First Friday Devotions

The following article on the Origins & Purpose of the First Fridays will always remain posted for those who may be just starting their Nine First Fridays. The meditation for the current month is found below this introductory article, please scroll down.

CONTENTS OF THIS PAGE
1. INTRODUCTION FOR BEGINNERS: The Origins and Purpose of the "Nine First Fridays" Devotion
2. MEDIATION FOR THIS MONTH'S FIRST FRIDAY: Serialization from the book The Virtues of the Sacred Heart
3. PRAYERS: Various Prayers to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

This month's First Friday Meditations and Prayers can be found beneath the following introductory article

THE ORIGINS & PURPOSE OF THE "NINE FIRST FRIDAYS" DEVOTION

Honoring the Sacred Heart
There are many ways to honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus; for example, Prayers, Consecrations, Novenas, Pilgrimages, Enthronements, Night Adoration, The Thursday night Holy Hour, and in the Blessed Sacrament; remembering of course that Our Lord's Sacred Heart is present in the Blessed Sacrament. We also honor the Sacred Heart by keeping Our Lord's commandments and studying His words and teachings, and by being faithful to the traditional teachings of His Church.

In His great love for us, Our Lord and Savior remains in His Sacred Humanity, and His Heart of Flesh is for us the great reality and the great symbol of that great Love for us. During the revelations of His Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary, Our Lord said that He desired to be honored in all places under the figure of His Heart of Flesh, as: "a favor to men and to set them once more in these last ages — under the sweet liberty of the empire of His love" The figure of Our Lord's Heart of Flesh is shown in the pictures and statues of the Sacred Heart. Our Lord seeks for us to honor Him explicitly and implicitly in this way. By honoring His Heart, we honor the whole Christ.

The End Times or Last Ages
Notice the above reference of Our Lord to the "last ages." In His first revelation Our Lord explained how devotion to His Sacred Heart will obtain many graces, and that it was being given to draw men and women back from “the pit of perdition” — which perfectly portrays the great dangers of the times in which we now live. As an antidote to falling into sin, we are shown, in this revelation, that Our Lord offers to us “the sweet liberty of the empire of His Love.” The focus of our lives must be on Him, and not on unwanted worldly ways and distractions. Devotion to His Heart would draw men away from sin.

Fr. Culleton, in his book The Prophets And Our Times, states: “There is evidence that it was the will of Our Divine Lord that Devotion to the Sacred Heart be reserved for the last ages of the world, so that, in the last great struggle between Himself and Satan, the souls that He loves so dearly may be drawn to Him with renewed warmth, and thus strengthened against the final desperate attacks of the enemy” (Fr. Culleton, The Prophets and Our Times, ch. 4).

“In the times preceding the end of the world, Satan and his cohorts were to be loosed upon the earth in a mighty effort to draw as many souls as possible away from God, before the power of Hell would be remarkably restricted, if not completely broken. Satan's mission is one of hate. God wins souls through love. Our Blessed Savior knew that the hatred which would be rampant in those evil days could be best conquered by a devotion which would inspire love and charity in the hearts of men. It was to serve, as it were, as a magnet and a bulwark of strength by giving men a clearer knowledge of God's deep and abiding love and mercy. It would provide a harbor of peace and security in those days of confusion and anguish, when men's souls would be tried almost beyond endurance” (Fr. Culleton, The Prophets and Our Times, ch. 4).

“In all times of great distress or danger, God has provided men with the means of conquering evil, as evidenced by the history of the world, both before the time of Christ, but especially since the Redemption. To mention just one of the instances of Divine intervention when a special devotion was given to the world at a crucial period, let us consider the Rosary. In the 13th century when the Albigenses were preaching their vicious doctrines against marriage, and the spread of this heresy seriously endangered the morals of the people, St. Dominic began preaching against them. He had but little success until Our Blessed Lady appeared to him and told him to encourage devotion to the Rosary. This was done and the heresy quickly disappeared” (Fr. Culleton, The Prophets and Our Times, ch. 4).

“St. Gertrude, in the 14th century, who often conversed with the Beloved Disciple St. John, on one occasion asked him why he, who loved our Blessed Lord so fervently, had never written anything about the love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He explained to her his mission was to expound the Doctrine of the Incarnation and that as for the Love of the Incarnate Word as exemplified by His Divine Heart, it was reserved for the last ages to make it known, "so that the world, carried away by follies, may regain a little of the warmth of early Christian charity by learning of the love of the Sacred Heart."

It was on the feast of St. John the Evangelist, three centuries later in 1647, that Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque and made certain promises to those who had a special devotion to His Sacred Heart, which promises were destined to become the means of salvation to so many countless Christians. Regarding this vision, the Saint explained, "I understand that this devotion to the Sacred Heart was a last effort of His love towards Christians of these latter times, by proposing to them an object and a means so calculated to persuade them to love Him" (Fr. Culleton, The Prophets and Our Times, ch. 4).

