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p.

Consecration of the Family

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to the

Sacred Heart of Jesus
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— Cort <,<icca-Ko(f\ . . .

A0P M >4 (c(j

By

REV. M. D. FORREST, M.S.C.

THE PAULIST PRESS

NEW YORK, N. Y.





Consecration of the Family

to the Sacred Heart ofJesus

By

REV. M. D. FORREST, M.S.C.

New York

THE PAULIST PRESS

401 West 59th Street



PRINTED AND PUBLISHED IN THE U. S A

BY THE PAULIST PRESS, NEW YORK, N. Y.



I

Is An Act of Consecration Only a

Passing Act?

JJUMAN words are but the fleet-
ing expression of the thoughts

of our mind, the aspirations of our

soul, the emotions of our breast.

Though our thoughts may be abid-

ing, and though our aspirations and

our sentiments may be constant,

their external manifestations or ex-

pression is naturally transient.

Still, it would be quite false to

judge of the power of words by the

shortness of their duration, for,

after their sound has died away,

their effect may long remain, yea,

may be eternal. The words which

the priest whispers over the bread

and wine in the Eucharistic Sacri-

fice are momentary, and yet, when

the accents of the sacramental form

are no longer heard, Christ silently



abides beneath the sacred species in

obedience to those fleeting words.

Likewise, the words of the marriage

contract soon pass, but their effect

continues to bind husband and wife

in a union that can be dissolved only

by death. Again, the words of Bap-

tism which the minister of Christ

pronounced over us lasted but a few

moments, and yet, long after the

voice of that priest is hushed, even

when his lips are closed in the si-

lence of death, the character of Bap-

tism continues to shine as brightly

and freshly in our Christian souls as

when our foreheads were still mois-

tened by the regenerating waters.

Even the words of Jesus have long

since ceased to fall upon mortal ears,

but their meaning and their effect

is so far-reaching that the Divine

Master could emphatically declare

that, although heaven and earth

would pass. His words would never

pass away.

Words, then, naturally pass, but

their effect remains. Now, apply

[PAGE 4 ]



this truth to the acts of consecra-

tion which Catholics often make in

virtue of some special devotion

which they cherish. It would be ab-

surd to underrate the value of such

acts by the fallacious statement that

they are almost meaningless or use-

less because they are so transitory.

An act of consecration is a solemn

act whereby we make a perpetual of-

fering of ourselves—an act the effect
of which marks the whole of our

lives, and establishes abiding rela-

tions between ourselves and the per-

son to whom we are consecrated. At

times, indeed, thoughtless devotees

may hastily make some act of conse-

cration, and then live in forgetful-

ness thereof, but such examples no

more militate against the value or

efficacy of acts of consecration than

the examples of thoughtless people,

who forget or refuse to pay their

lawful debts, tell against the valid-

ity or binding force of the verbal

contract whereby they assumed such

obligations of justice.

[PAGE 5

]



In the present pamphlet I shall

briefly explain what is meant by

consecrating families to the Sacred

Heart, and show the advantages of

this devotion, in the earnest hope

that many readers will be moved to

pay this tribute of gratitude, of love,

and of reparation to the adorable

Heart of the Word Incarnate.

[PAGE 6 ]



II

What Is the Meaning of Consecrating

a Family to the Sacred Heart?

Although the whole human race,

as well as each particular family,

and each individual member, be-

longs by right of creation and re-

demption, to Jesus Christ, we may

nevertheless voluntarily consecrate

ourselves to His Sacred Heart. Pope

Leo XHI, in his zeal for the glory of

the Heart of Jesus and for the wel-

fare of souls, consecrated mankind

to that Divine Heart; many bishops

have likewise consecrated their dio-

ceses; and now the act of consecrat-

ing families to the Sacred Heart is

proposed to Christian souls as a

most salutary practice.

