DEVOTION TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS
EFFICACIOUS LITTLE ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED HEART
O amiable Heart of of my saviour, I adore you!
O gracious Heart of my Jesus, I love you!
O compassionate heart, I give you my heart,
and am deeply moved by all you have done and suffered for me.
I give you my heart completely; affix it to your Heart eternally; inflame it with your Love; inspire it with your sentiments; make it know your will and practice your virtues.
Venerable Maria Lataste
Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque:
“Behold this heart which has loved mankind so much, and which receives only ingratitude and coldness in return for its love”.
“My desire is that you should make reparation to My heart for this ingratitude, and induce others also to make reparation.”
The purpose of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is to focus our hearts on receiving and returning His love with gratitude — with all of our heart, soul, and strength — that He may be glorified.
The love of Jesus was demonstrated through His willingness to sacrifice His life for our us. The love from His Sacred Heart motivated all of His actions, yet this great love is often received with ingratitude, even by the faithful.
BATTLE ORDER 1 : LEARN ABOUT SAINT MARGARET MARY ALACOQUE
SAINT MARGARET MARY ALACOQUE
1647
In 1647, Saint Margaret Mary was born in Burgundy, France. Her father died when she was eight years old, leaving her family in a precarious financial situation. As a young girl, she was stricken with rheumatic fever, resulting in paralysis and forced her to be bedridden for the next four years until the age of fifteen. During this time, she developed an intense devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and made a vow to the Blessed Virgin to consecrate herself to religious life. She later wrote, “At that time, all my desire was to seek happiness and comfort in the Blessed Sacrament.”
1671-1672
On May 25, 1671, at the age of 23, Margaret entered the Order of the Visitation convent; she took the name “Mary” and took her final vows the following year on the 6th November 1672.
1670s
In the 1670s, Jesus appeared multiple times to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a Visitation nun in France. He told her how He wished to be honoured with the symbol of His heart, asking for the faithful to make amends for any wrongdoing they had done, frequently take Communion, and observe the Holy Hour.
On the 27th December 1673, the feast of Saint John the Evangelist, as she knelt before the exposed Blessed Sacrament, she experienced a vision in which the Lord told her to take the place that Saint John had occupied at the Last Supper, and that she would act as His instrument.
Jesus revealed His Sacred Heart as a symbol of His love for mankind, saying,
“My divine Heart is so inflamed with love for mankind … that it can no longer contain within itself the flames of its burning charity and must spread them abroad by your means.”
She described that His Heart was on fire and surrounded by a crown of thorns. Our Lord told her that the flames represented His love for humanity, and the thorns represented man’s sinfulness and ingratitude.
Jesus informed her that her mission was to establish the devotion to His Most Sacred Heart, and He revealed twelve promises that He would bestow upon all those who practice the devotion.
Margaret Mary told her superior about the visions but was treated with contempt and forbidden to carry out any of the religious devotions which Jesus had requested of her. She became ill, and her superior, looking for a divine sign, vowed to believe the visions if Margaret Mary was cured. Margaret Mary prayed and recovered, and her superior kept her promise. Her superior then ordered Margaret Mary to present her experiences to theologians, but they were judged them to be delusions.
A holy Jesuit priest, Blessed Claude de la Colombiere, became her confessor and he became convinced that her experiences were genuine. He adopted the teaching of the Sacred Heart that the visions had communicated to her. Her revelations were made known to the community when they were read by Blessed Claude.
Once the revelations were made public, Margaret Mary encouraged devotion to the Sacred Heart, especially among her novices. In 1687, a chapel was built in honour of the Sacred Heart, and the devotion began to spread to other convents and throughout France.
1690
Margaret Mary became ill and died on the 17th of October 1690 during the fourth anointing step of the last rites. As she received the Last Sacrament, she said:
“I need nothing but God, and to lose myself in the heart of Jesus.”
1765
The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was officially recognized and approved by Pope Clement XIII in 1765, seventy-five years after her death.
1824
Margaret Mary was declared Venerable in March, 1824 by Pope Leo XII.
1856
The inauguration of the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus occurred in 1856 when the devotion was added to the church calendar by Pope Pius IX.
1864
Margaret Mary was pronounced Blessed on the 18th of September 1864 by Pope Pius IX.
1920
Margaret Mary was canonized by Benedict XV in 1920.
Sister Margaret Mary had stood out from the other nuns as she was extremely devoted to continual prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
BATTLE ORDER 2 : LEARN ABOUT THE NINE FRIDAYS
Jesus instructed her in a devotion that was to become known as the “Nine Fridays”.
