Jesus is the human face of God in whom the liberating power of his unconditional love is revealed to us. Jesus, in offering us forgiveness, healing and inner freedom, is the image of the God of endearing tenderness who frees us from fear and opens us to the truth of the hidden treasure that lies within the human heart. That which is real in Jesus speaks of what is a divine possibility for us. The image becomes real in the pierced Heart of Jesus, symbol of the liberating power of the Spirit and proclamation of a human life lived in the unconditional and compassionate love of God. Whoever approaches the Heart of Christ is enkindled by the same fire of love and is impelled to a mission of compassion in a world in need of healing and nourishment in order to reach maturity, which is God's dream for all humanity.
- My God, come to my aid.
- Lord, make haste to help me.
- Glory be to the Father...
- As it was in the beginning... Alleluia
Hymn: (Your choice)
O heart, victim of love,
eternal joy of heaven,
consolation of mortals
and their last hope.
Glory of the Triune God!
With you, the Word of God united,
the Spirit set his dwelling
and the Father found his joy.
Joy of heavenly beings,
refuge of human beings,
O Sacred Heart,
we adore you.
Silence for adoration.
Psalm 18. Adapted
David intones this hymn, praising and thanking God for his help in the face of the enemy. David is the anointed one or messiah and, as such, he is a figure of Christ. Therefore, the psalm can be transposed to a Christian sense; moreover, we direct our hymn to Christ, in whom the Father offers us his personal help.
I love you, Lord Jesus, my strength,
In your pierced Heart I have found
my rock of refuge, my stronghold, my freedom.
Praised be the Lord, I exclaim!,
I have been delivered from my enemies.
The cords of death encompassed me;
The torrents of destruction terrified me.
In my distress I called out: Lord!
I cried out to my God.
From his temple he heard my voice;
My cry to him reached his ears.
He reached down from on high and seized me;
Drew me out of the deep waters.
He rescued me from my mighty enemy,
From foes too powerful for me.
They attacked me on my day of distress,
but the Lord was my support.
He set me free in the open;
He rescued me because he loves me.
For you, Lord, give light to my lamp;
My God brightens my darkness.
With you I can rush an armed band,
with my God to help I can leap a wall.
Blessed are you, Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ and our Father!
We will give thanks to you among the peoples
and will recount the honor of your holy name,
because you gave victory to your Christ,
and through him to all of us who are your children.
Silence for meditation.
Reread the psalm, make it your own. Be grateful for the times you experience Christ’s saving grace.
Reading.
"The joy and contentment of heart that the Heart of Jesus and the Heart of Mary lavish on me make me believe that I am the happiest missionary in the world. Thus, the sacrifice of my health, which God wanted me to accept by making my service among the lepers bear some fruit, I find it, after all, very light and even pleasant for me, daring to say like St. Paul: 'I am dead and my life is hidden with Christ in God'." (St. Damien of Molokai).
Silence for reflection.
When you read the Gospel or pray before Christ, is it not his love - the love of God manifested in Him - that you admire and are most grateful for; that which, in the end, remains in you and moves you to gratitude, to availability and surrender for the Kingdom?
Litany
Heart of Jesus, beloved Son of the Father...
R/ Enkindle our hearts in the fire of your love.
Heart of Jesus, incarnated by the Spirit in Mary's womb...R/
Heart of Jesus, burning fire of charity...R/
Heart of Jesus, sanctuary of justice and love...R/
Heart of Jesus, full of love and goodness...R/
Heart of Jesus, King and Center of History...R/
Heart of Jesus, whose richness we have all received...R/
Heart of Jesus, source of life and sanctity...R/
Heart of Jesus, wounded by our sins...R/
Heart of Jesus, pierced by the lance...R/
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation...R/
Our Father.
Final Prayer.
God and our Father, as we contemplate the Heart of your Son wounded for our sins, we remember the benefits of your love; grant us to receive from this inexhaustible source the abundance of your grace. Amen.
Comments