Home " At the heart of Jesus " Advanced Learning Path: Induction Stage

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Further study
La "Enthronement"

Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the home

To prepare for the consecration of the Sacred Heart in homes

► Through the priest's exhortations, a CATECHESIS of FAITH in the love of God manifested in Jesus Christ, whose open Heart remains the sign offered to men of all times, so that they may draw faith, hope, and charity from it.

► Through the liturgy of God's Word, a RECOGNITION of His LOVE by the family, who solemnly commit to paying homage to Him and to bearing witness to it through all their private, professional, and social activities.

«For Us too, as for Our predecessors, the Enthronement fulfils Our dearest desires. We ardently desire that the charity of Jesus Christ, springing from His Heart, take possession of the private life of men and the public life of peoples. But there is one thing that We desire in particular, and which is moreover the main thing in the work that you have propagated for so long and with such diligence: that Christian families consecrate themselves to the Heart of Jesus. But in such a way that, with his image installed in the most noble place in the home as if on a throne, Jesus Christ Our Lord visibly reigns in Catholic homes. This consecration is not an empty and meaningless ceremony, but asks each and every one that their lives be conformed to Christian precepts, that they burn with a more fervent love for the most holy Eucharist and that they take part, as often as possible, in the heavenly banquet, that they strive by supplications addressed to God and by the works of a holy penance, to provide not only for their own salvation, but also for that of others.»

Letter from Pius XII to Father Mateo, 11 July 1948, in P. Marcel Bocquet, Father Mateo, worldwide apostle of the Sacred Heart, Paris, Téqui, 1963.

Welcome ceremony

The priest can present his ministry to the family in this way:

Dear friends, you certainly haven't invited the priest to put another print in your home. Enthroning the Heart of Christ means recognising the love with which « He loved us and gave himself for us »This is why you wish to offer the Lord the homage that is due to Him and to strive to live by Him, with Him and in Him: thus the enthronement of the Sacred Heart aims at the profound and permanent Christianisation of the family. By choosing families to make Christ's love present in the world, Fr Mateo rightly insisted that, «Christ be in the place of honour in our hearts, far more than in the place of honour in our homes». It is to remind you that in the name of the Church, I send you Saint Paul's greeting to the Ephesians:

“May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith,
Remain rooted in Love, established in Love,
Then you will be fulfilled and you will enter into the fullness of God.“

The family replies:

Amen

The revelation of Jesus' love

The priest:

The meaning of the word « heart » risks terribly of appearing sentimental and mushy. Yet to say of someone that they have « Good heart»r«, which he is " a heart of gold », that he speaks « Open-hearted », it's to designate the whole person and directly qualify them. Thus, in the Bible, the Word of God passing through our human language, it is by the « heart » that God declares his love, comparing it to the love of betrothed couples, to that of spouses, or to that of fathers and mothers. Let us listen, transmitted by the prophets, to God's love announcement for his people.

1st Lecture :

“Word of the Lord to the prophet Hosea: God loves the house of Israel as a husband his wife. Therefore, says the Lord, I will draw her, lead her, speak to her heart and give her hope. Then she will call me «my husband» and no longer «my master». Yes, you will be my bride for ever, in justice, tenderness and love; you will be the bride of faithfulness and you will know your Lord. I will call you, «My people», and you will answer, «My God». God is to his people as a father loves his children. When Israel was a child,“ says the Lord, "I loved him. I called her children out of Egypt, where they were in exile. I took her children in my arms and taught them to walk; but they often did not understand how much I cared for them. Yet I have bound them to me with the bonds of love: I am to them the father who brings his child close to his heart, and I bend down to feed them. How could I abandon them? I am God, not a man; I am the Holy One in your midst, Israel, and I am the guardian of your houses. Word of the Lord".“

The family replies:

We give thanks to God

The Priest continues:

“If the heart of God is learned in the words of God (St Gregory the Great), it is in Jesus that it is definitively discovered. Following the apostles, let us welcome the Epiphany of God, the love of the Father revealed in his Son: Jesus makes it visible and affirms it: «Whoever sees me sees the Father". “..

