devotion to the Sacred Heart, I do find it interesting to learn about different devotions and reflect on the symbology. There are so many ways to view and reflect on Jesus; as Pope Leo XIV recently said in Magnifica Humanitas,  “the truth of the Gospel…can also be illustrated by the image of a multifaceted polyhedron, in which the one truth of the Gospel is reflected from different angles.”