“That devotion to the Sacred Heart … must consist of two essential acts: love and atonement” (Fr. Tanquerey, The Spiritual Life, §§ 1259)

The twofold nature of devotion to His Sacred Heart—that of love and reparation—is shown by Our Lord in His first revelation to St. Margaret Mary. It was December 27th, 1673, the feast of St John the Evangelist (and Apostle). St John is closely connected to the Sacred Heart on account of his laying his head on Our Lord's Heart at the Last Supper and because he was at the foot of the Cross on Calvary, when that Sacred Heart was pierced with a lance. The Sacred Heart Devotion is intrinsically linked to the Holy Eucharist (which is the fruit of the first Mass at the Last Supper) and the Sacrifice of the Mass (which is nothing other than the unbloody re-enactment of Calvary once again). The Holy Eucharist is both a Sacrament and a Sacrifice. Our Lord gives us Himself (His ‘Heart’) to eat in the Holy Eucharist; and He asks us to carry our cross and suffer with Him, as He did for us throughout His life, and especially on Calvary: “Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

Fr. Larkin in his book Enthronement of the Sacred Heart, under the heading: "Essential Elements of The Devotion," gives us an outline of the chief elements of this devotion: "Devotion to the Sacred Heart, then, is nothing else than love for the Person of Jesus [the Incarnate Word] whose infinite love is symbolized by His Heart. Or put it in another way. It is love for the Heart of Jesus, considered as the symbol of His love for us" (pp. 52-53). Fr. Larkin then lists the chief elements of this devotion according to mind of St. Margaret Mary and her director, Father Croiset. We will list them here and then make further explanatory comments upon them. They are as follows:

1. Worship of the Sacred Heart. He proposed His Heart for worship as "the inexhaustible source of all the treasures of love, mercy and grace, sanctification and salvation for men." "He asks that Its image be singularly honored."

“Our divine Lord assured me that He takes a singular pleasure in being honored under the figure of His Heart of flesh, the image of which He wishes to be exposed in public in order to touch the unfeeling hearts of men. He promised that He would pour out in abundance, into the hearts of all those who would honor His Heart, all the gifts with which it is filled, and everywhere this image is exposed and honored, it would draw down all kinds of blessings” (Fr. Larkin's Enthronement of the Sacred Heart, p. 78).

Do we have an image (statue or painting or print) of the Sacred Heart in our home? If we do, then well and good, but that is only the beginning—the planting of a seed. What honor do we show to that image by way of prayers and devotions? How often do we do so?

2. Belief in the merciful love of that Heart, for all men and for ourselves in particular, with all our shortcomings. "Behold this Heart which has so loved men that It has spared itself nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself to testify to them Its love."

Sometimes we may find the mercy of the Heart of Jesus hard to believe—we may think it unbelievable. Yet God is unbelievable in what He does—believe me! Here are some quotes of Our Lord’s, taken from the book by Fr. Bartholomew Gottemoller, Words of Love, which takes extracts from Our Lord’s messages to three mystics: Sr. Josefa Menendez, St. Consolata Bertone and Sr. Mary of the Trinity. These go to show the Sacred Heart’s unbelievable love for souls:

"Consolata, it often happens that good and pious souls, and, very frequently, also souls who are consecrated to Me, wound My Heart to Its very depths by some diffident phrase such as: 'Who knows whether I will be saved?' Open the Gospel and read there My promises. I promised to My sheep: 'I will give them life everlasting; and they shall not perish forever, and no man shall pluck them out of My Hand.' Do you understand, Consolata? No one can take a soul from Me!

"Now read on: 'That which My Father hath given Me, is greater than all; and no one can snatch them out of the Hand of My Father.' Do you understand, Consolata? No one can snatch a soul from Me.... In all eternity they will not perish ... because I give them eternal life. For whom have I spoken these words? For all the sheep, for all souls!

"Why then the insult, 'Who knows whether I will be saved?' I have given assurances, in the Gospel, that no one can pluck a soul from Me and that I will give that soul eternal life, and so the soul cannot perish. Believe Me, Consolata, into Hell go only those who really wish to go there; for, though no one can snatch a soul from Me, the soul may, through the free will granted her, flee from Me, may betray Me, deny Me, and so go to Satan of her own volition.

"You see, final impenitence is found only in a soul who purposely wishes to go to Hell and, therefore, obstinately refuses My mercy, for I never refuse to pardon anyone. I offer the gift of My immense compassion to all, for My Blood was shed for all! For all!

"No, it is not the multiplicity of sins which condemns a soul, for I forgive everything if she repents, but it is the obstinacy of not wishing to be pardoned, of wishing to be damned! Dismas, on the cross, had only one single act of faith in Me, but many, many sins; he was pardoned in an instant however; and, on the very day of his repentance, he entered into My kingdom and is a saint! Behold the triumph of My Mercy and of faith in Me!

"No, Consolata, My Father who has given Me the souls is greater and more powerful than all the demons. No one can snatch souls from the Hand of My Father!” (Fr. Bartholomew Gottemoller, Words of Love, chapter 5).

3. A generous return of love for Jesus Christ. "Our Lord gave me to understand that the great desire, which He had of being loved perfectly by men, had caused Him to form the design of manifesting His Heart and of making, in these last ages, this last effort of His love, by proposing an object and a means so proper to induce men to love Him and to love Him solidly" (St. Margaret Mary).

What does it mean to return love to Jesus? The first level of love is to keep His commandments: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Fr. Tanquerey, in his renowned classic The Spiritual Life, writes:

“The chief care of beginners is that of preserving charity. Their efforts, then, are directed toward the avoidance of sin, above all, mortal sin, and toward the conquest of evil inclinations, of the passions, and of all that could make them lose the love of God. This is the purgative way, the end of which is the purification of the soul.

“The chief concern of those already advanced, the proficients, is progress in the positive exercise of the virtues and growth in charity. The heart, already purified, is all the more open to divine light and to the love of God. The soul wishes to follow Jesus and to imitate His virtues, and since by following Him one walks in the Light, this is called the illuminative way. Here the soul strives to avoid not only mortal, but even venial sin.

