On June 11, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will formally consecrate the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Devotion to the Sacred Heart grew from 17th century revelations to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in France, during which Jesus proclaimed His desire for the institution of a feast to honor His Heart. Pope Pius IX instituted the solemnity in 1865.
At its core, devotion to the Sacred Heart is all about God’s love for humanity. It is with this immense love that the Father gave His Son into our hands, that the Son delivered Himself up to death for us, and that the Father gives His Son and the Son gives Himself to us in the Blessed Sacrament on the altar. Devotion to the Sacred Heart is devotion to the love of God poured out for us in Jesus.