The consecration of a family to

the Sacred Heart is the act whereby

the father and mother offer them-

selves and their children to the

[PAGE 7 ]



Heart of Jesus in order to express

their resolution of remaining closely

united to that Heart of love, of be-

longing to It perpetually and entire-

ly, and of devoting themselves gen-

erously to Its service.

Such an act is full of meaning,

for thereby the parents not only ac-

knowledge that Jesus Christ has the

right, by creation and redemption,

and in virtue of the Sacrament of

Matrimony, which they have re-

ceived, to reign over their family,

but they also declare and protest

that, even if Christ had not already

this inalienable right in virtue of

those sacred titles, they would free-

ly hand themselves and their chil-

dren over to His Divine Heart, to

be devoted for evermore to Its love

and service. Henceforth the family

is united to the Heart of Jesus by a

new title—the act of perpetual self-
oblation which the parents have

made of themselves and their chil-

dren.

In the fourth part of this pam-

[ PAGE 8 ]



phlet I shall explain how the Act of

Consecration is to be made by the

family, and shall mention the daily

practices which the family is to per-

form in order to remain faithful to

the spirit of that beautiful conse-

cration.

f P A G E 9 I



Ill

What Are the Advantages of Such An

Act of Consecration?

This solemn consecration will

bring down on the entire family and

on each member the choicest bless-

ings. The words of the offering will

be wafted heavenwards by the

Guardian Angels of the family, and

will make sweet music around the

throne of Jesus, who will dilate His

Heart, and shed upon the family in

richest profusion the graces of which

It is the perennial spring. Rather,

I should say, that act of consecra-

tion will speed heavenwards like an

arrow of prayerful love to pierce the

Heart of Jesus, the fountainhead of

grace, whence the purest streams of

redeeming grace will gush forth to

renew and sanctify the Christian

family. Special relations, and abid-

ing ones, too, will thence exist be-

ep age 10]



tween the consecrated family and

the Sacred Heart, which will guard

the whole family and guide each

member thereof onwards and up-

wards over the winding, narrow,

rugged paths of life unto the vision

of the glorified Heart of Jesus in

the light of Heaven, and the per-

petual ecstatic enjoyment of the

measureless love which It sheds

upon the elect.

As a result of such a consecration,

the Sacred Heart will cherish that

family as the object of a special

predilection. Ah! it would need an

angel to explain what it is to become

the object of such a predilection, and

even a celestial spirit could only in-

adequately express or describe to us

such a reality, for in this life our

clouded mind, even when deified by

the light of faith, beholds but dimly

the bright truths of God’s love, and

only imperfectly grasps the clearest

expressions of that glorious reality.

In virtue, too, of the daily act of

devotion which the family will per-

[ PAGE 11]



form before the image of the Sacred

Heart, wondrous blessings will be

constantly lavished on such a home

in fulfillment of the promises which

our Saviour made to St. Margaret

Mary. Could we discern such bless-

ings with the vision of the Guardian

Angels of the family, how our hearts

would expand with gratitude and

beat with intensest delight! Trac-

ing the life of such a family onwards

from the moment of its solemn self-

oblation made to the Heart of the

Crucified, we should see the father

protected day after day in his un-

selfish toil for his wife and children

;

we should behold the self-sacrificing

mother comforted in the trials of

which only a mother’s loving heart

is aware; we should see the little

ones snatched from the very jaws

of ruthless temptations which would

have destroyed their angelic inno-

cence; we should see the most mar-

velous graces incessantly shining on

the paths of the members of that

family as celestial lights to guide

[PAGE 12]



them onwards, falling gently on

their parched and weary souls as

heavenly dews to refresh and in-

vigorate them, streaming into their

hearts as a supernal nectar to capti-

vate them with the strength and

sweetness of Divine love.

And then, when the Angel of

Death had snatched a member from

that Christian household, night after

night, as the family gathered around

the image of the Sacred Heart, be-

fore which that now absent member

once so fervently worshiped with his

loved ones, we would behold the

glory of God gradually but surely

dawning over him in the dark, penal

fires of Purgatory, as the pleadings

of the consecrated family arose like

a sweet-smelling sacrifice to the

Throne of the Heart of the Word

made flesh.