“Perfect souls have but one concern to cling to God and to take their delight in Him. Ever seeking to unite themselves to God, they are in the unitive way. Sin fills them with horror, for they fear to displease God and to offend Him. The virtues that most attract them are the theological virtues, which unite them to God. Hence, the earth seems to them an exile, and, like St. Paul, they long to die to be joined to Christ.” (Fr. Tanquerey, The Spiritual Life, §§ 341-343).

4. This is the characteristic element of the devotion. Our Lord asks for reparation from His faithful friends to console Him for the coldness and indifference of so many, they are to make Communions of reparation, especially on the First Fridays, to make the Holy Hour, but above all to strive to love Him more and more in order to make up for those who do not love Him.

“That devotion to the Sacred Heart … must consist of two essential acts: love and atonement. Love is the first and the foremost of these duties, according to St. Margaret Mary as well as according, to St. John Eudes. St. Margaret Mary writes: "He made me see that it was the great desire He had of being loved by men, and of withdrawing them from the road of perdition, that induced Him to conceive this plan of making His Heart known to men … Let us, then, love this, the only love of our souls, since He has loved us first and loves us still so ardently that He continually burns with love for us in the Blessed Sacrament.”

“The second of these essential acts is atonement; for the love of Jesus is outraged by the ingratitude of men, as He Himself declared in the third great apparition to St. Margaret Mary: ‘Behold this Heart which has so loved men that it has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming itself, in order to testify its love. In return, I receive from the greater part only ingratitiide, by their irreverences and sacrileges, and by the coldness and contempt they have for Me in this Sacrament of love … My daughter, I come into the heart I have given you in order that, through your fervor, you may atone for the offences which I have received from lukewarm and slothful hearts, that dishonor me in the Blessed Sacrament.’” (Fr. Tanquerey, The Spiritual Life, §§ 1259-1260).

5. Special love and reverence for the Blessed Sacrament. “I have an ardent desire to be honored by men in the Blessed Sacrament."

In the fourth revelation of His Sacred Heart Our Lord said to St. Margaret Mary:
"Behold this Heart, Which has loved men so much, that It has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself, in order to testify to them Its love; and in return I receive from the greater number nothing but ingratitude by reason of their irreverence and sacrileges, and by the coldness and contempt which they show Me in this Sacrament of Love. But what I feel the most keenly is that it is hearts which are consecrated to Me that treat Me thus. Therefore, I ask of thee that the Friday after the Octave of Corpus Christi be set apart for a special feast to honor My Heart, by communicating on that day and making reparation to It by a solemn act, in order to make amends for the indignities which It has received during the time It has been exposed on the altars. I promise thee that My Heart shall expand Itself to shed in abundance the influence of Its divine love upon those who shall thus honor It, and cause It to be honored."

This is very much focused on the Eucharist, and we should never forget that Our Lord's Body and Blood; the Eucharist, contains His Sacred Heart. And again we see in this revelation how Our Lord reveals His feelings to us. The focus here is very much on the indifference that is so offensive to Him. Our Lord God again emphasizes the importance of "repair" (reparation) and He asks for a special feast for this purpose. He is again drawing attention to Himself and what He does and does not expect from us, and here He very specifically draws attention to the Ministers and Religious of His Church. Who can fathom the magnificence of Our Lord's revelations and the great honor bestowed upon St. Margaret Mary, upon the Church and upon the whole of mankind? Our Lord also gave the First Fridays devotion:

"I promise you, in the excess of the mercy of My Heart, that Its all-powerful love will grant to all those who shall receive Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under My displeasure nor without receiving the Sacraments, My Divine Heart becoming their assured refuge in that hour."

Besides going to Mass and Holy Communion on the First Fridays of the month, we can also visit Our Lord much more often in the Blessed Sacrament, present, yet often abandoned and alone, upon our altars. Visiting Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament is a reflection of the depth and strength of our Faith. If we really believe in His presence in the tabernacle, then what could keep us away? Or whatever keeps us away, has become more important to us than our God Himself.

St. Margaret Mary looked to the Blessed Virgin as being the way to Our Lord; to the Immaculate Heart being the way to the Sacred Heart:

"The most efficacious way to obtain devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was through the Immaculate Heart of Mary." She taught this to her novices and also composed a prayer for them to pray."

Consider how Enthroning the Sacred Heart in our homes, parishes, work places etc. allows us to honor Our Lord in the way that He has requested. And even without or until an Enthronement we can still honor Him as the center of our lives. Our Lord deserves all of our Love, and when we honor Him under His Heart of Flesh in our prayers and in our ways we are responding to His great Love in a special way and which He has given to help us. Fr. Larkin wrote about the Enthronement of The Sacred Heart as follows:

"By installing or enthroning the image of the Sacred Heart in the place of honor in this room, you have told Our Blessed Lord you accept Him as your Master in all things and recognize His complete jurisdiction over your family "... "So you see, the Enthronement doesn't add any new obligations to the ones you already have; it simply renews in a striking and visible way the vows you made on the day of your baptism: to accept all of God's teachings and His laws and to renounce the devil and all his pomps and works."

Meanwhile, in the second/ third revelation of the Sacred Heart, St. Margaret Mary writes of Our Lord:
"He made known to me the ineffable marvels of His pure [love] and showed me to what an excess He had loved men, from whom He received only ingratitude and contempt. "I feel this more," [He said] "than all that I suffered during My Passion. If only they would make Me some return for My love, I should think but little of all I have done for them and would wish, were it possible, to suffer still more. But the sole return they make for all My eagerness to do them good is to reject Me and treat Me with coldness. Do thou at least console Me by supplying for their ingratitude, as far as thou art able."