Christ also inspired Margaret Mary to establish the Holy Hour and to receive Holy Communion on the first Friday of every month.
In the final revelation, the Lord asked that a feast of reparation be instituted for the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi.
During a vision, Jesus said:
“Behold the wound in my side, wherein you are to make your abode, now and forever.”
This devotion is based upon one of the twelve promises made by Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary: “I promise thee, in the excess of the mercy of My Heart, that Its all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Communion on the First Friday of every month, for nine consecutive months, the grace of final penitence, and that they shall not die under My displeasure, nor without receiving the Sacraments, and My Heart shall be their secure refuge at that last hour.”
BATTLE ORDER 3 : LEARN ABOUT THE 12 PROMISES
The Twelve Promises of Jesus to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque for those who practice devotion to His Sacred Heart
1
I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life.
2
I will establish peace in their families.
3
I will console them in all their troubles.
4
They shall find in My Heart an assured refuge during life and especially at the hour of their death.
5
I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.
6
Sinners shall find in My Heart the source of an infinite ocean of mercy.
7
Tepid souls shall become fervent.
8
Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection.
9
I will bless the homes where an image of My Heart shall be exposed and honoured.
10
I will give to priests the power of touching the most hardened hearts.
11
Those who propagate this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be effaced.
12
The all-powerful love of My Heart 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 their Sacraments; My heart shall be their assured refuge at that last hour.
BATTLE ORDER 4 : LEARN ABOUT ENTHRONEMENT IN THE HOME
THE DOMESTIC CHURCH
The Enthronement of the Sacred Heart is to unite the tabernacle of the church and the tabernacle of the home in order to make a domestic church of the home.
The Enthronement of the Sacred Heart means the official and social recognition of the loving kingship of the Heart of Jesus in the Christian family. The family acknowledges this recognition by solemnly installing an image of the Sacred Heart in a place of honour in the home and dedicating itself to Him by an Act of Consecration.
The Enthronement of the Sacred Heart is the recognition of the living presence of our Lord in the home, where His Divine Heart, as King of Love, is the centre of the family.
The Enthronement of the Sacred Heart is more than a veneration of an image, it is a “way of life”, a sharing of hearts, a permanent state of devotion and love. The home becomes a “Domestic Church” – a place where Jesus is loved and where a family will render reparation to the King of Love.
Jesus promised St. Margaret Mary Alacoque that He:
“will bless the home in which the image of my Sacred Heart shall be exposed and honored.”
When we enthrone (display) the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in a prominent place and signify that Jesus is the King, friend and brother of the family, we are responding to the invitation of the Church to make our homes “Domestic Churches”, with Jesus in the centre and source of love for all. As the sanctuary church lamp reminds us of Christ’s presence in the tabernacle, the enthroned image of the Sacred Heart reminds us that Jesus is among us and with us. By this covenant we make our homes and hearts His tabernacle.
The gift of the Enthronement is an awareness of His Living Presence in the family and a source of grace and blessings for the family.
We also consecrate ourselves, our families and our homes to the Immaculate Heart of Mary who always leads us to her Son.
The Blessed Mother should be part of your home life; she leads you to the Sacred Heart of her Son, and He will lead you to the Eucharist where He is truly present.
Your home will become a house of prayer and a Marian and Eucharistic shrine.
THE IMAGE OF THE SACRED HEART
In the Enthronement ceremony, a blessed picture or a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus must be used, as long as it replicates what St. Margaret Mary described seeing when Our Lord appeared to her:
Around His Heart is a crown of thorns.
There is a wound, from the soldier’s spear, showing that our sins hurt Him in the Heart.
The flames coming from His Heart show the intensity of His Love.
Above the flames is a cross showing that His Love for us was so great that He died for us.
These are the symbols of His passion. We were redeemed by the cross and we will be saved by it.
PREPARATION FOR ENTHRONEMENT
We must proclaim Jesus as the King and Head of our household; He is to be the Living Presence of God in our homes. The greater the preparation the greater the graces.
Ensure everyone in the family are fully aware of the importance of the ceremony and it is given the reverence it deserves.
Complete the 9 Day Sacred Heart Novena in preparation for the Enthronement.
The Enthronement should be presided over by a priest, but if this is not possible, a priest should bless the image of the Sacred Heart to be enthroned, prior to the ceremony.
THE CEREMONY
CLICK THE IMAGE BELOW FOR ENTHONRMENT CEREMONY
BATTLE ORDER 5 : LEARN THE NOVENA TO THE SACRED HEART
NOVENA TO THE SACRED HEART
June is the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Feast of the Sacred Heart is celebrated on the 3rd Friday after Pentecost.
The Novena to the Sacred Heart can be done at any time. In Catholic tradition, it is usually said for 9 days leading up to the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
CLICK THE SACRED HEART BELOW TO GO TO THE NOVENA
BATTLE ORDER 6 : LEARN ABOUT THE SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST SACRED HEART OF JESUS
THE FEAST DAY
“Then showing me His Divine Heart, He said: ‘Behold this Heart which has so loved men that It has spared nothing even to exhausting and consuming Itself in order to testify to them Its love. Instead of acknowledgment, I receive for the most part only ingratitude, irreverence, sacrilege, coldness and contempt in this Sacrament of Love. But what I feel much more deeply is that it is hearts consecrated to Me that treat Me so. I ask, therefore, that the first Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi be devoted to a special festival in honoUr of My Heart, by communicating on that day and by making an act of reparation for the ingratitude It has received while exposed on the altars.’ ”
The third Friday after Pentecost is the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Although the revelations to St. Margaret Mary of Alacoque promoted this devotion, the origins trace back to Scripture.
BATTLE ORDER 7 : LEARN THE ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS
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, honouring 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.
BATTLE ORDER 8: LEARN THE ACT OF CONSECRATION OF THE HUMAN RACE TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS
Most sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Your altar. We are Yours, and Yours we wish to be; but, to be more surely united with You, behold each one of us freely consecrates himself today to Your Most Sacred Heart. Many indeed have never known You; many too, despising Your precepts, have rejected You. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus, and draw them to Your Sacred Heart.
You are King, O Lord, not only of the faithful who have never forsaken You, but also of the prodigal children who have abandoned You; grant that they may quickly return to their Father’s house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger.
You are King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof; call them back to the harbor of truth and unity of faith, so that soon there may be but one flock and one Shepherd.
You are King of all those who are still involved in the darkness of idolatry or of Islamism; refuse not to draw them all into the light and kingdom of God. Turn Your eyes of mercy toward the children of that race, once Your chosen people. Of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Savior; may it now descend upon them a laver of redemption and of life.
Grant, O Lord, to Your Church assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations, and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry: Praise to the Divine Heart that wrought our salvation; to It be glory and Honour forever. Amen.
BATTLE ORDER 9: LEARN THIS PRAYER OF CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED HEART
I, _______, give myself to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ, and I consecrate to Him my person and my life, my actions, pains, and sufferings, so that henceforth I shall be unwilling to make use of any part of my being except for the honour, love, and glory of the Sacred Heart.
My unchanging purpose is to be all His and to do all things for the love of Him while renouncing with all my heart whatever is displeasing to Him.
I take you, O Sacred Heart, as the only object of my love, the guardian of my life, the assurance of my salvation, the remedy of my weakness and inconstancy, the atonement for all my faults, and the sure refugee at my death.
O Heart of love, I place all my trust in You, for I fear everything from my own wickedness and frailty, but I hope for all things from Your goodness and bounty.
Consume in me all that can displease You or resist Your holy Will. Let Your pure love imprint You so deeply upon my heart that I shall nevermore be able to forget You or be separated from You. May I obtain from all Your loving kindness the grace of having my name written in You, for I desire to place in You all my happiness and all my glory, living and dying in virtual bondage to You.
BATTLE ORDER 10 : LEARN THE ACT OF REPARATION TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS
Adorable Heart of Jesus, consumed with love for men and thirsting for their salvation, Heart so loving yet so little loved, deign to accept this act of reparation that we eagerly offer to make amends to Thee for the outrages, the irreverences and profanations which Thou dost receive in the adorable Sacrament of the Altar. Pardon, O most Sacred Heart, the forgetfulness and ingratitude of men, the abandonment and indifference with which they repay Thy immense love! Forgive us all, forgive all poor sinners! Remember not our innumerable faults, and from the open wound of Thy Sacred Side let floods of grace and mercy descend upon us. Guard and protect us, hide us in this divine wound till that happy moment comes, when in our heavenly country we repeat with the angels throughout eternity: “Glory, love, gratitude, and unceasing praise be to the most loving Heart of our Saviour!”
(ALTERNATIVE ACT)
O Jesus, Divine Savior, deign to cast a look of mercy upon Your children, who assemble in the same spirit of faith, reparation, and love, and come to deplore their own infidelities, and those of all poor sinners, their brethren. May we touch Your Divine Heart by the unanimous and solemn promises we are about to make and obtain mercy for ourselves, for the world, and for all who are so unhappy as not to love You. We all promise that for the future:
For the forgetfulness and ingratitude of men, we will console you, O Lord.