“Having seen the Lord Jesus live and understood the sign of His open Heart, the Apostle John, in his First Epistle, communicates to us the truth of the love that is in God, the love that is God Himself.»“..

2nd Lecture:

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love comes from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love has not known God, because God is love. This is how God’s love was made evident among us: God sent his one and only Son into the world, that we might live through him. This, then, is love: it is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to atone for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. If we love one another, God remains in us, and his love is perfected in us.”

Everyone says then:

Hallelujah, God so loved the world that he gave his own Son, Hallelujah

The Priest continues:

“God's Gift is therefore not something, but SOMEONE: Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh who dwelt among us. In Him, God's love came to visit us: the entire Gospel tells us this Good News. But the greatest proof of this is given to us at the moment when Jesus, on the cross, loved his own to the very end: this was then the first and true enthronement of the Heart of Jesus.“..

3rd Gospel:

The Priest: The Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John

The family: Glory to you Lord

The Priest continues:

”Jesus had just died. As it was Friday, the bodies were not to be left on the cross during the Sabbath, especially as this Sabbath was the great day of Passover. So the Jews asked Pilate to remove the bodies, after breaking their legs. Soldiers therefore went and broke the legs of the first, then the second, of the condemned men who had been crucified with Jesus. When they came to Jesus, seeing that he was already dead, they did not break his legs; but one of the soldiers pierced his side with his lance, and immediately blood and water came out. He who saw it bears witness, so that you too may believe. His testimony is true, and the Lord knows that he tells the truth. All this happened so that the word of Scripture might be fulfilled: Not one of his bones shall be broken. And another passage also says: They shall look upon him whom they have pierced.”

Let us acclaim the Word of God

The family: Praise to you Lord Jesus

From the act of faith to faith in action

The priest can, in a few words, place the enthronement of the Sacred Heart within the context of the Gospel.

Every day, the eyes of the inducting family will encounter the image-symbol of the Saviour's love. For the evangelist, to look at Him is to believe; Saint John bears witness to the pierced heart of Jesus, so that you too may believe. Properly understood, far from encouraging sentimentalism, the enthronement demands grateful faith in the love of Christ. And, as his love provokes our own in return, we must commit ourselves to loving him better and to making him loved: it is in this concern for sanctification and in this apostolic awakening that our response to the Lord's love is authentically expressed. This is the spiritual animation offered to families by Father Mateo, who, at the behest of Saint Pius X, launched the worldwide enthronement of the Sacred Heart, which has since been approved by all the Popes, with the aim of helping families to become aware that they are constituent cells of society, as well as living cells of the Church, and therefore, in this dual capacity, responsible for the Reign of Love of the Lord Jesus. In the name of the Church, I'll

The priest:

“In this spirit of faith, as baptised individuals conscious of being members of Christ, called to bear fruit like branches attached to the vine, renew today your adherence to God's plan of love expressed in the CREED.“

All together:

I believe in God...

As the Lord's love is upon us, our hope is in him

The priest:

“This certainty of the psalmist (Ps 32), the Apostle Paul shares and makes us share in the Epistle to the Ephesians (Ch 3): “it is our faith in Christ that gives us the boldness to go to God with all confidence.” Founded on the unchanging love of God known in Jesus Christ, hope must permeate our prayer and remain our support even in trial. In the merciful assurance of God, we are never lacking. Let us pray to the Lord. “

This prayer can be made in the silence and secrecy of hearts that confide themselves to the Heart of Jesus; it can also be spontaneously composed by the family itself, which will express its own intentions; or, finally, it can take the form proposed here.

The Priest:

“Lord Jesus, you chose to live the family life in Nazareth and work there until you were 30 years old, direct our lives and our activities according to your love, and keep us in your road, to Truth and you life “..

Everyone says: