“Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.” Psalm 33:22
We place our trust in the Lord, and not just with our lives, but with everything. He’s in charge, and we’re not. It’s like Saint Pope John XXIII use to say every night before he went to sleep: “Well Lord, it’s your Church, you take care of it; I am going to sleep.” The same goes to Creation; it’s his Creation, and one way or another, his grace always finds a way. For this reason, we entrust everything to the Lord, and this year, as the United States celebrates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. bishops will consecrate the United States of America to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 11, 2026 – the Vigil of the Sacred Heart. And so, parishes around the country are encouraged to join the bishops in consecrating our nation to the Sacred Heart. To commemorate this event, parishes are encouraged to partake in the Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus from June 3rd – 11th, host Holy Hours, and collectively contribute 250 Hours of Adoration and Works of Mercy. In doing this, we’re living out our faith by understanding Christ’s love and mercy for all more deeply and living out this mercy and love ourselves. In the words of our bishops: “Our contemplation of the Sacred Heart leads us deeper into the mystery of our salvation and deeper into our love for Christ found in the faces of our sisters and brothers—especially those most in need.”
Throughout the next few weeks, we will be sharing ways that we could reveal this love of Christ, especially to our nation and its people. Starting next week, I will share specific intentions to pray for during our Tuesday Adoration and thoughts on both spiritual and corporal works of mercy that one could perform. We will also be praying the novena at daily mass, encouraging everyone to pray the novena at home, and on Thursday, June 11th, we will conclude with an all-day Adoration from 930am to 8pm, closing the evening with a Praise and Worship Hour and the Prayer of Consecration. In these ways, we will be joining with other parishes throughout the United States in entrusting our Lord with the well-being of our nation – dedicating our nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ and his mercy.
Let us also keep in our prayers, those who will be receiving their First Communion this weekend as they take this beautiful step closer to Jesus Christ by receiving him in his Most Precious Body and Blood.
In Christ
Fr Robert