DEVOTION
Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
A devotion of the Catholic faithful
Adoration of the wounded Heart of Christ as the symbol and source of his redeeming love.
background
Roots in the writings of the Latin Fathers, the medieval mystics (St. Gertrude, St. Mechtilde), and especially the apparitions to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque at Paray-le-Monial (1673-1675). Pope Pius XII gave the most authoritative magisterial teaching in the encyclical Haurietis Aquas (1956).
practice Instructions
The Solemnity of the Sacred Heart is celebrated on the Friday after the Second Sunday after Pentecost. First Fridays are dedicated to honoring the Sacred Heart by attending Mass and receiving Holy Communion. The Litany of the Sacred Heart is prayed throughout June.