In using the comparison of the great sufferings He endured during His Passion, Our Lord is making us very aware of the extent of His feelings. This revelation also sees Our Lord asking St. Margaret Mary to make reparation; to supplicate as much as she can; Our Lord asked of her:

"And in order to bear Me company in the humble prayer that I then offered to My Father, in the midst of My anguish, thou shalt rise between eleven o'clock and midnight, and remain prostrate with Me for an hour, not only to appease the divine anger by begging mercy for sinners, but also to mitigate in some way the bitterness which I felt at that time on finding Myself abandoned by My Apostles, which obliged Me to reproach them for not being able to watch one hour with Me."

Thus was instituted the Thursday night "Holy Hour” and which became an established devotion in the Church. Keeping our Lord company during His agony in the garden of Gethsemane, where He did sweat Blood for us; as St. Luke tells us: "...and being in agony He prayed the longer and His Sweat became as drops of Blood trickling down upon the ground." (Luke 22:43-44).

Our Lord knowing exactly what was ahead of Him, and the pain and suffering that this would bring. And indeed Our Lord had known of this for a long time. The Cross was planted in His human Heart from the very beginning of His incarnation. Only He, as God, could recompense for our sins; and so He became man for us; true God and true Man; He lay in our tombs for us as the saying goes. His love for mankind is an immense love; His Sacred Heart of flesh a proof of His love. In His agony in the garden He was seeking company in these moments; for His Apostles to be close to Him.

The Thursday night Holy Hour is linked to Night Adoration of The Sacred Heart. During the time when Fr. Mateo Crawley-Boevey was engaged in his great mission of seeking to bring every household in the world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and from which developed the great Enthronement mission, Fr. Mateo also developed Night Adoration. Night adoration sees each member of a family typically spending one hour each week (or more) or each month in adoration of the Sacred Heart at home. This may well, of course, focus on the Thursday night Holy Hour. The family may all make Night Adoration simultaneously or in a relay, so as to cover as many hours as possible.

In his book Fr. Larkin tells of how Priests would keep a record of who was carrying out Night Adoration and when so as to try and ensure that every night hour of the month was covered in his parish. Night Adoration is a great way for an individual, a family and a parish to honor the Sacred Heart.

Meanwhile, in the fourth revelation of His Sacred Heart Our Lord said to St. Margaret Mary:
"Behold this Heart, Which has loved men so much, that It has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself, in order to testify to them Its love; and in return I receive from the greater number nothing but ingratitude by reason of their irreverence and sacrileges, and by the coldness and contempt which they show Me in this Sacrament of Love. But what I feel the most keenly is that it is hearts which are consecrated to Me that treat Me thus. Therefore, I ask of thee that the Friday after the Octave of Corpus Christi be set apart for a special feast to honor My Heart, by communicating on that day and making reparation to It by a solemn act, in order to make amends for the indignities which It has received during the time It has been exposed on the altars. I promise thee that My Heart shall expand Itself to shed in abundance the influence of Its divine love upon those who shall thus honor It, and cause It to be honored."

This is very much focused on the Eucharist, and we should never forget that Our Lord's Body and Blood; the Eucharist, contains His Sacred Heart. And again we see in this revelation how Our Lord reveals His feelings to us. The focus here is very much on the indifference that is so offensive to Him. Our Lord God again emphasizes the importance of "repair" (reparation) and He asks for a special feast for this purpose. He is again drawing attention to Himself and what He does and does not expect from us, and here He very specifically draws attention to the Ministers and Religious of His Church. Who can fathom the magnificence of Our Lord's revelations and the great honor bestowed upon St. Margaret Mary, upon the Church and upon the whole of mankind? Our Lord also gave the First Fridays devotion:

"I promise you, in the excess of the mercy of My Heart, that Its all-powerful love will grant to all those who shall receive Communion on the first Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under My displeasure nor without receiving the Sacraments, My Divine Heart becoming their assured refuge in that hour."

The nine first Fridays to be undertaken whilst observing due devotion to Our Lord, not being in mortal sin, and with the intention of making reparation to Him.

The Twelve Promises of the Sacred Heart
to St. Margaret Mary

1. I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their homes
3. I will comfort them in all their difficulties
4. I will secure refuge during life, and above all, in death
5. I will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings
6. Sinners will find in my Heart the source and infinite ocean of mercy
7. Lukewarm souls shall become fervent
8. Fervent souls will quickly mount to high perfection
9. I will bless every place in which an image of my heart is exposed and honored
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts
11. Those who promote this devotion shall have their names written in my Heart
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that my all powerful love will grant to those who receive Holy Communion.

MEDITATION AND SPIRITUAL READING
FOR THE FIRST FRIDAY OF THE MONTH OF MAY
"Could you not watch one hour with Me?"

The following readings are from the book, The Virtues of the Sacred Heart. Over the course of the First Fridays of the month, these monthly postings will examine
the chief virtues of Our Lord, which are there for our imitation. For there can no true devotion without imitation. The readings are not for half-hearted,
nor faint-hearted, nor cold-hearted. They will like a class, given by a teacher, and will take you the time that a class would take.
Only enter if you wish to learn and deepen you love for the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

THE VIRTUES OF THE SACRED HEART (MAY READING)
9. The Prayer of the Sacred Heart

“Taste and see that the Lord is sweet” (Psalm 33:6).

