The Book of the Sacred Heart - Paperback

by Congregation of the Oratory of Saint Phi (Author)

Excerpt: The Book of the Sacred Heart IN order to excite Christians to honour the Sacred Heart of Jesus, it will be well to remind them of the words spoken by our Lord in one of His appearances to the Venerable Margaret Mary Alacoque, professed nun of the Order of the Visitation-" My Heart has within it an overmastering desire to communicate itself to souls. Do thou help me, dear daughter, to give vent to this fire. Announce, and cause others to announce to the world that I will put no bounds to the graces, which I will give to those souls, who come to seek them in this My Heart." To carry out this object, the following are some of the devotions in use among the faithful. CONFRATERNITY OF THE SACRED HEART. One of the chief means of honouring the Sacred Heart of our Lord is the Confraternity erected in almost all parts of the world. The object of the Confraternities of the Sacred Heart, as specified in the paper given to those who are aggregated to that at Rome, is to "augment ever more and more the glory of Jesus, who died on the Cross for us, and of His loving Heart, all on fire as it is with love to us in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar, and to make amends for the offences committed against Him in this Sacrament of His love." To effect this purpose, those aggregated to the Confraternity, according to the instructions given to the Venerable Margaret Mary, should communicate on the first Friday of every month, with the intention of offering their communion to make amends for the outrages committed everywhere against the Blessed Sacrament. They also should recite every day a Pater, Ave, and Credo, in honour of the Sacred Heart, with the following ejaculation: O sweetest Heart of my Jesus, I pray, Make me love Thee more tenderly day by day. Summary of Indulgences granted by various Sovereign Pontiffs to Members of the Confraternity.