History of Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque is known to have began promoting devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in its modern form. She was a French Roman Catholic Visitation nun and mystic.
St. Margaret Mary was born in 1647 at a community in Burgundy, France. She was the only daughter in a family of several sons. From early childhood Margaret was described as showing intense love for the Blessed Sacrament, and preferring silence and prayer to childhood play.
After her first Communion at the age of nine, she practiced secret severe mortification, until rheumatic fever confined her to bed for four years. At the end of this period, have made a vow to the Blessed Virgin Mary to consecrate herself to religious life, she was instantly restored to perfect health. According to her later account of her life, she had visions of Jesus Christ, which she thought were a normal part of human experience and continued to practice austerity.
She was very young when her father died, and the family’s assets were held by a relative who refused to hand them over. The family experienced a hard time of poverty, her only consolation was frequent visits to pray before the Blessed Sacrament in the local church. When she was 17, however, the family’s fortune was restored and her mother encouraged her to socialize. Out of obedience, and believing that her childhood vow was no longer binding she began to accompany her brothers on the social events, attending dances and balls. 1:22.
One night, after returning home from a ball for a carnival in her finery, she experienced a vision of Christ, scourged and bloody. He reproached her for her forgetfulness of Him: yet He also reassured her by demonstrating that his heart was filled with love for her, because of childhood promise she had made to his Blessed Mother. As a result, she determined to fulfill her vow and entered, when almost 24 years of age, the Visitation Convent at Paray-le-Monial on 25 May 1671 intending to become a nun. Margaret was subject to many trials to prove the genuineness of her vocation. She made her final vows in November of 1672 taking the name of Mary.
In the Convent Margaret Mary received several private revelations of the Sacred Heart. The chief features being reception of Holy Communion on the First Friday of each month, Eucharistic adoration during a Holy Hour on Thursdays, and the celebration of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
On 27 December 1673, the feast of St John, Margaret Mary claimed that Jesus had permitted her to rest her head upon His heart, and then disclosed to her the wonders of his love, telling her that he desired to make them known to all mankind and to diffuse the treasure of his goodness, and that he had chosen her for this work.
Initially discouraged in her efforts to follow the instructions she had received in her vision Margaret Mary was eventually able to convince her Superior of the authenticity of her visions. 1:42 Unfortunately she was unable to convince a group of theologians and many members of her community of the validity of her apparitions, and suffered greatly at their hands. She eventually received the support of Jesuit Father Claude de la Colombiere, the community’s confessor for a time, who declared the visions were genuine. Beginning in 1686 the monastery began observing the Feast of the Sacred Heart. Two years later a chapel was built a Paray le Monial to honor the Sacred Heart.
In 1689 Margaret Mary received a private request to urge the King of France, Louis XIV, to consecrate the nation to Sacred Heart, so that he may triumphant over all the enemies of the Holy Church. Louis XIV, along with his successors Louis XV and Louis XVI failed to consecrate the nation and 100 years after Margaret Mary’s death Louis XVI was stripped of his power in 1789 during the events of the French revolution. Margaret Mary Alacoque died 17 October 1690. The devotion to the Sacred Heart was officially recognized 75 years after her death.
The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is a solemnity the liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. This Feast day is celebrated 19 days after Pentecost, on a Friday.
During Margaret Mary’s canonization process her tomb was opened in 1830, two instantaneous cures were recorded to have take place. Today her incorrupt body rests above the side altar in the Chapel of Apparitions, located at the Visitation Monastery in Paray le Monial, and many striking blessings have been claimed by pilgrims attracted there from all parts of the world. She was canonized by pope Benedict XV in 1920. Her feast day is celebrated by the Church October 16th.
The First Friday devotions are a set of Catholic devotions to especially recognize the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and through it offer reparations for sins. The devotion consists of several practices that are performed on the first Fridays of nine consecutive months. On these days a person is to attend Mass and receive Communion.
According to the words of Christ, through his apparitions to St Margaret Mary, there several promises to those who practice the First Friday Devotions.
Promises For Devotion to the Sacred Heart
1. I will give them all of the graces necessary for their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their houses.
3. I will comfort them in their afflictions.
4. I will be their strength during life and above all during death
5. I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings.
6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
9. I will bless every place where a picture of my heart shall be set up and honored.
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart never to be blotted out.