For the way you are deserted in your holy tabernacle, we will console you, O Lord.
For the crimes of sinners, we will console you, O Lord.
For the hatred of the impious, we will console you, O Lord.
For the blasphemies uttered against you, we will console you, O Lord.
For the sacrileges that profane your sacrament of love, we will console you, O Lord.
For the outrages against your divinity, we will console you, O Lord.
For the injuries of which you are the adorable victim, we will console you, O Lord.
For the coldness of the greater part of your children, we will console you, O Lord.
For the contempt of your loving invitation, we will console you, O Lord.
For the infidelity of those who called themselves your friends, we will console you, O Lord.
For the abuse of your grace, we will console you, O Lord.
For our own unfaithfulness, we will console you, O Lord.
For the incomprehensible hardness of our hearts, we will console you, O Lord.
For our long delay in loving you, we will console you, O Lord.
For our tepidity in your holy service, we will console you, O Lord.
For your bitter sadness at the loss of souls, we will console you, O Lord.
For your long waiting at the door of our hearts, we will console you, O Lord.
For the heartless scorn that grieves you, we will console you, O Lord.
For your loving sighs, we will console you, O Lord.
For your loving tears, we will console you, O Lord.
For your loving imprisonment, we will console you, O Lord.
For your loving death, we will console you, O Lord.
Let us pray:
O Jesus! Divine Saviour, from whose Heart comes forth this bitter complaint, “I looked for one that would comfort me, and I found none,” graciously accept the feeble consolation we offer You, and aid us so powerfully by Your grace, that we may, for the time to come, shun more and more all that can displease You, and prove ourselves in everything, and everywhere, and forever Your most faithful and devoted servants. We ask it through Your Sacred Heart, O Lord, who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
BATTLE ORDER 11: LEARN THE LITANY OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us. 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 Spirit, 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 Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mother, 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, Sacred 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, burning furnace of charity, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, abode 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 centre of all hearts, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom are all treasures of wisdom and knowledge, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom dwells the fullness of divinity, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father was 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 most merciful, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, enriching all who invoke Thee, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, fountain of life and holiness, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our sins, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, loaded down with opprobrium, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, bruised for our offenses, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, obedient to 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 our reconciliation, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, victim for our sins, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, salvation of those who trust 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 takes away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us, O Lord.
V. Jesus, meek and humble of heart.
R. Make our hearts like to Thine.
Let us pray.
Almighty and eternal God, look upon the Heart of Your most beloved Son and upon the praises and satisfaction which He offers You in the name of sinners; and to those who implore Your mercy, in Your great goodness, grant forgiveness in the name of the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, who livest and reignest with Thee forever and ever. Amen.
BATTLE ORDER 12: LEARN THIS PRAYER OF TRUST IN THE SACRED HEART
In all my temptations, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In all my weaknesses, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In all my difficulties, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In all my trials, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In all my sorrows, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In all my work, I place my trust in You, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In every failure, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In every discouragement, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In life and in death, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
In time and in eternity, I place my trust in Thee, O Sacred Heart of Jesus.
BATTLE ORDER 13: READ THIS SUMMARY OF OUR DUTIES
We must invoke our Lord under the aspect of his Sacred Heart in prayer by making a daily morning offering of all “prayers, works, joys and sufferings of the day” to the Sacred Heart of Jesus,“in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world.”
We must make a formal Act of Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in which we surrender and re-dedicate ourselves to the Heart of the Divine King.
We must consecrate our families, and those whom we have spiritual authority, to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
We must enthrone the Sacred Heart in our homes. This is social acknowledgement of the sovereignty of the Heart of Christ over a Christian family.
We must cultivate a spirit of reparation to the Heart of Jesus in prayer and good works.
We must attempt to attend Mass on the first Friday of each month, as our Lord requested, and make a communion of reparation to thank the Lord for the loving sacrifices of his life.
We must attempt to make a Holy Hour on the Thursday night before First Friday at church, if this is not possible, we should do it at home.
We should become an apostle of the Sacred Heart of Jesus by spreading this devotion, the First Fridays devotion and the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the home.
You now have this arrow permanently stored in your quiver.
Keep progressing in your Battle Training, learn new truths and fire more arrows.
Now it’s time to fire the 10th Golden Arrow
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW TO FIRE ARROW 10
ARROW 10 COMING SOON!
CATHOLIC ARROWS 