A certain priest narrated to me a
touching incident which he wit-

nessed in his ministrations to the

sick. Arriving at the bedside of a

dying widowed mother, he beheld

[PAGE 13 1



five little children, the youngest of

whom was but four years of age,

each clasping a rosary-beads, and

kneeling in pleading prayer around

their departing mother. “And sure-

ly,” added the priest, “i-f ever a

prayer pierced the clouds, the

prayers of those little children

did.”

We may say that the prayers of
a family consecrated to the Heart

of Jesus, which the members loving-

ly pour forth before the image of

that Heart, on behalf of a member

silently sojourning in the depths of

Purgatory, will not only pierce the

clouds of Heaven, but the very

Heart of God Incarnate, and cause

the balm of Divine mercy to descend

upon the imprisoned soul and soothe

it in its suffering, and shorten its

period of expiation.

Oh, no wonder the infallible Vicar

of Christ has approved of and

blessed the project of consecrating

families to the Sacred Heart. Listen

to the sweet words of encourage-

[ P AGE 14]



ment which His Holiness, Benedict

XV, addressed to Father Boevey,

the zealous propagator of this devo-

tion; “In your zeal for the welfare

of human society, you act rightly in

stirring up, in the first place, and

propagating the Christian spirit in

family homes, by establishing in the

bosom of our families the charity of

Jesus Christ that it may reign there-

in as a queen. In acting thus, you

obey Jesus Christ Himself, Who has

promised to shed abroad His bless-

ings on the homes in which an image

of His Heart shall be exposed and

honored.

t PAGE IS]



IV

How to Moke This Consecration

Since the consecration of the fam-

ily to the Sacred Heart is a land-

mark in the Christian life of the

family on its journey towards eter-

nity, this act should be surrounded

by all the solemnity and splendor

which the circumstances of the fam-

ily can command. A beautiful

framed picture, or a lovely statue,

of the Sacred Heart should be pro-

cured, and placed in a conspicuous

and fitting place, and, if possible, a

suitable altar should be erected be-

fore it. Some special feast-day

should be chosen as the day of

consecration, and the children should

spend the day in adorning the image

and decorating the altar, selecting

the choicest flowers, and also pro-

curing neat and even exquisite drap-

ings. These conditions are not, of

[PAGE 16]



course, strictly required, and, though

they cannot all be fulfilled, the piety

of the family will supply for what is

wanting in external splendor.

In the evening, at a convenient

hour, the father, mother, and chil-

dren will assemble before the altar

of the Sacred Heart, on which a

small lamp, or a number of candles,

should be lighted as symbols of the

living faith and ardent charity of

the family; then the father will

slowly and distinctly read the conse-

cration, while the members of the

family repeat it after him, sentence

by sentence. It would be well if

each member of the family had a

written or printed copy of the form

of consecration; the whole family

could then recite it simultaneously.

If our Lord has declared that, where

two or three are gathered together

in His name. He is there in their

midst, how lovingly He will hasten

to bless with His presence the fam-

ily gathered together to honor His

Sacred Heart in so special a manner!

[PAGE 17]



Any form of consecration may be

used. The following is the official

form:

Sacred Heart of Jesus, Who didst
manifest to St. Margaret Mary the

desire of reigning in Christian fami-

lies, we today wish to proclaim Thy

most complete regal dominion over

our own. We would live in future
with Thy life; we would cause to

flourish in our midst those virtues to

which Thou hast promised peace here

below; we would banish from us the

spirit of the world which Thou hast

cursed. And Thou shalt reign, over

our minds in the simplicity of our

faith, and over our hearts by the

whole-hearted love with which they

shall burn for Thee, the flame of

which we shall keep alive by the fre-

quent reception of Thy Divine Eucha-

rist.