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to those who shall receive communion on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence: they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their sacraments: My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque is known to have began promoting devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in its modern form. She was a French Roman Catholic Visitation nun and mystic.
St. Margaret Mary was born in 1647 at a community in Burgundy, France. She was the only daughter in a family of several sons. From early childhood Margaret was described as showing intense love for the Blessed Sacrament, and preferring silence and prayer to childhood play.
After her first Communion at the age of nine, she practiced secret severe mortification, until rheumatic fever confined her to bed for four years. At the end of this period, have made a vow to the Blessed Virgin Mary to consecrate herself to religious life, she was instantly restored to perfect health. According to her later account of her life, she had visions of Jesus Christ, which she thought were a normal part of human experience and continued to practice austerity.
She was very young when her father died, and the family’s assets were held by a relative who refused to hand them over. The family experienced a hard time of poverty, her only consolation was frequent visits to pray before the Blessed Sacrament in the local church. When she was 17, however, the family’s fortune was restored and her mother encouraged her to socialize. Out of obedience, and believing that her childhood vow was no longer binding she began to accompany her brothers on the social events, attending dances and balls. 1:22.
One night, after returning home from a ball for a carnival in her finery, she experienced a vision of Christ, scourged and bloody. He reproached her for her forgetfulness of Him: yet He also reassured her by demonstrating that his heart was filled with love for her, because of childhood promise she had made to his Blessed Mother. As a result, she determined to fulfill her vow and entered, when almost 24 years of age, the Visitation Convent at Paray-le-Monial on 25 May 1671 intending to become a nun. Margaret was subject to many trials to prove the genuineness of her vocation. She made her final vows in November of 1672 taking the name of Mary.
In the Convent Margaret Mary received several private revelations of the Sacred Heart. The chief features being reception of Holy Communion on the First Friday of each month, Eucharistic adoration during a Holy Hour on Thursdays, and the celebration of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
On 27 December 1673, the feast of St John, Margaret Mary claimed that Jesus had permitted her to rest her head upon His heart, and then disclosed to her the wonders of his love, telling her that he desired to make them known to all mankind and to diffuse the treasure of his goodness, and that he had chosen her for this work.
Initially discouraged in her efforts to follow the instructions she had received in her vision Margaret Mary was eventually able to convince her Superior of the authenticity of her visions. 1:42 Unfortunately she was unable to convince a group of theologians and many members of her community of the validity of her apparitions, and suffered greatly at their hands. She eventually received the support of Jesuit Father Claude de la Colombiere, the community’s confessor for a time, who declared the visions were genuine. Beginning in 1686 the monastery began observing the Feast of the Sacred Heart. Two years later a chapel was built a Paray le Monial to honor the Sacred Heart.
In 1689 Margaret Mary received a private request to urge the King of France, Louis XIV, to consecrate the nation to Sacred Heart, so that he may triumphant over all the enemies of the Holy Church. Louis XIV, along with his successors Louis XV and Louis XVI failed to consecrate the nation and 100 years after Margaret Mary’s death Louis XVI was stripped of his power in 1789 during the events of the French revolution. Margaret Mary Alacoque died 17 October 1690. The devotion to the Sacred Heart was officially recognized 75 years after her death.
The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is a solemnity the liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. This Feast day is celebrated 19 days after Pentecost, on a Friday.
During Margaret Mary’s canonization process her tomb was opened in 1830, two instantaneous cures were recorded to have take place. Today her incorrupt body rests above the side altar in the Chapel of Apparitions, located at the Visitation Monastery in Paray le Monial, and many striking blessings have been claimed by pilgrims attracted there from all parts of the world. She was canonized by pope Benedict XV in 1920. Her feast day is celebrated by the Church October 16th.
The First Friday devotions are a set of Catholic devotions to especially recognize the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and through it offer reparations for sins. The devotion consists of several practices that are performed on the first Fridays of nine consecutive months. On these days a person is to attend Mass and receive Communion.
According to the words of Christ, through his apparitions to St Margaret Mary, there several promises to those who practice the First Friday Devotions.
Promises For Devotion to the Sacred Heart
1. I will give them all of the graces necessary for their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their houses.
3. I will comfort them in their afflictions.
4. I will be their strength during life and above all during death
5. I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings.
6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
9. I will bless every place where a picture of my heart shall be set up and honored.
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart never to be blotted out.
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to those who shall receive communion on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence: they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their sacraments: My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.