By Archbishop Thomas Wenski - The Archdiocese of Miami
Archbishop Thomas Wenski preached this homily Oct. 16, 2024 during a Mass at Centro Mater.
Today, we celebrate the feast day of a woman who has had a profound effect on the life of the Church in recent centuries. St. Mary Alacoque. As a Visitation nun in France, she introduced the world to the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. The practice of First Fridays, Holy Hours, and the feast day of the Sacred Heart, celebrated each June, all stem from her relationship with Jesus, who “manifested” himself to her through her love of his Sacred Heart. Devotion to the Sacred Heart led to the founding of new religious communities, such as the Madams of the Sacred Heart. And in these communities, we find religious who showed Jesus’ love through their own apostolates and missions, one such person was Sacred Heart Sister, Margarita Miranda, who founded Centro Mater more than 50 years ago.
Conocí a la Madre Miranda cuando yo tenía entre 18 y 19 años. Yo era estudiante en el Seminario St. John Vianney y había una especie de romería en los terrenos originales del Centro Mater, y recuerdo que tomé un autobús desde Westchester solo para ir allí y practicar mi español.
Like throwing a pebble into a calm pond causes a ripple effect that radiates outward, so to the work of Center Mater can be said to be part of that ripple effect first started by St. Mary Alacoque in her deep and persevering devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Those ripples radiate from the Heart of Jesus. St. John Paul II wrote:
"In the Heart of Christ, man's heart learns to know the genuine and unique meaning of his life and of his destiny, to understand the value of an authentically Christian life, to keep himself from certain perversions of the human heart, and to unite the filial love for God and the love of neighbor."
These words of Pope St. John Paul II explain why devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus remains important for us today. And isn’t it true that to “know the genuine and unique meaning of our life and our destiny” is what Centro Mater strives to communicate to the children in its care. To unite love for God and the love of neighbor, to protect ourselves – and our children – from certain perversions of the human heart define the mission of Sister Miranda in founding Centro Mater and those of you who carry on her legacy.
Jesús nos ama con un corazón humano. El Sagrado Corazón de Jesús nos recuerda la humanidad de Jesús, pero también lo concreto que es su amor. El amor no es una abstracción, no es un axioma filosófico; el amor no es un sentimiento o una emoción fugaz; el amor es siempre una acción, un hecho. Es una “entrega” de uno mismo, así como Jesús se entregó a sí mismo en la cruz por nuestra salvación.
Devotion to the Sacred Heart is not sweet, sugary, sentimental piety. Yes, the heart throughout human history has symbolized love – and too often love – human love – has been reduced to the sentimental inanities found on a Valentine Card and worse. But here, in speaking of the Sacred Heart, we are not talking about our discourse about love, but about the love of God revealed to us in the person of Jesus Christ.
For in the pierced heart of the Crucified God, God’s own heart is opened up. Heaven is no longer locked up – for through the incarnation of his Word made flesh, God has stepped out of his hiddenness. In acknowledging his love for us, represented by his pierced heart, we wish to renew our hearts – so that we might think, speak, work and love as he does.
En el corazón traspasado del Crucificado, el amor de Dios queda al descubierto para que todos lo vean. Dios nos está diciendo que nos ama, no con una palabra hablada sino con una palabra grabada en la carne del costado de Jesús por la lanza del soldado.
San Agustín oró: “Oh Señor, nuestros corazones fueron hechos para ti, y nuestros corazones nunca descansarán hasta que descansen en ti”. El Corazón de Jesús habla a nuestros corazones y nos llama: “Vengan a mí todos los que están cansados y agobiados, y yo los haré descansar”.
