During this Jubilee Year of Hope, I have challenged myself to look at familiar elements of my Catholic faith in a new way through the lens of hope. The month of June is filled with beautiful solemnities and feast days. The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus has always been near and dear to my heart.
My earliest encounter with the Sacred Heart of Jesus was through a devotion modeled for me by my grandmother and her daily prayers before the statue in a small shrine in her home. Though too young to fully understand the devotion to this image and its origin (from the private visions of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in 1673), I was captivated by Jesus pointing to his heart and looking directly at me as he did so. I wondered: What was he trying to tell me?
As I grew in age and in my Catholic faith, I learned more about the devotion itself and the meaning of the symbols depicted with Jesus’ heart, each of which speaks of his love for us. We see a cross, light surrounding the heart, a crown of thorns, the wound of a lance, and the flames of a fire.
When we pray with the Sacred Heart, the cross reminds us that life's challenges can overwhelm us, but this cross is a symbol of triumph and resurrection. The cross in the heart of Jesus assures us that hope is never far away.
The crown of thorns and the lance’s wound are a reminder that life is painful and difficult but the wounds in the heart of Jesus are also a beacon of hope. Whether in this life or the next, God wins, mercy wins, and love wins.
The light reminds us that even in our darkest hours, the rays of God’s love are there. The fire that bursts forth from the Sacred Heart depicts the passionate love God has for each of us.
So how can this centuries’ old devotion and the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus speak to us in modern times, especially in regard to hope?
The readings of the Solemnity Mass reveal the love of God as the source of our hope.
“I myself will pasture my sheep; I myself will give them rest, says the Lord GOD. The lost I will seek out, the strayed I will bring back, the injured I will bind up, the sick I will heal… shepherding them rightly.” Ezekiel 34:15-16
“Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.” Romans 5:5
Hope is and always will be inseparable from the love of God.
Pope Francis’ encyclical letter Dilexit nos (He loved us…) also quotes St. Paul on the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ.
“He loved us,” Saint Paul says of Christ (Romans 8:37), in order to make us realize that nothing can ever “separate us” from that love (Romans 8:39).
Because of Jesus, “we have come to know and believe in the love that God has for us” (1 John 4:16).
Pope Francis has described the heart of Jesus as being “the ultimate symbol of God’s mercy”. In his letter he tells us:
“The venerable image portraying Christ holding out his loving heart shows him looking directly at us, inviting us to encounter, dialogue, and trust; it shows his strong hands capable of supporting us and his lips that speak personally to each of us” (55).
So back to my childhood response to the Sacred Heart of Jesus: What is Jesus trying to tell me as he points to his heart and gazes at me?
I believe that Jesus is inviting me to spend time with him while he gazes at me and I gaze back at him. He is inviting me to quiet myself and have a heart-to-heart encounter with him.
For me it can be easier to love others in the name of Christ than to sit and be loved by Christ in quiet prayer time. Jesus is gazing into my heart and telling me, “I see you,” “I love you,” and asking me, “Will you receive my love?”
After all, we must first “be” (receive) before we can “do” (offer). Not only must we first receive Christ’s love in order to offer it to others; we must receive it for our own sakes. We have to accept being drawn into his communion of love.
In his homily at his installation Mass, Pope Leo XIV declared:
“Brothers and sisters, this is the hour for love!”
I would add: “Brothers and sisters, this is the hour for hope!”
Indeed, this is the message of the Sacred Heart of Jesus!
Debbie Garza is a parishioner of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Leon Springs, and is an experienced Pilgrimage Group Leader with Pilgrim Center of Hope. She has traveled with Pilgrim Center of Hope to the Holy Land, Italy, and Greece. She says, “On pilgrimage, I know the ears and eyes of my heart have been opened by God’s grace and I’ve experienced the Joy of the Gospel. I am committed to helping other pilgrims experience their personal journey of faith.” Debra is also a member of Pilgrim Center of Hope’s Speaker Team.
Pilgrim Center of Hope provides events, experiences, and media; initiating a desire in people to encounter Jesus Christ in their daily journey of life. See what’s happening & let us journey with you! Visit PilgrimCenterOfHope.org.
