The Way. The Truth. The Life.

Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Today is the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. St. Margaret Mary Alaqoque shares in her diary: “Jesus Christ, my sweet Master, presented Himself to me, all resplendent with glory, with His five wounds shining like so many suns…From all parts of His Sacred Humanity there issued flames but especially from His adorable breast, which was like a furnace…Opening it, He showed me His loving and lovable Heart as the living source of those flames. Then He revealed to me all the unspeakable marvels of His pure love, and the excess of love He had conceived for men from whom He had received nothing but ingratitude and contempt.”

Christ, so vulnerable and wounded, so open and meek as our crucified Lord, often receives from us “nothing but ingratitude.” He gave His Heart to us fully on calvary, He opened His wounds to be probed by doubting Thomas, and He still repeatedly pours Himself out to us and begs us to receive Him.

How do we allow God to soften our hearts? How do we realize and accept His love for us? When I visited Rome for the first time, I was confronted head-on with the reality of the crucifixion at the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme. There they were. The true articles of the Passion, the relics of my salvation. There hung pieces from the true Cross, a nail that pierced the skin of the Son of God, two thorns that crowned His precious head, the sign that labeled Him “King of the Jews,” doubting Thomas’s probing finger, and the beam of the good thief’s cross. This church holds within its walls a glance into the Sacred Heart. You can still see the physical proof of God’s undying love, shown in His death for us, in this church in Rome.

There are many ways to honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus and accept His love, but one way to embrace the outpouring of Himself on the cross is to go and see it. If you feel called to Rome over the Holy Land, consider our new Rome for Seven Nights pilgrimage, which includes a visit to Santa Croce, as well as to the Holy Steps Christ walked up to see Pilate.

Often big steps need to be made to let God in. Journey with us to embrace the cross and thus, embrace His Sacred Heart.

View the Full 206 Tours Pilgrimage Directory: www.206tours.com/pilgrimages