The Beauty of Paradise
The Garden of Eden, which God created and adorned as the home of His firstborn on Earth, was an abode of untold beauty and of almost unimaginable bliss. God's wisdom presided over the choice of its ornaments, the disposition of its numberless charms, as well as of its magnificent wealth of what was necessary or useful to His favored earthly children. His power and His love conspired together to collect into that blissful Paradise whatever could gratify, surprise, delight, as well as what would nourish and enrich the creatures who were to dwell in it, as in the ante-chamber of Heaven.

It was then worthy of the great God who was its author, of the glorious Paradise of Heaven of which it was the type, and of the destined heirs to the vacant thrones in Heaven, for which it was to be a prelude and a preparation. And when all was finished with admirable skill, when God had looked down on His masterpiece, and had blessed it because it was so lovely and so perfect, His firstborn were ushered into their abode and made masters of its beauties, its treasures and its happiness.

Who can tell the transports of delight which must have thrilled through those young hearts when they beheld that infinite variety of beauty and of good, of fruit and flower, of plant and animal, the warbling songsters in the groves, the gay, harmless gambols of huge creatures of ever new and surprising form? Who can tell the sentiments of those just awakened souls, when through all the avenues of eyes and ears and taste and touch and smell, came pouring in upon them the full tide of the grandeur, wealth, magnificence and loveliness of that region of delights?

Paradise Lost
Ah! Well may we regret that the envy of Satan deprived us of the joys of that Paradise and banished us out into the frightful, desolate wilderness in which we are now condemned to wander during the sad years of our lives. But our regrets are useless. That Paradise is forever closed against us; and sad indeed would our lot have been, had not the compassion of our Creator prepared for us another and a better Paradise than that of which sin had deprived us.

What Was the Real Beauty of Paradise?
But yet, whilst that garden of all loveliness was the home of our innocent parents, what was the chief source of their happiness? From what fountain did their purest, sweetest, heavenliest joys gush forth to flood their ecstatic souls? Was it the warm and golden sunshine, which slept so calmly on the green sward, or sported on the waving thickets? Was it the gentle breeze that caressed them and brought on its wings the fragrance of a thousand blossoms? Was it the mingled concert of myriad birds, or the ravishing beauty of their varied plumage? Was it the ever fresh sweetness of countless fruits from the trees of that wonderland?

All this, no doubt, was full of bliss; and more, which our minds cannot imagine and our tongues cannot tell; continually revealed new charms and opened fresh fountains of joy for the happy beings whom God had thus favored. But none of these things can be called the chief source of their delights, the crowning glory of their magnificent dwelling-place. What then was this greatest of their blessings; this joy, in comparison with which, all their other joys seem to fade into mere shadows?

The Paradise of Prayer or Conversation with God
It was, that in this home of innocence and purity, in this earthly temple whence all sin was excluded, God Himself loved to dwell with His creatures, to converse with His children and to permit the familiar intercourse with Him, which indeed rendered the dwellers of Earth little less than the Angels, and made the Paradise of Eden a very resemblance to the Paradise of Heaven. Ah! This is the greatest loss which the malice of Satan brought upon our unhappy race. It was the loss of our God and our Father, who could not abide where sin had been admitted.

Lost Language
We can hear His sweet voice no longer. We have lost the language of Heaven. The language of our native land is become to us an unknown tongue, which we must now learn painfully and wearily, and in which we can hardly hope to do more than stammer, like children, till we return to the home where it is spoken in all its richness and beauty. Sadder far, for this loss than for all the others, would our lot have been during our exile in this valley of tears, had not the compassion of our heavenly Father given us a Teacher of that beautiful language, from whom we can learn it and with whom we can converse in it.

Language of Prayer, Paradise of the Soul
That heavenly language is Prayer; and our teacher is the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In this divine Heart we are restored to Paradise; we dwell within its blissful borders and find it an abode of all sweetness, a boundless region of everything which is delicious to the taste, ravishing to the sight, and filling our whole souls with ecstatic emotions of joy. It is richer far, more lovely, more adorned than the Paradise which is lost; and we, who are its favored inhabitants, may well exclaim in the bold song of the Church: O felix culpa! O happy fault, which banished us from an earthly garden to admit us into one that is divine! O happy loss of the Eden of old, which has gained for us this new Eden, upon which all the treasures of Heaven have in deed been exhausted; a Paradise which unites all the joys of the ancient abode of innocence with those of that infinitely happy home for which that was but a preparation.

Here, too, the chief source of our joys is the presence of God, and familiar communication with Him is our most glorious privilege. Here we drink in the delicious melody of that sweetest of all languages, the language of Heaven. Here we can learn its mysterious words and whisper them in the ear of our present and listening Father, who loves to dwell here with His redeemed creatures, with the children who have been won back to His love.

The Language of the Sacred Heart
The language of Prayer is then the language of the Sacred Heart of Jesus; and we have entered into this Paradise to learn that most eloquent and most powerful, as well as most delicious and harmonious of tongues. It is a language which is best spoken without the aid of human words; which is most eloquent when composed of the voiceless affections of the heart, the silent tear of sorrow or of love or of wounded zeal, and the deep longings and yearnings of the soul for the strong and living God, which can find no words in the poor speeches of Earth. Yet it breaks out, at times, in such words as our lips can form and in such songs as human voices can sing; as if it would emulate Heaven upon Earth and make this land of sorrow resound with its varied tones of sadness or hope, or of gladness and loud exultation, in feeble imitation of the mighty waves of angelic music which swell and sway along the vaults of God's heavenly temple.

