How long has it been since you changed the background image on your smartphone?
That I’ve maintained the same image on mine is no coincidence, and it’s not only because I enjoy looking at it. A painting of Jesus pointing to his Sacred Heart has kept its place on my phone for years because of a promise Jesus himself gave to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque - - and because the Sacred Heart has been a powerful guide on my journey toward happiness with God.
As she prayed in a chapel on the evening of the Feast of St. John the Evangelist - - the apostle who was privileged to rest his head on Jesus’ chest and hear his heartbeat during the Last Supper, Sister Marguerite Marie Alacoque found herself overwhelmed by a mysterious appearance of Jesus, who revealed his Sacred Heart to her. His appearances continued between 1673 to 1675, amid her simple life at Paray-le-Monial in eastern France.
She recorded twelve promises given by Jesus to everyone who honors his Sacred Heart. These include,
“I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life. I will establish peace in their families. I will console them in all their difficulties.”
Having the image of Jesus in my hands for the embarrassing number of hours I hold my phone each day, has shown me the veracity of these promises. How easy it is to get caught up in a frenzy of tasks, appointments, notifications, and the endless scroll of online content! In between apps and swipes, my glimpse of Jesus’ kind expression and gesture toward his Sacred Heart has caused me many times to pause, to reconsider my actions and attitudes in the heat of the moment.
Small pauses like this, over time, help create better habits. Today, I find it much easier to act like a Christian in situations which could easily stoke anger or tempt to vice.
Best of all, the Sacred Heart of Jesus doesn’t compel me to virtue via “guilt trip,” but acts as a simple, disarming, powerful reminder of God’s personal love for me… a Love so compelling that one cannot receive it and remain the same.
I daresay Jesus was very intentional about exactly when he gave this devotion to St. Margaret Mary. At the time, a heresy called Jansenism was leading many people to believe they had to earn God’s graces. This resulted in many Catholics distancing themselves from the sacraments. In such a world, who could possibly be worthy of heaven? Enter: Jesus and his Sacred Heart.
Pope Francis’ very last encyclical letter written for us, Dilexit nos, meaning, He loved us, is a masterful portrait of Jesus’ Sacred Heart. In it, he wrote that a certain Jansenism still exists today among many Catholics, along with other misguided mindsets.
“The result,” he wrote, “is often a Christianity stripped of the tender consolations of faith, the joy of serving others, the fervor of personal commitment to mission, the beauty of knowing Christ and the profound gratitude born of the friendship he offers and the ultimate meaning he gives to our lives. […] This leads me to propose to the whole Church renewed reflection on the love of Christ represented in his Sacred Heart. For there we find the whole Gospel, a synthesis of the truths of our faith, all that we adore and seek in faith, all that responds to our deepest needs.”
Truly, through my years-long journey with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, many of my personal failings or mistaken attitudes about God, myself, or others, have been healed. In situations of emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual anguish, I have found myself remarkably consoled and willing to forgive.
Along with Pope Francis and our current Holy Father Pope Leo XIV - - but most especially echoing Christ himself, I invite you to reconnect with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Keep an image of Jesus exposing his Heart and pointing toward it, somewhere important for you and for your family. Share this devotion with as many people as are open to it.
In a world seeking “something more,” the Sacred Heart of Jesus awaits us, most profoundly in the sacraments. May our renewed encounter with him heal and transform us to walk each day more fully as our truest selves, pilgrims of hope.
Originally written by Pilgrim Center of Hope for Today's Catholic newspaper.
Angela Sealana is the Media Coordinator for Pilgrim Center of Hope, having served at the apostolate since 2010. She also serves on the PCH Speaker Team.
Answering Christ’s call, Pilgrim Center of Hope guides people to encounter Him so as to live in hope, as pilgrims in daily life. See what’s happening & let us journey with you! Visit PilgrimCenterOfHope.org.
