Did You Know ….

  The US Bishops recently discussed and planned a special celebration for our Country’s 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence?  The goal of this Consecration is the unity and healing of the USA. The highlight of this celebration will be the Consecration of our Country to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 11, 2026.  As part of that celebration, the bishops are asking the whole USA Church (dioceses, parishes, families & individuals) to prepare with Eucharistic Adoration, special prayers to the Sacred Heart, and Works of Mercy.  Background information, Consecration prayer, prayers to the Sacred Heart & resources for the 250 Hours of Adoration – 250 Works of Mercy may be accessed from the links below and are available in English and Spanish.  (FYI – both “250” items are expected to be divided among members of groups not done by individuals alone and between now and July 5th – e.g. in a fraternity of 10 members, each member would commit to 25 hours &/or works prior to July 5th; in a regional fraternity of 10 fraternities, each fraternity would commit to 25 hours &/or works .)

Citations from Preparing our Hearts 2026 – Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network (USA)

Consecration sets something aside for a holy purpose and entrusts it to the special care of God. As Pope Benedict XVI said in his 2009 Chrism Mass homily, consecration means total immersion in God: “To consecrate something or someone means, therefore, to give that thing or person to God as His property, to take it out of the context of what is ours and to insert it in His milieu, so that it no longer belongs to our affairs, but is totally of God.” …

In 1899, Pope Leo XIII, known as the Father of Modern Catholic Social Teaching …“When religion is once discarded it follows of necessity that the surest foundations of the public welfare must give way,” causing “disquiet of mind and . . . waves so rough that no one is suffered to be free from anxiety and peril” (Annum Sacrum 10).  A national consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus signals to God that His goodness is not forgotten and that our country relies on God’s providence for continued flourishing.   …

Exactly 100 years after Leo XIII wrote those words about the Sacred Heart, John Paul II preached a homily emphasizing the importance of praying with the Sacred Heart in order to know more intimately the love of God. He said, “Everything that God wanted to tell us about Himself and about His love, He placed in the Heart of Jesus.” Jesus gave us the image of his Sacred Heart as a dramatic reminder of His love.   …

Citations from Reflection on Consecration to the Sacred Heart | USCCB

by Archbishop Alexander K. Sample, Chairman of the Committee for Religious Liberty

“Popes have lauded the practice of consecration of the self, home, and even whole nations to the Sacred Heart. In his encyclical instituting the Solemnity of Christ the King, Pope Pius XI, drawing on the teaching of Pope Leo XIII, commended the “pious custom” of consecrating the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus as a way to recognize the kingship of Christ. By celebrating this important national anniversary with this devotion, we have the opportunity to encourage all Catholics to honor our Lord and to “infuse the spirit of the Gospel into various communities and departments of life.”

With his encyclical, Dilexit Nos, Pope Francis brought devotion to the Sacred Heart to the forefront of our contemporary Catholic life and culture. He noted: “In contemplating the pierced heart of the Lord, Who ‘took our infirmities and bore our diseases,’ we too are inspired to be more attentive to the sufferings and needs of others and confirmed in our efforts to share in His work of liberation as instruments for the spread of His love. As we meditate on Christ’s self-offering for the sake of all, we are naturally led to ask why we too should not be ready to give our lives for others.”  In Dilexi Te, Pope Leo invited us to contemplate Christ’s love, which moves us out on our mission to attend to our sisters and brothers suffering in the world today, particularly in our care for poor and vulnerable people. As we reflect with gratitude on the blessings God has bestowed on our country, our devotion to the Sacred Heart demands that we consider how we might foster truth, justice, and charity in American life. We are called to bring our faith into the actions we take and the lives we lead in our communities.”

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As faithful followers of our Seraphic Father St. Francis and obedient to our Rule and Constitutions, we place ourselves under the care and guidance of our Holy Father and Bishops.  Let us humbly and joyfully, not only respond to the bishops’ request but promote it in our fraternities and our parishes.

We Hold These Truths | USCCB – basic information

Preparing our Hearts 2026 – Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network                 Check your

Reflection on Consecration to the Sacred Heart | USCCB                               Diocesan

Novena & Litany to the Sacred Heart of Jesus                                                      Website, too!

Enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus for Families-Brochure

FYI:  The Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and

           The Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

May be found in the Secular Franciscan Companion