Divine Mercy and the Sacred Heart Share a Common Message
This weekend, we celebrate a First Friday in honor of the Sacred Heart and Divine Mercy Sunday. While the two devotions have about 300 years between them, they share a common message and a similar expression of God’s love for humanity.
The two images of the Sacred Heart and the Divine Mercy even share a remarkable resemblance, with both images showing rays of grace and mercy flowing from the heart of the Lord Jesus.
The endearing devotion of the Sacred Heart was given to the Church and formalized through the apparitions of Jesus Christ to St. Margaret Mary Alocoque. Given during the 17th century, the simple Visitation nun in Paray-le-Monial, France, became an apostle of divine love.
It is reported that the Sacred Heart of Jesus first appeared to Visitation Sister Margaret Mary in 1673. The nun was known to be of modest intellect and clumsy in her duties. In spite of these idiosyncrasies, Jesus spoke to her during prayer and showed her his heart, burning with love and inflamed with kindness toward all.
The Lord gave St. Margaret Mary a consistent message, which spanned over four apparitions in 18 months. Each apparition was given within the context of Eucharistic Adoration and contained immense expressions of love and affection for the human family.
In particular, the message of the Sacred Heart emphasized the harm caused by sin, the gravity of offenses against the Blessed Sacrament, and the evil of receiving Holy Communion in an unworthy manner. Such exhortations, however, were placed within a broader declaration of God’s love, mercy, and compassion for all people.
