One of my favorite spots in my parish church is the statue of Christ on a white stone pedestal near the sacristy. It does not stand very tall––His head reaches just a few inches above my own. His arms are extended downwards with His palms open, revealing the wounds in His hands to whomever comes by. I have spent many moments of quiet prayer standing before this statue with my hands on Christ’s, my fingers resting in His wounds. I often lean my head towards His chest, where His majestic Sacred Heart is right before my eyes, as if this figurative closeness will let His grace flow into me and make me more like Him.
Each June, the Church invites us to draw closer to Christ’s Sacred Heart. The timing of this liturgical theme is significant, because as June begins, Eastertide is drawing to a close or has recently ended (depending on the date of Pentecost). The Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, which has been celebrated Churchwide since 1856, falls on the Friday after Corpus Christi, nearly three weeks after Pentecost and almost a month after the Ascension.
I sometimes ponder how the first disciples and Jesus’s closest followers must have felt in the time after His Ascension without His immediate physical presence. But Christ did not leave His friends alone, and we continue to recognize this with the beautiful trio of feasts that follow the Ascension: Pentecost Sunday, Corpus Christi Sunday, and the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart.
Each of these three feasts highlights how fully Jesus offers Himself to us and remains with us after returning to Heaven: He sent the Holy Spirit, provided His Eucharistic Body and Blood, and opened His Heart to us. The Feast of the Sacred Heart is a special culmination of Christ’s gift of Himself.
Praying With the Sacred Heart
When Jesus readily comes towards us, His Heart laid bare and resplendent with light, how shall we respond? Will we return love for love and draw near to Him? This month is a new chance to receive the precious and personal gift that He holds out to each of us through devotion to the Sacred Heart. These five prayers hold gifts from Jesus’s Heart to our own.
1) Surrender Through Short Prayers
Security. When we are with people who care for us, we relax: our breathing calms and our hearts beat in peace. Yet sometimes suffering comes, struggles arise, and we cannot keep our hearts safe. In these times, Jesus remains very close and assures us that He cares about what we carry. Strengthening your trust in Him is as simple as allowing your breath to rise and fall with these prayers:
- “O Jesus, I surrender myself to You! Take care of everything.”
- “Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in you!”
2) Make Visits to the Blessed Sacrament
Intimacy. In silence, the heart speaks. The quiet of an Adoration chapel or the mid-afternoon stillness inside your parish church is the chance for a holy heart-to-heart. If you usually pray the Rosary or pick up spiritual reading during Adoration, find the chance to simply come as you are, with no agenda. Just look at Jesus and talk with Him: remember that no matter how many people are also there, He has eyes only for you and is ready to meet you intimately.
3) Attend Mass and Receive the Eucharist
Closeness. The Mass and Holy Communion are the greatest means, gifted to us by Christ Himself, of drawing close to His Heart. The Sacred Host from several Eucharistic miracles has been examined scientifically and found to be true human flesh and blood––specifically, myocardial tissue from a human heart. When you receive Holy Communion, Jesus’s Heart beats in unison with yours.
4) Learn This All-in-One Prayer to the Sacred Heart
Steadfastness. We all need a heart-check: Who, or what, are we living for? When we become sidetracked by the wrong things, the words “Grant, Good Jesus, that I may live in you and for you” are a valuable spiritual reset. This prayer checks all the spiritual boxes at once: It is an act of adoration, contrition, and petition for the grace to imitate the holiest Heart in existence.
O most holy heart of Jesus, fountain of every blessing, I adore you, I love you, and with lively sorrow for my sins I offer you this poor heart of mine. Make me humble, patient, pure and wholly obedient to your will. Grant, Good Jesus, that I may live in you and for you. Protect me in the midst of danger. Comfort me in my afflictions. Give me health of body, assistance in my temporal needs, your blessing on all that I do, and the grace of a holy death. Amen.
5) Ponder the Litany of the Sacred Heart
Mercy. The entire Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is a rich reflection on Christ’s majesty and compassion. Each line begins and ends the same way, “Heart of Jesus . . . have mercy on us,” resulting in a beautiful consistent rhythm. Address Jesus by the titles that attract your heart. Many of them hold spiritual petitions for our own lives:
- “Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mother” expresses our desire to also be formed by the Holy Spirit and mothered by our Lady.
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“Heart of Jesus, aflame with love for us” can be our request for hearts like Christ’s, hearts that burn and melt with love for those who most need compassion.
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“Heart of Jesus, source of justice and love” is a reminder that these two virtues are closely related. Justice means giving others their due, and as Pope Saint John Paul II taught in Love and Responsibility, the only proper response due to other persons is love.
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“Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father is well-pleased” is a gentle reminder that the Heavenly Father favors those who strive to imitate His Son.
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“Heart of Jesus, desire of the eternal hills” stirs our deep longing for the unending horizon of refreshment and refuge found near Christ in eternity.
- “Heart of Jesus, broken for our sins” is a reminder that there is no vulnerability greater than Christ’s: He willingly allows His Heart to break for us.
- “Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation” points to Christ as our model of forgiveness and restorer of relationships.
May the Sacred Heart of Jesus enfold you, all those dear to you, and all your nearest concerns this month.
Leila Joy Castillo is passionate about bringing Christ to others through the written word in her freelance work, particularly as a media contractor for Ascension and as a homeschool literature tutor. She studied at Ave Maria University and is a lifelong Floridian, so mountains especially delight her heart. Leila could spend far too long chatting about Catholic travel destinations, the saints, life with her three wonderful siblings, and almost anything Jane Austen. You can follow her creativity via Instagram @leila_joyinthejourney.
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