Lessons in Prayer
But let us now return to our Teacher and Model, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and receive from it this lesson of prayer, which is at once so delightful and so necessary delightful, because it is a foretaste of Heaven; necessary, because without the aid which prayer alone obtains, we cannot hope for the fullness of joy which Heaven alone can bestow.

The Sacred Heart is a model of prayer. We may say that it is all prayer. Its only occupation is prayer. From the instant of its first pulsation, its prayer has never ceased to this moment; and for all eternity it will continue this, its chosen and favorite occupation. From the first instant of its creation, there was lighted up within it the divine fire of perpetual adoration, thanksgiving, oblation and petition; and throughout all eternity the sweet-smelling incense will continue to rise from that living Altar to the throne of the Most High. For, as St. Paul says: “We have such a High Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of majesty in the heavens.” It is He of whom God spoke: “Thou art my son; this day have I begotten thee; and thou art a Priest forever, according to the order of Melchisedech.” It is He, “who in the days of His flesh, with a strong cry and tears, offering up prayers and supplications, was heard for His reverence; and who, because He continueth forever, hath an everlasting priesthood; whereby He is able to save forever those that come to God by Him, always living to make intercession for us.” (Hebrews 5:5-7.)

Prayer of Mercy
Sweet was the music which rose to Heaven from this unhappy Earth, when the Sacred Heart of Jesus began its pleadings for mercy and grace in favor of our sinful race. Till then there had thundered against the golden rates of Heaven the echo of human wickedness and folly; the cry of blood calling for vengeance; the sounds of blasphemy; the songs of pagan worship, in which Satan made a mockery of God. And Heaven closed its ears against the harsh storm of insult and outrage; because even then the voice of the future High Priest was raised, and the incense of His intercession was pleading for those that knew not what they did. But now the tones of His voice rise from the manger of Bethlehem; from the deserts of Arabia, from the dark cities of Egypt.

Desert of Prayer
The incense of His prayer comes up from the humble dwelling of the Holy Family at Nazareth, from the Courts of the Temple, from the wild wastes of the desert of Judea, where, for forty days and nights, the Lawgiver of the New Covenant conversed with His heavenly Father in solitude, and perfected the Law of love which was to restore us to the privileges of children of God. Oh! That we could go and dwell with Him in that desert, which His presence changes into a very Paradise of delights! That we could penetrate the hidden secrets of those forty days and nights; our own hearts united with His, and their cries and supplications, their praise and thanksgiving rising with His to the throne of grace! How soon we should learn the language of His Heart, the language of prayer, where no other sound would divert our attention! How soon our hearts would be filled with the spirit of prayer, and our souls be drawn upward to have their conversation in Heaven! Why is it that we think so seldom of those wonderful days spent by our Lord in the wilderness? That we do not constantly feed our souls on the mysteries they contain?

It was for us that He buried Himself in the desert; for our instruction He retired into solitude to converse with God. He is our model of prayer; we must imitate Him in order to learn it and to taste its surpassing sweetness. Like Him, we may not devote our entire lives to solitude; we may have work to do for our heavenly Father in the busy haunts of men. But, like Him, we should at times fly away and be at rest, dwelling in solitude, and speaking with God, or listening to His voice, where no sound of human language can disturb us. Like Him, too, even in the press of outward occupations and in the zealous performance of the duties which God imposes on us in our state of life, we should keep alive in our hearts the fire of devotion, and send up, in the silent temple of our undisturbed interior, the incense of perpetual prayer. Like Him, when the day is spent and the noisy tumult of the world is hushed, our hearts should rest on the bosom of our God, and in our silent chambers we should pray to our Father, “who will hear us in secret.”

Mountain of Prayer
Of Him it is said, that He retired to the mountains and “spent whole nights in the prayer of God;” of us it should be true that, even in sleep, “our heart is watching with that of our Beloved” (Canticles). His Heart was ever pleading for us. Its whole life was one uninterrupted prayer, now silent, voiceless, interior; now sounding in human words, but with such sweetness and power as human language had not possessed before.

Heart of Prayer
And now, what is the occupation of the same Heart? What has been its work, in Heaven and on Earth? Oh! That our eyes were opened, that we could see what the Angels see and our ears, that we could perceive the sweet melody that floats upon the air! That our hearts could understand the unseen activity, the unheard eloquence of the Sacred Heart! There, in the highest heavens, on the very throne of God, that Heart is now burning the incense of its intercession; it is now delighting the Most High with the sounds of its prayer.

The music of its voice is heard above the songs of the thronging Angels who hymn the praises of their Maker; above the glad canticles which come, with the sound of many waters, from the choirs of the Saints; above the clear, silvery strains of Mary's more than seraphic song. And its pleadings are for those whom it loves on Earth; for those whom the Father bath given it, and of whom it will not lose any one! Their names are written upon its living tablets and those names are heard in Heaven, as it rehearses them and engraves them deeper and deeper by its repeated intercession. O happy we, if our names are written there; if our names are spoken in the ear of God with such resistless music!

Esteem of Prayer
But what shall be our esteem of prayer, when we see that it is the Heaven of the Sacred Heart? Surely, our poor hearts must be sadly perverted, if prayer can be to us anything but a Paradise on Earth; if they can taste God and find Him not sweet; if they can eat manna and not wonder at its more than earthly delight.

