Anyone who grew up in an Irish Catholic family will be familiar with the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is a very popular tool of devotion. Today, I encountered a work, originally published in Lyons, France, in 1694 on the topic:
John Croiset, The Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus: How to Practice the Sacred Heart Devotion (trans. Patrick O’Connell; Rockford, Ill.: Tan Books and Publishers, Inc., 1988)
The following are excerpts with a focus on the Marian devotion associated with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, again emphasising a theological point I have been making many times now: Mariology is not a “minor” issue and having an errant Mariology (as Rome has) will lead to spiritually abhorrent practices and erroneous theologies as we see explicated in the following:
The fifth means by which we may in a short time become inflamed with ardent love for Jesus Christ, is to have a tender love for the Blessed Virgin who has such absolute power over the Sacred Heart of her Divine Son . . . there are few who cannot obtain these dispositions through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin. Even sinners should not despair. Mary is the home of sinners, the refuge of all unfortunates, the resource of everyone. Jesus Christ grants to her easily what we, of ourselves, are unworthy to receive . . . Thus it has been remarked that there was never found anyone who had indifference for the Blessed Virgin, who had not the same time aversion for Jesus Christ . . . We earnestly recommend devotion to the Blessed Virgin to everybody; we wish that you exert all your energy to make this devotion better known and more widely practiced; that people go and pay homage to shrines of the Blessed Virgin, especially at those where miracles have taken place; that her images be carried in processions, that candles be lighted before them and hymns and litanies and prayers be recited; that people speak with respect of congregations and confraternities erected in her honor, as well as of the privileges and immunities granted by popes to them . . . Truly, it is rare to find Catholics without a tender love for Mary, and without some special devotion to her. We can say that in our days devotion to the Blessed Virgin is universal, and it will always remain true that devotion towards the Mother will be condemned only by enemies of her Son. Let us who desire to obtain ardent love for the son, use all our endeavors to love the Mother tenderly, and let us be persuaded that it will be by means of the Mother, we shall find easiest access to Jesus Christ and that we shall be received into His Heart. (pp. 153, 154, 156, 157)
PRAYER TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN
O most holy, most amiable and most glorious Virgin, Mother of God, Mistress and Advocate to whom we are all vowed and consecrated, making it our glory to belong to thee as children, servants and slaves for time and eternity, behold! with common accord, we throw ourselves as thy feet to renew our vows of fidelity and servitude to thee and to pray thee that as we belong entirely to thee, thou wouldst offer, dedicate, consecrate, and immolate to the Sacred Heart of our adorable Jesus, ourselves and all that we are, all that we shall do and suffer, without reserving anything for ourselves. We wish to have no other liberty except that of loving Him, no other glory except that of belonging to Him as slaves and victims of His pure love, no other will or power but that of pleasing Him and contenting Him in everything, even at the price of our lives. And since thou hast all power over the amiable Heart of thy Divine Son, grant, O most charitable Mother, that He may receive and accept this consecration which we make today in thy presence, and through thy meditation, with the protestations of our fidelity, relying on His grace and thy help, which we beg thee not to refuse us, O, our sweet Hope, make us feel thy power over the amiable Heart of Jesus, and use thy influence on our behalf to lodge us there always. Pray Him to exercise His sovereign empire over our souls, making His love reign in our hearts, in order that He may consume us and transform us entirely into Himself. May He be our Father, our Spouse, our Protection, our Treasure, our Delight, or Love and our All in all things; may he destroy and annihilate in us all that is of ourselves and put in place of it all that is of Himself, in order that we may be able to be pleasing to Him. May He be the support of our powerlessness, the strength of our weakness, the joy of all our sadness.
O Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, repair all our failings, supply for us all that is wanting to us, burn our hearts in your holy adors; consume all our coldness and cowardice in loving and serving you, since we wish to make all our holiness and happiness consist in living and dying in the state of slaves of the adorable Heart of Jesus, and servants of His holy Mother. Amen. (pp. 312-13)
A prayer of Pius XII, who reign as pope from 1939-1958, is also included in my printing of the text (added after the time of Croiset). On p. 343 of the book, we read:
CONSECRATION TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY
Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, in this tragic hour of the world’s history, we entrust and consecrate ourselves to your Immaculate Heart, our only refute, our hope, our salvation. Have pity on this world, torn by the most terrible conflicts, burning with the fires of hate, victim of its own sins. May your Heart be moved at the sight of so much ruin, pain and sorrow.
We consecrate to your maternal heart our persons, or families, our country—the whole of humanity. Protect and save us!
O Heart of Mary, source of true love, fill our selfish hearts with divine charity and with that true brotherly love without which there can never be peace. Grant that men and nations may understand and fulfill the precept of your Divine Son, LOVE ONE ANOTHER, in order that true peace may be firmly established in the justice and Truth of Christ.
For those who wish to learn the truth about Mariology and who Mary truly was, see my book:
When one examines the Bible and Church history, one will realise that this type of devotion is antithetical to the Mariology from both these sources.
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