Deign, O Divine Heart, to preside
over our assemblings, to bless our en-

terprises, both spiritual and temporal,

to dispel our cares, to sanctify our

joys, to alleviate our sufferings. If

ever one or other of us should have

the misfortune to afflict Thee, remind

[PAGE 18]



him, O Heart of Jesus, that Thou

art good and merciful to the penitent

sinner. And when the hour of sepa-

ration strikes, when death shall come

to cast mourning into our midst, we

will all, both those who go and those

who stay, be submissive to Thy eter-

nal decrees. We will console our-
selves with the thought that a day

will come when the entire family, re-

united in heaven, can sing forever

Thy glories and Thy mercies.

May the Immaculate Heart of Mary

and the glorious patriarch, St. Joseph,

present this consecration to Thee, and

keep it in our minds all the days of

our life.

All glory to the Heart of Jesus, our

King and our Father. Amen.

The act of consecration ended,

the family will arise, and each mem-

ber in turn, commencing with the

father, will sign the written formula

which the latter used while reciting

the consecration. This document

will thenceforth be carefully kept

amongst the family treasures as an

abiding proof of the devotedness of

the family to the Heart of Jesus.

[PAGE 191



V

How to Remain Faithful to the Spirit

of This Consecration

It is not enough merely to make

such
^

an act of consecration
;

the

family must ever strive henceforth

to remain faithful to the spirit of

that beautiful oblation made to the

Heart of Jesus. As the child whose

soul has been stamped with the char-

acter of Baptism is obliged to re-

main ever faithful to that glorious

sacrament by leading a truly Chris-

tian life; as the husband and wife

are bound constantly to live accord-

ing to the solemn promise they made

before the altar of God; so the

Catholic family is in honor bound

to live according to the spirit of their

offering to the Sacred Heart.

In perpetual remembrance of their

consecration, the father and mother,

with all the children, will kneel every

( PAGE 20]



night, at a convenient hour, before

the altar of the Sacred Heart which

they have erected, or before the pic-

ture which they have suspended on

the wall. Then one member of the

family, preferably the father, will

recite some act of homage in honor

of the Heart of Jesus—the Litany
of the Sacred Heart, or the Act of

Reparation, or any other prayer or

hymn in honor of that Divine Heart.

This is indeed, a simple and easy

practice; but we must remember

that we please our Lord more by

fidelity in the daily practice of a

short act of homage than by an oc-

casional outpouring of endless

prayers. We may apply to devotion

to the Sacred Heart what St. John

Berchmans said on his deathbed,

when asked by his companions what

practice was most pleasing to the

Mother of God—“Quidquid mini-
mum, dum modo sit constans”

(“Any little act, if only it be con-

stant”). Yes, constancy is a char-

acteristic trait of true devotion.

[PAGE 21]



Each daily act of homage ren-

dered to the Sacred Heart by the

consecrated family will form a

golden step in the ladder that will

rise heavenwards from the Christian

home; every such act will form a

heavenly link in the chain that will

stretch across the yawning chasm of

eternity to the land of everlasting

love. As the family assembles night

after night to honor the loving Heart

of the Word made flesh, the Guard-

ian Angels of that Christian home

will hover over its members, and re-

cord in the Book of Life each suc-

cessive act of honor, of love, and of

reparation as it speeds heavenwards

to reach the throne of the glorified

Heart of Jesus.

After this simple act of homage

has been paid to the Divine Heart

by the family as a reminder of their

previous consecration, and in obedi-

ence to the spirit thereof, it would

be well for the family to recite to-

gether the Rosary of the Blessed

Virgin, or, at least, a few decades.

[PAGE 22]



This, of course, is not, strictly speak-

ing an essential addition to the prac-

tice of homage to be rendered to the

Sacred Heart, but the family Rosary

is so beautiful and salutary a devo-

tion, the Virgin Mother is so linked

with her Divine Son, and devotion

to Her is so bound up with devotion

to His Adorable Heart, that no more

opportune practice could be per-

formed after the family have daily

manifested their allegiance to that

Heart of love.

