DAILY CELEBRATION OF CHRIST, Thursday, October 16, 2014 (White) St. Margaret Mary Alacoque First Reading: Ephesians 1:1-10 Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 98:1-6 (R.v. 2) Gospel Acclamation: John 14:6 Gospel Reading: Luke 11:47-54 Today is the feast of St Margaret Mary Alacoque; a Saint who was famous for spreading the devotion to the Sacred Heart. Margaret Mary was born in France in 1647. At the age of twenty-four she joined the Visitation Nuns. She was granted remarkable mystical revelations concerning the Sacred Heart of Jesus from December 1673 to June 1675. These revelations form the foundation of what we have today as the society of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. The devotion to the sacred Heart of Jesus highlights the love of Christ for humanity. It was this love that led him to die painful and shameful death on the Cross of Calvary. While Jesus was hanging on the Cross one of the soldiers pierced his side with spear, and at once there came out blood and water (John 19:33). The heart of Jesus is an open heart. It is a heart that was pieced with a lance for love of us. The heart of Jesus is large enough to accommodate all. He says in the Gospel of Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Our Lord Jesus Christ is meek and humble of heart. His heart is pure and sacred. The Heart of Jesus is the most caring and most loving heart. Out of love our Lord Jesus Christ chose us and made us his adopted children. St. Paul expresses his appreciation for what Christ has done for us through his heartfelt love: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should holy and blameless before him. He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 1:1-10). We are destined in love! It was the love of Christ that reconciled us with God and with one another. It is this love that made us who we are in Christ Jesus. And it is this same love that will determine who we shall be as citizens of heaven. Hence, we are destined in love to be children of the Most High God. That is why our Lord Jesus Christ presents love as the greatest commandment. The Heart, we know, is the essence of our being. Without the heart there will be no life because the heart is the principle of life. The moment the heart stops pumping that is the end of that particular life. The heart is an indispensable organ in human body. The heart is also the essence of our spiritual life. It is the symbol of LOVE. The Sacred Heart represents the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank God for using great Saints like Margaret Mary to inspire our love and our devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Through the intercession of Margaret Mary may God purify our minds, our hearts and our souls, may He make us worthy temples of the Holy Spirit. JESUS MEEK AND HUMBLE OF HEART: MAKE OUR HEART UNTO LIKE YOURS! MOST SACRED HEART OF JESUS: HAVE MERCY ON US! IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY: PRAY FOR US!
Posted on: Thu, 16 Oct 2014 10:54:42 +0000