The Month of the Sacred Heart

After the devotions of May to His Blessed Mother Mary, we turn now to June, the month of His love. It is not a coincidence that western culture has chosen June for the month of weddings, nor that Our lord chose to elevate the month to turn the mind toward love, union, and the promises of the human heart and Divine Love. To increase this necessary fervor, The Month of the Sacred Heart, by the Abb Berlioux, contains a valuable trove of practices and sentiments toward sanctifying the month of June. Excellent as a daily reader for the month, but also very useful for the monthly First Friday devotions and home enthronement preparations and ceremonies, as well as matrimonial devotions, anniversaries and vow renewals.

Each chapter contains the whole day's reading, prayer, and a fitting example for the reading, usually taken from the author's personal knowledge or some other historical example. Much of the life of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque is included, as well as incredible inspiration and pearls of hope from the tumultuous nineteenth century - a century that echoes our own in social and spiritual unrest. This is what gives the book a unique atmosphere, and timeless appropriateness.  As each of the thirty days of June progress, the subjects cover every possible facet of the Sacred Heart devotion, solidifying for the devotee a rich theological truth and piety.

The subjects range from the origins of the devotion and life of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the incredible promises of the Sacred Heart devotion, the material and spiritual objects of the devotion, a description of, and ways to devote oneself to each symbol within the Image itself, the various desires of our Lord's Heart, the terrible "thorns", or sorrows, with which His people wound His Heart, the means of honoring His Heart, beautiful ways to execute the practice of this devotion in our everyday lives, the hearts of the Holy Family, and more. The readings are short and easy for modern man to complete for a morning meditation, between the labors of a busy life, and for raising to a higher level one's entire being to live each moment in honor of His Divine Heart. Let us make impossible the words of St. Francis of Assisi that, "Love is not loved".

The examples after each reading reflect upon each truth taught each day. Many of the stories are literally of conversions and miraculous events occurring due to a petition to the Sacred Heart, and others are simply inspiring about individuals who lived deeply devoted lives, consecrated to the Heart of Jesus. Truly, those who persevere through this devotion will save their own souls, the souls around them, and deliver many souls from the fires and pains of Purgatory.

The prayers that follow each daily reading are written specifically to inspire a greater love in relation to the subject treated for that day, perfectly-matched to the theme of the reading.

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