The Devotion of Love
This article serves as a summary and capstone for the previous 6 articles of this series on the science of love as revealed through the Heart of Christ.
For me, the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus has become a doorway of devotion by which I enter into the light of Christ’s love.
“Devotion to the heart of Christ is not the veneration of a single organ apart from the Person of Jesus. What we contemplate and adore is the whole Jesus Christ, the Son of God made man, represented by an image that accentuates his heart. That heart of flesh is seen as the privileged sign of the inmost being of the incarnate Son and his love, both divine and human. More than any other part of his body, the heart of Jesus is ‘the natural sign and symbol of his boundless love.’”
The Materials of Love
I’d like to end this series with a re-view, not by summary, but through the lens of the various materials which make up the symbol of Christ’s Heart.
❤️לֵב (lev)
καρδιά (kardia)
“so love one another earnestly from a pure heart”
🔥אֵשׁ (esh)
πῦρ (pyr)
“indeed, our God is a consuming fire”
🌳עֵץ (etz)🪵
δένδρον (déndron)
“the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life”
”Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood”
✝️ σταυρός (staurós)
“if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me”
🪡קוֹץ (kotz)
ἄκανθα (akantha)
“in painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you”
👑 כֶּתֶר (kheter)
στέφανος (stéphanos)
“you shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord”
🩸דָם (dam)
αἷμα (haima)
“and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Avel”
🕯️אוֹר (ohr)
φως (fos)
”walk as children of the light”
note: Hebrew word etz and Greek word dendron both mean both “tree” and “wood.”
note: no word for "cross" (in this sense) is found in the Hebrew Bible, so I provide only the Greek, though the modern Hebrew word for "cross" is tselev (צלב).
(❤️1Pet1:22)(🔥Heb12:29)(🌳Prb11:30)(🪵Ex37:1)(✝️Mk8:34)(🪡Gen3:17-18)(👑Is62:3)(🩸Heb12:24)(🕯️Eph5:8)
A Prayer from Thérèse
St. Thérèse of Lisieux had a great devotion to the Heart of Christ, and composed this morning prayer — something I pray frequently.
“O my God!
I offer Thee all my actions of this day
for the intentions and for the glory of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart,
my every thought, my simplest works,
by uniting them to Its infinite merits;
and I wish to make reparation for my sins
by casting them into the furnace of Its Merciful Love.
O my God!
I ask of Thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear,
the grace to fulfill perfectly Thy Holy Will,
to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life,
so that we may one day be united together in heaven for all Eternity.
Amen.”
A Litany to Love
Inspired by the official Litany of the Sacred Heart, I’ve composed a litany prayer to the Heart of Jesus. Each line draws upon a different section of this series.
Oh Jesus, in whom the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,
reveal to us your Heart, that we may share in the riches of Its Love…
Heart of Jesus, worthy of all our affections,
Heart of Jesus, inmost part of God and man,
Heart of Jesus, compassion for the weak and suffering,
Heart of Jesus, fire in the desert,
Heart of Jesus, most sacred inferno,
Heart of Jesus, fraternity of all humanity,
Heart of Jesus, incinerator of sin,
Heart of Jesus, passion stronger than death,
Heart of Jesus, emperor of empowerment,
Heart of Jesus, captivating freedom,
Heart of Jesus, friend of suffering,
Heart of Jesus, poured out for all the world,
Heart of Jesus, bearer of all things,
Heart of Jesus, uniter of heaven and earth,
Heart of Jesus, tree of healing fruit,
Heart of Jesus, flowing with precious blood,
Heart of Jesus, fulfillment of covenant,
Heart of Jesus, soul of God's people,
Heart of Jesus, mother of the sacraments,
Heart of Jesus, fount of humility,
Heart of Jesus, understander of reality,
Heart of Jesus, light of all identity,
Heart of Jesus, paradox of life,
Heart of Jesus, where Love and Logos are one…
Transform us within Your crucible,
that we conform to Your every virtue
and receive every blessing of Your Spirit,
sharing in the communion of the saints,
living within the body of God our maker,
at home in His Heart,
as He is in ours,
now and forevermore.
Amen.
Thank you for joining me on this journey reflecting upon the beauties and riches of Christ’s Sacred Heart!
❤️🔥Sacred Heart Series:
7🙏The Devotion of Love
Image Credits:
Mosaic in Basilique du Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre. Photo taken myself in Paris, 2024.
Artwork by Jose Luis Castrillo (browse his website here) (Instagram).
Painting in Saint Peter’s Basilica. Photo taken myself in Vatican City, 2023.
