June 17 - The Desires of the Heart of Jesus
The sacred heart is animated particularly
by four desires; the first, that which he testified to his apostles the day of
the last supper, when he said, “With desire have I desired to eat this Pasch
with you before I suffer." This shows that we can never approach the holy
table with so much eagerness to receive our Lord, as he has to give himself to
us. It would seem that this adorable mystery was the centre of his affections,
and that, having accomplished it, and completed this great masterpiece of his
love, he believed he had no more to do than to suffer and die for us. This was
his second desire; he expressed it when he said, “I have a baptism wherewith I
am to be baptized, and how am I straitened till it be accomplished. This
baptism was a baptism of blood. The heart of Jesus considered the cross as the
altar on which he was to consummate the sacrifice of propitiation for our sins,
and hence be eagerly sighed after it. This desire was only the effect of one
far more pressing, and which we may denominate his third—that for the salvation
of souls. “I thirst," said the amiable Savior, in the excess of his agony;
“I burn with ardent thirst for your salvation, your peace, your eternal
happiness." The fourth, and greatest of all his desires, was to glorify
his Father, and to' make him reign by love in the hearts of men. “I am come to
cast fire on earth, and what will I," said he, “but that it will be
enkindled?" Such are the holy ardors of the heart of Jesus, and such the
model on which the saints form themselves. Yes; they go to the holy table with
a violent hunger, like St Catherine of Genoa, who, seeing the sacred host in the
hands of the priest, said, “Quick, quick, give me the bread of life." They
desire to suffer because it is the means of becoming like Jesus Christ. St
Andrew, perceiving the cross which was prepared for him, exclaimed, “0 cross
long desired." Again, zeal for souls pressed the saints so much, that the
sight of the pains and labours they should suffer in seeking to save them, so
far from dispiriting, caused them to say, like St Francis Xavier, “Still more,
0 Lord, still more." In fine, desire for God's glory was the only object
which affected them; they forgot themselves in order to procure it, adopting
the maxim of St Ignatius in everything—to the greater glory of God. How remote
we are from these generous sentiments! What indifference for the holy table,
what terror for the cross, what little zeal for souls, and desire of God's
glory, animate us! 0 heart of Jesus! so full of love for my insensible heart,
change it—transform it; you can do it if you will.
Say 3x: Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy
on us. Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.
What do men do for the heart of Jesus?
Not to speak of Jews and heretics, what
return does Jesus receive from those who believe in His Presence in the Blessed
Sacrament? From some, it is true, He receives the homage of adoration day and
night, and that gratitude and filial devotion which are His due; but only from
a few; and what does He receive from others? Neglect, disdain, contempt, profanation,
sacrilege.
Have we nothing to reproach ourselves with
on this head in the past or the present? What shall we say even now of our
negligence in visiting the Sacred Heart in the Blessed Sacrament where it is always
burning with love for us of our many distractions, our little care to make
devout preparation and thanksgiving for Holy Communion? Have we not good reason
to fear that our dispositions are not such as the Sacred Heart desires to see
in us?
Affection
An ardent desire to be one of the few true
friends and worshipers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Resolution
To neglect no means of securing the
fulfillment of this desire.
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