Where there are children, the

father or mother, or one of the elder

members of the family, should then

instruct the little ones for ten or fif-

teen minutes in the Catechism. The

unfailing and necessity means to

keep the faith alive in our midst is

the Christian instruction of children.

The fact that so many young men

and young women become negligent

of their religious duties as they

grow up is frequently, though not

invariably, attributable to want of

genuine, constant religious instruc-

[ PAGE 23 ]



tion in their childhood days. If

children are to grow up in the prac-

tice of true devotion to the Sacred

Heart, which necessarily includes

the fulfillment of every religious

duty, undoubtedly they must be pa-

tiently taught the truth, and shown

the beauty, of the divinely estab-

lished religion which is their super-

natural birthright in virtue of the

Sacrament of Baptism which they

have received. Hence the daily

catechetical instruction of the young

is earnestly recommended in connec-

tion with the daily family worship

of the Sacred Heart. Our Lord will

also bless in the most abundant

manner the families who are faith-

ful to this custom. If He has prom-

ised a special reward to those who

give a cup of water to a child in

His name, surely He will shower

His choicest gifts on those who give

the thirsting souls of their little ones

to drink copiously of those life-giv-

ing waters of heavenly doctrine

which flow forth from His Divine

[PAGE 24 ]



Heart. On the contrary, those par-

ents who neglect the religious in-

struction of the tender souls en-

trusted to them by Providence will

have to give a rigorous account of

their stewardship when they are

summoned to the tribunal of Eter-

nal Justice.

The practice, then, of consecrat-

ing families to the Sacred Heart

will bring forth the richest fruits of

sanctification. This salutary prac-

tice, which has been blessed by our

Holy Father, will unite the Catholic

family most intimately to the Heart

of Jesus, will insure the constant

blessing and protection of that Di-

vine Heart, and will establish abid-

ing relations between the Christian

home and the Fountainhead of

Grace, whence copious streams will

perpetually flow over the souls of

the family to purify and sanctify

them in their earthly pilgrimage,

and to assuage their suffering in the

realm of purgatorial fire; while fidel-

ity to the simple daily practices

[PAGE 2 S ]



recommended will mean the unceas-

ing worship of the Heart of Jesus,

unfailing devotion to our Blessed

Mother, and the incessant growth of

the souls of children in the super-

natural life by means of Christian

doctrine.

May the seeds of this beautiful

practice become deeply imbedded in

the Catholic soil of America; may

they rapidly germinate, and grow

and flourish with perennial vigor

and beauty; may they bring forth

the fairest flowers of virtue and the

sweetest fruits of holiness. May

this practice daily gain ground until

every Catholic family of this great

Republic is consecrated to the Sa-

cred Heart. Then from shore to

shore will resound a perpetual

chorus of praise, of gratitude, of

love, of reparation, and of supplica-

tion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

[PAGE 26 ]



SELECTED PRAYERS IN HONOR OF

THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

Act of Consecration

I give and consecrate to the Heart

of our. Lord Jesus Christ, my whole

life, all my actions, my trials, my

sufferings, devoting every portion of

my being to loving, honoring and

glorifying Him, to working for His

love alone, renouncing with all my

heart whatever may be displeasing

to Him. I take Thee, then, O Sa-

cred Heart, for the one object of my

love, the Protector of my life, the

Pledge of my salvation, the Remedy

of my inconstancy, the Redeemer of

all my faults, and my sure refuge in

the hour of death. O Heart of all

goodness, be my justification before

God the Father, and shield me from

the effects of His just anger. O
Heart, overflowing with love, I place

all my confidence in Thee, for I

[PAGE 27]



dread my own weakness, while I

hope everything from Thy bounty.

Do Thou destroy in me whatever

may displease • Thee or withstand

Thy will, and may the pure love of

Thee be so deeply imprinted in my

heart that I may never forget Thee

nor be separated from Thee, and I

implore Thee by all Thy love that

my name may be graven upon Thee.

