A CIVILIZATION OF LOVE

We have a tendency to overlook the ordinary and simple things around us. We must not be impressed with just the extraordinary. Our approach to Christian life should not neglect the day to day and the ordinary things we do. The very thing that is right in front of us is our next good step. This is how we will walk to holiness. We may be in a gloomy and dark situation at the moment but we must not lose hope and put our best foot forward. We do our best and be immensely patient even in times of great difficulty and trial. We imitate Christ in his humanity as he went through his passion and death with the certainty of resurrection. Amen. Hallelujah!


Hosea 6:1-6
...He will revive us after two days; on the third day he will raise us up, to live in his presence. 3 Let us know, let us strive to know the LORD; as certain as the dawn is his coming, and his judgment shines forth like the light of day! He will come to us like the rain, like spring rain that waters the earth.”

The sacred heart of Jesus should be our model and guide as we strive to live out the call to be a genuine follower of God. “When we open our heart to the love of God and to others, it makes us capable of shaping history according to God’s plan.” - Pope John Paul II. In His fourth apparition to St. Margaret Mary, our Lord revealed His Sacred Heart, declaring: "Behold this Heart which has so loved men that it spared nothing, even going so far as to exhaust and consume Itself, to prove to them Its love.” The center of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is the Enthronement of the image of the Sacred Heart in the home. By the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart, we link the tabernacle of our parish church to our home, inviting our Lord to be our constant and most intimate companion. The Enthronement is a way of life. It means that Christ is King of our hearts, and we desire Him to be present with us always. In other words, by the Enthronement we signify our desire to make our hearts and our homes holy, to sanctify our lives in every aspect. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalms 51:3-4, 18-19, 20-21
R: It is mercy I desire, and not sacrifice.
...For you are not pleased with sacrifices; should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it. 17 [19] My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit; a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.

We are encouraged as Catholics to have the Sacred Heart of Jesus enthroned in our homes. This act of enthronement can bring about a civilization of love. It is in the home where the Sacred Heart of Jesus is that families are encouraged to pray together and bring about love. Something can change in the atmosphere of the home as this devotion is spread and promulgated. We need to go and share this to everybody. This is a means to develop intimacy of the Lord in our homes and enhance our other relationships. It could pave the way for all conflicts to get dissolved. This is a constant reminder that God became man and died for his love for us and our salvation. This relationship will spill over to other relationships. As today gospel tells, for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted. We learn from Jesus who is meek and humble of heart. This man in the gospel went home justified while the other did not because Jesus looks at the heart. We should always keep our eyes on the Sacred Heart of Jesus, King and center of all hearts. It teaches us the lesson of love, goodness, piety and to obtain strength and serenity for an authentic and profound life. “Welcome the presence of the Heart of Christ, entrusting your home to Him. Before the open Heart of Jesus seek to draw from Him the true love that our families need to build up a civilization of love.” (Pope John Paul II). Amen. Hallelujah!

Luke 18:9-14
9 Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. 10 “Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity — greedy, dishonest, adulterous — or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’ 13 But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The Twelve Promises of Jesus to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque
for those who practice devotion to His Sacred Heart
1. I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their families.
3. I will console them in all their troubles.
4. They shall find in My Heart an assured refuge during life and especially at the hour of their death.
5. I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.
6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source of an infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Tepid souls shall become fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection.
9. I will bless the homes where an image of My Heart shall be exposed and honored.
10. I will give to priests the power of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who propagate this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be effaced.
12. The all-powerful love of My Heart will grant to all those who shall receive Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under my displeasure, nor without receiving their Sacraments; My heart shall be their assured refuge at that last hour.