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Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus & The Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus & The Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary:


The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. What a beautiful and wonderful devotion! All month long, we are reminded to contemplate Jesus' Sacred Heart and how his heart thirsts and burns for us. When Jesus appeared to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, He gave her twelve promises that He would make to all those who were devoted to His Sacred Heart. EWTN has a great list of the promises here that you can print out and hang on your refrigerator to help remind you to honor Jesus' Sacred Heart. When I think of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I am in awe of the Eucharistic miracle that took place in Lanciano, Italy. In a recent documentary I watched, I Am With You, there was a quote that struck me—"In Lanciano, Jesus gives us His heart." I've always known that Jesus is truly present—body, soul, and divinity— in the Holy Eucharist, but I'd never really contemplated that part of the body is the heart. With the Eucharistic miracle of Lanciano—when the Eucharist was visually and physically transformed into heart tissue—Jesus showed us, and science confirmed, that the Lord's Sacred Heart is present in the Eucharist. I just can't stop thinking about this! It's so amazing!

The day after we celebrate the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Church then celebrates the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Through the devotion to the Immaculate Heart of our Blessed Mother, we are reminded that Mary is our mediatrix of all graces, and that through her, we can draw closer to Jesus. If you'd like to learn more about devotion to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary, here is an article, from EWTN, where Sister Lucia (one of the visionaries from Fatima) explains the devotion. I hope you and your family have a truly blessed time celebrating these beautiful and faith inspiring holy days!



(My rendition of the Most Sacred Heart and Immaculate Heart together)

Celebrating with Food:

For the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, we made yummy heart-shaped cinnamon tortillas. To make the cinnamon tortillas, you can use a heart shaped cookie-cutter, or slice a heart-shape using a knife. We then placed the heart-shaped tortillas on a baking sheet, brushed them with melted butter, and then sprinkled them with cinnamon and sugar we'd mixed together. We then baked our "Sacred Hearts" at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about ten minutes. After plating them, we added a bit of whipped-cream. These tortilla "Sacred Hearts" are a simple yet delicious treat that are extremely fun to make!



Celebrating with a Craft: 

Celebrate these two wonderful holy days by coloring images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary using this free printable coloring page from the website "Catholic Inspired." You can Cut your hearts out and attach a magnet to the back, so that you can hang them on your refrigerator next to your twelve promises of the Sacred Heart, or you can slide them into page protectors and then use them as placemats at your table for both holy days. You can also print this free coloring page of the Sacred Heart of Jesus from "Schola Rosa," and then have your children color it and create a mosaic collage around the image. After my children did this, I framed their pictures and hung them up in their bedrooms. 



My daughter (age 4) also drew her own version of The Sacred Heart of Jesus and it made me smile!


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