The heart is a symbol of love and affection. This is the main reason why God uses the symbol of the heart to show us how much he loves us. He makes use of the heart because it is the centre of love. The heart is meant to possess and produce love that is why it is found in every living creature. No living creature exists without a heart because of it vital function. After Jesus’s sufferings, crucifixion and death, God realised that mankind did not really appreciate the death of his son; their ways of life did not really glorify him. They lack the understanding of what Jesus went through for their sake. Jesus’s death was the prize that was paid for our iniquities and also brought us salvation. The salvation we are talking about is the inheritance we have gained as children of God. The purpose of creation is that “God made us to know him, to love him, to serve him in this world and to be happy with him for ever in the next” (Catechism of the Catholic Church No2). The essence of creation is found in the above statement, as God’s creatures it is our duty to know and to love him. Serving God should begin right from this world and our continuation will be in the world to come where we will be happy with him for ever. But unfortunately, we do not respond to this love, instead we choose to follow our own ways, by living a life contrary to God’s love. Meanwhile, the purpose of creation is to know and love God because he has loved us first by sending his only begotten son into the world (John 3:16). Despite all the sacrifices made, the heart of man is still very far away from God. This attitude of ours makes the heart of Jesus to continue to bleed without stopping.
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This situation gave birth to Jesus taking further steps to introduce us to his Most Sacred Heart. Through Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque a Nun in the Order of Visitation, our Lord chose to arouse the whole church to the realization of the love of God symbolized by the heart of Jesus. Our Lord Jesus first appeared to her when she was just three year a Nun. This was the first time she received a message from Jesus that his love for mankind should be made known through her. However, by her own love, Saint Margaret Mary was able to make up for the coldness and ingratitude of the world by frequently and lovingly receiving the holy communion, especially on the first Friday of every month, and by an hour’s vigil of prayer every Thursday night in memory of his agony and isolation in Gethsemane. This devotion was carried out privately by Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque. Our Lord continues to communicate with her about the spreading of the devotion. Furthermore, the image of God’s love for us is seen in the pierced heart of his son, Jesus. The Sacred Heart is a symbol of love that conquers multitudes of sins. It is a sacred love which means it is not ordinary but one that goes along side with sacrifices. The love of the sacred heart has no end. It continues to gush without counting the cost. Jesus from time to time devises means to draw us closer to himself so that he can win us for God. The wounded heart of Jesus is a sign of God’s undiluted love for us. The crucifixion of Jesus is a deep show of God’s love for humanity. God did not want us to be lost that is why he always brings to our consciousness that he is a loving father. Through the sacred heart of his son, God provides us with another opportunity to be saved. It is only those that love you that can give you their hearts. Many people are afraid to give out their heart because of its consequences but in Jesus’s case it is different, showing us love and he is not being afraid of heart breaks. Despite our ingratitude, sacrileges, and betrayals Our Lord Jesus never abandoned us. He is still waiting quietly for our return because he knows that we must surely return back to him.
Furthermore, the Sacred Heart is different from other kinds of hearts because it has the capacity that is so large to accommodate every one, it is not distracted by any lover unlike many of us will be. Most times as human beings when we get a new friend, we try to either reduce our conversation with older ones or we cut them off totally because we are human and our capacity to love is limited. In the heart of Jesus we all have a space to occupy and everyone is given attention. No one is lonely or abandoned and we are all treated with respect and dignity. No tribalism, nepotism or favouritism. The door of his heart is open to all irrespective of gender, nationality, colours or race. Jesus gave us a free advert when He said “Come to me all you that labour and are overburdened and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). From the above scriptural passage we can see that the sacred heart is a special kind of heart that can provide us with all our needs. He is the living water that refreshes all who taste. He confirmed this when he was talking with the Samaritan woman (John 4:4-11). He is also “the living bread that has come down from heaven, if anyone eats of this bread he shall live forever, and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world” (John 6:51). From the above scriptural passage, we could see that Jesus has all it takes to look after us. He is the answer to all our quests; it is in the heart of Jesus we find consolation, happiness, peace, love and affection. The Sacred Heart of Jesus is a symbol of God’s gift to humanity. The heart is always open to those who are willing to take refuge in it. It is a heart without compromise, it is a heart where we find healing when we are sick or wounded, consolation when discouraged and solace when desolate. It is the heart that understands the pain of all hearts due to what he had suffered. When you talk about betrayal, he was first betrayed by his disciples and later we also followed suit. In the area of abandonment, he was first abandoned by his disciples in the garden of gethsemane, when it comes to pain, he was wounded and bruised for our sins and in term of false accusation, he was falsely accused by the Pharisees. So the heart of Jesus is capable of carrying our burden all because he was like us in everything except sin.
This week the Catholic Church has decided to celebrate this precious gift The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus which serves as a symbol of God’s love for us and we are all encourage to have devotion to the Sacred Heart OF Jesus. O Heart of love, I put all my trust in you, for I fear all things from my own weakness, but I hope for all things from your goodness. Amen
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.
Sr Margret Ogbebor SSMA is a Catholic Nun, working in the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto. She is the Head Teacher of St Martin de Porres Nursery and Primary School Katsina. [email protected]
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