Prayer is the eternal occupation of the Sacred Heart in Heaven. Prayer is also its perpetual occupation on Earth. It seems as though the Heart of our Lord thought that this world was the proper scene for his supplication in our behalf. Heaven is indeed the treasure-house whence all graces descend; and hence, that divine Heart would be there, to open Heaven's treasury by its powerful pleadings. But Earth is the home of our poverty, whence the cry for mercy should arise with such force as would carry it up even to the ear of God, and “not depart till the Most High had regarded its appeal with favor.” Our weak voices could never hope to penetrate the skies and reach the throne of grace. Therefore, the Heart of Jesus would remain among us, “ever living to make intercession for us.” Its voice would be like the eagle, to carry our voices aloft on its wings; and its music would correct the harshness of our discord and make even our cries pleasing in the ear of God.

A Thirst For Merciful Prayer
Earth is the scene of men's ingratitude and of their inconceivable perverseness, even after all that God has done to win them. The sins of a redeemed world, of creatures for whom the blood of Jesus bad been shed in vain, would cry more loudly than ever against them and call down the wrath of Heaven for their destruction. But the Sacred Heart still loved the wandering sheep, still longed for the return of the prodigals, still yearned for the happy moments when it might say to the penitent Magdalen: “Thy sins are for given;” to the sorrow-stricken thief: “This day thou shalt be with Me in Paradise;” it still cried: “I thirst” for the souls of my brethren. Its friends too were mingled with the guilty crowd; those whom it loved so well were still in exile and in bondage.

And therefore it could not abandon them; it must remain to shield and protect them. It would still plead for the guilty race of sinners, still cry for mercy, and avert the anger of God. And therefore it would remain on Earth in the midst of the wicked ones, as a safeguard against the blows of divine justice. And oh, with what strange, lavish, wasteful prodigality of love it was pleased to remain with us; multiplying its presence and its intercession beyond the power of all human calculation; because it has set no limit to the repetition to this greatest of all wonders.

Eternal Prayer
And now, from the sad yet glorious evening of His Last Supper till the end of time, on ten thousand altars and in ten thousand lowly tabernacles, in every region, in every city and town and hamlet that desires it, His Heart abides day and night, and its solo occupation, its happiness is, to plead for us, to be “ever living to make intercession for us.” He has, as it were, lighted, on every hill-top the watch-fires of His love, and placed His own Heart as sentinel to guard His people. And His clear, sweet voice is heard far above the horrid din of this world's wickedness, above the cry of innocent blood, above the wailings of oppressed orphans and widows, above the blasphemies and impieties of those who, in very hate of God, have conspired to blot out His name and His honor on Earth.

That clear, sweet voice rises from a hundred altars in the populous city; from the humbler tabernacle of the village church; from the quiet convent-chapel; from the rustic sanctuary in the lonely forest, or the gleaming monastery on the summit of the snow-capped mountain. And its music is soothing, its tones are dear to the heart of God. It is the same voice that sounds perpetually in Heaven, mellowed by the distance, but as melodious and as powerful to arrest the uplifted arm of justice, to unlock the treasures of God and to pour down choicest benedictions upon the Earth, which sends such music to the skies.

The Sweetness of Prayer
As prayer is the happiness of the Sacred Heart in Heaven, so is it its Heaven upon Earth, in the mystic life which it leads on our altars. The Sacred Heart is, then, our model and our teacher of prayer, in a manner more wonderful than it is of other duties and virtues; since it remains really present with us to teach us, by its own perpetual example, how sweet it is to converse with God, how glorious a privilege prayer bestows.

O wonderful Teacher of the language of Heaven! So patient with thy unruly disciples; so gentle and so persevering in thy efforts to teach them! And yet, how few of us are willing to receive His lesson; how irksome to most of us is that which should be our only joy!

The Necessity and Power of Prayer
And, therefore, to overcome our sloth, this divinely patient Teacher must insist on the necessity of prayer, on its efficacy and its power; and thus enlist our fears and our self-love in His service, and force us to learn His lessons by motives in which our own hearts are interested. “Watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation,” is the terrible sentence which should arouse all our energy in the exercise on which our eternity depends. The consciousness of our weakness, the remembrance of our falls, the scarcely healed scars of our many wounds; the number, the power, the superhuman skill and the sleepless malice of our enemies; all should urge us to persevere in prayer.

For, prayer alone can strengthen our weakness, support our tottering steps, shield us against “the fiery darts of the wicked one,” and clothe us in the invincible armor which will finally triumph. “Watch ye, therefore,” He repeats, “praying at all times, that ye may escape all these things” (Luke 21). If then we will not taste the Lord in prayer because He is sweet, we should, at least, fly to Him, because He is the tower of our strength. If the fruit of this Paradise of the Sacred Heart is not yet pleasant to our vitiated palate, we should still eat of it daily, lest we pine away and perish.

To encourage us still more, our Divine Master shows us the wonderful power of prayer and its infallible efficacy. “Ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you” (Matthew 7). “The Father loveth you, and whatsoever you shall ask Him in My name, He will give it.” “Again I say to you, that if two of you shall consent upon Earth, concerning anything whatsoever they shall ask, it shall be done to them by My Father who is in Heaven” (Matthew 18). “If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you shall ask whatever you will and it shall be done unto you” (John 15). “Amen I say to you, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer believing, you shall receive” (Matthew 21). The Gospels are full of similar promises and assurances; and they are the words of Eternal Truth, which shall never pass away, which cannot fail of their effect, and cannot deceive us.