May it be all my happiness to live

and die as Thy slave. Amen.

(St. Margaret Mary, d. 1690.)

In His Footsteps

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, filled

with infinite love, broken by my in-

gratitude, pierced by my sin, yet lov-

ing me still, accept the consecration

that I make to Thee of all that I

have and all that I am. Take every

faculty of my soul and body and

draw me day by day nearer and

nearer to Thy Sacred Side and there,

as I may bear the lesson, teach me

Thy blessed ways. Amen.

[PAGE 28]



Prayers for the Gifts of Piety and

Fortitude

Jesus, my Kinsman, my Brother,

my Friend, my Saviour, my Re-

deemer, my Teacher, my Master,

my Lord and my God; give me a

loving heart filial towards God and

Thy blessed Mother; fraternal to-

wards Thee and all mankind, espe-

cially to the household of the faith:

docile to Thy Church and to Thy

Word: kindly to all the works of

the Sanctifier.

O God the Holy Ghost, give me

light to contemplate the love and the

Passion of Jesus, that I may be

changed into love and patience.

Take from me selfishness, softness,

self-love, delicacy, cowardice, and

fear; give me a spirit of endurance,

a love of labor and of the Cross, of

hardness and of courage, that I may

be willing to spend, and to be spent,

for the elect’s sake.

(Cardinal Manning, d. 1892 .)

[PAGE 29]



For Sympathy With Christ

Lord Jesus Christ, crucified for

sinners, receive this sinner who

seeks shelter with Thee, and protect

me under the shadow of Thy wings

that Thou dost spread wide upon

the Cross, in the arms of Thy love.

May there go forth from Thy sacred

wounds and fall on me some rays of

humility, of obedience, of patience

and of charity. From the wound of

Thy Heart . . . wound my heart . . .

that, illumined with the light of Thy

death, I may really understand the

pain and the suffering that Thou

hast endured in Thy Hands and Thy

Feet, in Thy Head, in Thy Body, in

Thy Heart and in Thy Soul.

(Van Eschj d, 1578.)

In His Passion

Give me, O Christ Jesus, the light

of Thy Holy Spirit to understand

the value of the Cross.

O Sacred Heart, that lifted Thy-

self up in acts of pure prayer under

the stress of Thy agony, touch my

[PAGE 30]



cold heart with a spark of Thy fire,

that I may learn to pray in the hour

of sorrow and pain ! O virtue of the

Sacred Heart, come out and trans-

form this heart of mine! Give me

strength to grow by slow degrees

more and more like Thee. O my

Redeemer, let the hour come when

there shall be nothing left in my

heart or my life that I have not sur-

rendered to Thee!

(Bishop Hedley, OS.B., d. 1915.)

For a Happy Death

Remember, O Lord, the word

which Thou spakest on the Cross:

Father, into Thy Hands I commend

My spirit. I pray Thee receive my
soul, when it must leave my sinful

body, into the loving wound of Thy

Heart.

O dear Lord Jesus Christ, remem-

ber how on the Cross Thy blessed

Heart broke in the bitterness of

death. When in my last hour my

heart shall break in death, give me,

I beseech Thee, this grace, that

[PAGE 3 1]



Thou mayest find in my soul perfect

love, true contrition, firm faith, and

unshakable trust in Thy mercy.

Amen.

(Marienvrede, Convent of the Cross.)

Evening Prayer

0 good and merciful God, I thank

Thee for keeping me this day in life

and health, as also for all the good

things Thou hast given me, for body

and soul, for time and eternity. I

offer and commend to Thy holy

Heart any good thing that I have by

Thy kindness today, thought, spoken

and done, and all that I have had to

bear of cross and suffering.

1 pray Thee to unite them to the

love of Thy holy Heart, to Thy bit-

ter Passion, and Thy merits, that

they may please Thee and profit me

to eternal life. Amen.

(From an unknown medieval author.)

[PAGE 32]