A Special Visit to St. Clement of Rome
Join us for a Sacred Heart Holy Hour
Monday, September 29, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Welcome the Sacred Heart Icon
Our Knights of Columbus Council is honored to host the Sacred Heart of Jesus Pilgrim Icon, part of a worldwide program that has touched the lives of over 23 million faithful since 1979. This sacred icon, blessed by Pope Francis, features a reproduction of Pompeo Batoni’s renowned 1767 painting of the Sacred Heart, which is venerated at the Church of the Gesù in Rome.
The Sacred Heart represents God’s boundless and passionate love for mankind and symbolizes the long-suffering love and compassion of Christ’s heart toward humanity. This devotion, rooted in the mystical revelations to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque between 1673 and 1675, continues to inspire Catholics worldwide to grow closer to Jesus through His Sacred Heart.
Join Us in Prayer
All parishioners, families, and friends are warmly invited to attend this special Sacred Heart Holy Hour on Monday evening. Come and experience the peace, mercy, and abundant love that flows from the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Let us gather as a parish family to honor Christ’s heart, which beats with infinite love for each of us.
Sacred Heart Holy Hour Program
Monday, September 29, 2025 – 6:00 PM In the Day Chapel
Our special Sacred Heart Holy Hour will include:
- Scripture Readings from the Word of God
- Reflections from Pope Francis on the Sacred Heart of Jesus
- The Divine Mercy Chaplet
- Prayers to the Sacred Heart including traditional devotions
- Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Time for Silent Prayer and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
Enthrone the Sacred Heart in Your Home
Families are encouraged to enthrone the Sacred Heart in their homes by placing an image of the Sacred Heart in a place of honor and conducting a simple enthronement ceremony. This practice brings Christ’s love and protection directly into our domestic churches.
The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is one of the most cherished and widespread Catholic devotions, emphasizing Jesus’ boundless love and mercy for humanity. It finds its roots in scripture and tradition, flourished in the medieval mystical era, and reached its current form through the revelations to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th century.
History of the Devotion
- The concept has scriptural origins, including references to God’s love and Christ’s wounded heart.
- Early Christians and Church Fathers often meditated on Jesus’ Five Wounds; St. Gertrude the Great (13th century) had mystical experiences highlighting the Heart of Jesus.
- Formal devotion began to coalesce in the 17th century with St. John Eudes, who promoted the first feasts and prayers to the Sacred Heart.
- The devotion was universally established after Christ’s apparitions to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1673–1675), whose confessor St. Claude de la Colombière helped spread devotion and consecration to the Sacred Heart.
Devotional Practices
- Feast Day: Celebrated on the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi (usually in June), as requested by Christ in a vision to St. Margaret Mary.
- First Friday Devotions: Catholics are encouraged to receive Holy Communion and make reparations on the first Friday of every month in honor of Christ’s Heart.
- Holy Hour: Devotees spend an hour of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, often meditating on the sufferings and love of Christ.
Prayers and Litanies
- Consecration to the Sacred Heart: The act of offering oneself or one’s family to Jesus, trusting in His love and protection.
- Litany of the Sacred Heart: A series of invocations praising Jesus’ virtues and love, ending with petitions for mercy and grace.
- Novena to the Sacred Heart: A nine-day prayer for special intentions, often preceding the feast.
Theological Significance
- The Sacred Heart is a symbol of Jesus’ infinite charity, mercy, and the desire to draw souls to His redeeming love.
- Papal encyclicals (e.g., Miserentissimus Redemptor by Pope Pius XI) declare this devotion “the epitome of our religion,” encouraging universal participation and emphasizing acts of reparation for offenses against Christ.
Iconography
- Typically depicted as a flaming heart shining with divine light, wounded and encircled by the crown of thorns, surmounted by a cross—a visual summary of Christ’s loving sacrifice and passion.
The Twelve Promises of the Sacred Heart
Jesus promised St. Margaret Mary twelve special graces for those devoted to His Sacred Heart:
- I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life
- I will establish peace in their families
- I will comfort them in their trials
- I will be their secure refuge during life, and, above all, in death
- I will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings
- Sinners shall find in my Heart the source and infinite ocean of mercy
- Lukewarm souls shall become fervent
- Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection
- I will bless every place where a picture of my Heart shall be set up and honored
- I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts
- Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in my Heart, never to be effaced
- I promise you, in the excessive mercy of my Heart, that my all-powerful love will grant, to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months, the grace of final repentance
Act of Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
(Composed by St. Margaret Mary Alacoque)
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, honoring 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.
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 Ghost,
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 Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mother,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, united substantially with the Word of God,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, of infinite majesty,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, holy 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, glowing furnace of charity,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, vessel 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 center of all hearts,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom dwell all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father is 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 rich in mercy,
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, saturated with insults,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, bruised for our offenses,
have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, obedient unto 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 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 takest away the sins of the world,
spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, meek and humble of Heart,
make our hearts like unto Thine.
Let us pray:
Almighty and Eternal God, look upon the Heart of Thy beloved Son and upon the praise and satisfaction He offers Thee in the name of sinners; and grant that we may obtain forgiveness of our sins and the grace to serve Thee with all our hearts. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayer of Reparation to the Sacred Heart
O most holy Heart of Jesus, fountain of every blessing,
I adore You, I love You, and with lively sorrow for my sins
I offer You this poor heart of mine.
Make me humble, patient, pure, and wholly obedient to Your will.
Grant, Good Jesus, that I may live in You and for You.
Protect my loved ones, and give me the grace to do Your holy will.
Amen.
Here is the full text of the traditional Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus prayer, commonly prayed over nine days seeking special graces:
Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Most sweet Jesus,
whose Heart is the dwelling place of mercy and love,
I adore Thee and offer Thee my poor heart.
I repent with my whole heart for ever having offended Thee;
and I am deeply sorry for all my sins.
Make my heart a fit dwelling place for Thy love,
and a refuge of Thy glory.
Infuse into my heart a true spirit of sacrifice,
of love for Thee and for my neighbor;
and grant that I may never offend Thee more.
Assist me by Thy grace in all my needs,
in all my trials and sufferings of this life,
and may I love Thee more and more every day.
I consecrate to Thy Sacred Heart
my understanding, my will, and all my affections,
my thoughts, my words, and all my actions.
May my heart so closely unite with Thine
that I may never be separated from Thee.
O Heart of Jesus, fountain of life and holiness,
I place all my trust in Thee.
Grant me the grace
to be faithful to Thee until death,
and then to praise Thee in Heaven forever.
Amen.
This novena is prayed for nine consecutive days, often with specific daily intentions, leading up to the Feast of the Sacred Heart or for personal petitions. It expresses adoration, contrition, consecration, and petition, drawing the soul into deeper union with Christ’s merciful love.
