Devotion to the Sacred Heart in June: day 3
Our Father, who art in heaven, may your name be sanctified, your kingdom come, your will be done, as in heaven as on earth. Give us our daily bread today, forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Invocation. - Heart of Jesus, victim of sinners, have mercy on us!
Intention. - Pray for the dying of the day.
THE PROMISES
In the period of contradictions, from which Santa Margherita was targeted, God sent valid support to his beloved, making her meet with Father Claudio De La Colombière, who today is venerated on the altars. When the last solemn apparition occurred, Father Claudio was in Paray-Le Monial.
It was in the Octave of Corpus Domini, in June 1675. In the chapel of the monastery Jesus was solemnly exposed. Margherita had managed to have some free time, finished her occupations, and took the opportunity to go to worship the SS. Sacrament. While praying, she felt overwhelmed by a strong desire to love Jesus; Jesus appeared to her and said to her:
«Look at this Heart, which has loved men so much that they do not spare anything, until they exhaust and consume themselves, to show their love for them. In return I receive from most nothing but ingratitude, because of their irreverence, their sacrileges of the coldness and contempt that they show me in the Sacrament of love.
«But what grieves me most is that the hearts dedicated to me also treat me like this. For this reason, I ask you that on Friday after the octave of Corpus Domini he is destined for a special party to honor my Heart, receiving Holy Communion on that day and making reparation with a solemn act, to seek reparation for the offenses that they were brought to me during the time in which I am exposed on the Altars. I promise you that my Heart will open to abundantly pour out the riches of his divine love over those who in this way will honor him and make others honor him ».
The pious Sister, aware of her incapacity, said: "I don't know how to achieve this."
Jesus replied: "Turn to my servant (Claudio De La Colombière), who I have sent you the fulfillment of this plan of mine."
The apparitions of Jesus to S. Margherita were numerous; we have mentioned the main ones.
It is useful, indeed necessary, to report what the Lord said in another apparition. To entice souls to devotion to his Sacred Heart, Jesus made twelve promises:
I will grant my devotees all the graces necessary for their condition.
I will bring peace to their families.
I will console them in their afflictions.
I will be their safest refuge in life and especially on the point of death.
I will pour abundant blessings upon their endeavors.
Sinners will find in my Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
The lukewarm will become fervent.
The fervent will soon rise to the greatest perfection.
I will bless the places where the image of my Heart will be exposed and honored.
I will give the Priests the strength to move the hardened hearts.
The name of those who will propagate this devotion will be written in my Heart and will never be canceled.
In the excess of the mercy of my infinite love I will grant to all those who communicate on the first Friday of each month, for nine consecutive months, the grace of the final repentance, so that they will not die in my misfortune, nor without receiving the Holy Sacraments, and my Heart in that extreme hour will be their safest refuge. -
In the last hour
The author of these pages reports one of the many episodes of his priestly life. In 1929 I was in Trapani. I received a note with the address of a seriously ill, completely incredulous. I hurried to go.
In the antechamber of the sick was a woman who, seeing me, said: Reverend, she did not dare to enter; will be treated badly; he will see that he will be driven out. -
I went in anyway. The sick man gave me a look of surprise and anger: Who invited him to come? Go away! -
Little by little I calmed him down, but not entirely. I learned that he was already over seventy years old and that he had never confessed and communicated.
I spoke to him of God, of his mercy, of Heaven and hell; but he replied: And do you believe in these corbellerie? ... Tomorrow I will be dead and everything will be over forever ... Now it is time to stop. Go away! In response, I sat down at the bedside. The sick man turned his back on me. I kept saying to him: Maybe she is tired and for the moment she doesn't want to listen to me, I will come back another time.
- Don't allow yourself to come anymore! - I couldn't do anything else. Before leaving, I added: I'm leaving. But let her know that she will convert and die with the Holy Sacraments. I will pray and I will pray. - It was the month of the Sacred Heart and every day I preached to the people. I exhorted everyone to pray to the Heart of Jesus for the obstinate sinner, concluding: One day I will announce his conversion from this pulpit. - I invited another priest to attempt a visit to the sick person; but these were not allowed to enter. Meanwhile Jesus worked in that heart of stone.
Seven days had passed. The sick man was approaching the end; opening his eyes to the light of faith, he sent a person to call me urgently.
What was not my wonder and the joy of seeing it changed! How much faith, how much repentance! He received the sacraments with edification of those present. As he kissed the Crucified One with tears in his eyes, he exclaimed: My Jesus, mercy! ... Lord, forgive me! ...
A Member of Parliament was present, who knew the life of the sinner, and exclaimed: It seems impossible that such a man would make such a religious death!
Shortly afterwards the convert died. The Sacred Heart of Jesus saved him in the last hour.
Foil. Offer to Jesus three small sacrifices for the dying of the day.
Ejaculation. Jesus, for your agony on the Cross, have mercy on the dying!