Omnipotence of Prayer
Prayer is then endowed with the omnipotence of God Himself; and, by prayer, we too become endowed with the same divine attribute, in so far as it places omnipotence at our disposal. Here then we have an instrument in our hands which will work wonders for us whenever we will; a power, which nothing can resist; a master-key to all the treasures of Heaven; a shield against every danger; a comfort in every sorrow; a light in darkness; a joy that never fails; a food that never pails on the taste; a strength which no hardship can break; a life which cannot die. It is a source of knowledge, such as no earthly science can unfold; a mine of wealth yielding treasures of which death cannot rob us; a royal charter of such privileges and dignities as no mortal monarch ever possessed or could bestow.

Sloth in Prayer
Is it then possible that we should know all this and believe it on the infallible authority of God Himself, and yet be slothful in prayer! Let this wonder-working instrument lie unused at our side; this resistless power be idle; this mine unexplored; this science unlearned; its dignity and its surpassing glories unappreciated and neglected! Must we then be driven to prayer, like unwilling scholars to an irksome task, and apply to it with reluctance, and leave it with a sense of relief! We have time enough to waste in trifling conversation with silly fellow-creatures, but none to converse with God! Hours are thrown away in listless and unprofitable indolence, in useless reading, or in the eager pursuit of business or of pleasure; and those hours are not regretted. But who is there that finds prayer a delightful duty, a joy which he longs for when it is absent, and embraces with eagerness when it is given?

Poor, blind, senseless human hearts! Go then to the Heart of Jesus, dwell in that Paradise, listen to that Teacher. Say to Him, as the Apostles said, when they had heard of the beauty and the excellence of prayer: “Teach us to pray;” teach us that language of Heaven; open our minds to that science of the Saints; make our hearts esteem and love the gift which is so truly divine.

PRAYERS TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

Act of Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, to Thee I consecrate and offer up my person and my life, my actions, trials, and sufferings, that my entire being may henceforth only be employed in loving, honoring and glorifying Thee. This is my irrevocable will, to belong entirely to Thee, and to do all for Thy love, renouncing with my whole heart all that can displease Thee.

I take Thee, O Sacred Heart, for the sole object of my love, the protection of my life, the pledge of my salvation, the remedy of my frailty and inconstancy, the reparation for all the defects of my life, and my secure refuge at the hour of my death.

Be Thou, O Most Merciful Heart, my justification before God Thy Father, and screen me from His anger which I have so justly merited. I fear all from my own weakness and malice, but placing my entire confidence in Thee, O Heart of Love, I hope all from Thine infinite Goodness. Annihilate in me all that can displease or resist Thee. Imprint Thy pure love so deeply in my heart that I may never forget Thee or be separated from Thee.

I beseech Thee, through Thine infinite Goodness, grant that my name be engraved upon Thy Heart, for in this I place all my happiness and all my glory, to live and to die as one of Thy devoted servants. Amen.

Acts of Reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
O sweet Jesus, Whose overflowing charity for men is requited by so much forgetfulness, negligence and contempt, behold us prostrate before Thy altar eager to repair by a special act of homage the cruel indifference and injuries, to which Thy 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 Thy 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 far from the path of salvation, refuse in their obstinate infidelity to follow Thee, their Shepherd and Leader, or, renouncing the vows of their baptism, have cast off the sweet yoke of Thy law.

We are now resolved to expiate such and every deplorable outrage committed against Thee; 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 violation of Sundays and holy days, and the shocking blasphemies uttered against Thee and Thy Saints.

We wish also to make amends for the insults to which Thy Vicar earth and Thy priests are subjected, - for the profanation, by conscious neglect or terrible acts of sacrilege, of the very Sacrament of Thy divine love; and lastly for the public crimes of nations who resist the rights and the teaching authority of the Church which Thou hast 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 Thy divine honou, the satisfaction Thou didst once make to Thine eternal Father on the cross and which Thou does continue to renew daily on our altars; we offer it in union with the acts of atonement of Thy 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 Thy grace, for all neglect of Thy 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 others from offending Thee and to bring as many as possible to follow Thee.

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 crowning gift of perseverance keep us faithful unto death in our duty and the allegiance we owe to Thee, so that we may all one day come to that happy home, where Thou with the Father and the Holy Ghost livest and reignest God, world without end. Amen.

Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Lord, have mercy!
Christ, have mercy!
Lord, have mercy!
Christ, hear us!
Christ, graciously hear us!
God the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Ghost, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, one God, Have mercy on us!

Heart of Jesus, Son of the eternal Father, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Ghost in the Virgin Mother’s womb, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, substantially united to the Word of God, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, of infinite Majesty, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, holy Temple of God, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, tabernacle of the Most High, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, house of God and gate of Heaven, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, glowing furnace of charity, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, vessel of justice and love, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, full of goodness and love, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, abyss of all virtues, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, most worthy of all praise, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, King and center of all hearts, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, wherein are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, wherein dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, in Whom the Father is well pleased, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, of Whose fullness we have all received, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, desire of the everlasting hills, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, patient and rich in mercy, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, rich unto all who call upon Thee, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, fount of life and holiness, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our offenses, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, overwhelmed with reproaches, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, bruised for our iniquities, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, obedient even unto death, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, source of all consolation, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, victim for our sins, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, salvation of those who hope in Thee, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, hope of those who die in Thee, Have mercy on us!
Heart of Jesus, delight of all the Saints, Have mercy on us!

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us!

V. Jesus, meek and humble of Heart,
R. Make our hearts like unto Thine.

Let us pray
Almighty and everlasting God, look upon the Heart of Thy wellbeloved Son and upon the praise and satisfaction which He offers unto Thee in the name of sinners; and do Thou, of Thy great goodness, grant them pardon when they seek Thy mercy, in the Name of the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee for ever and ever. R. Amen.