Tomorrow, June 11, upon the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the U.S. Bishops, gathered in Florida, will consecrate the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, inviting dioceses and parishes across the country to join in this historic event which is timed to coincide with the 250th anniversary of our country, writes Heidi Bratton.
In the Diocese of Lansing, some Catholics have gotten a jump on the celebrations with the practice of enthroning an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in their homes. The word “enthrone” implies royalty, so to enthrone an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in a home is simply to make known that Jesus is the king of the home and the ruler of the family. The practice is connected to the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which began in 1673, when a French nun, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, received visions of Christ revealing his heart to her, a heart aflame with love for her and for all humanity.
“My first experience of the Sacred Heart being enthroned in a home comes from my grandma,” shares Father Bill Ashbaugh, pictured above, pastor at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Ann Arbor. “We’d go and visit Grandma, and on the mantle in her dining room was an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I have so many happy memories of all the relatives getting together around that table, and there was Jesus on the mantle, overseeing us all.”
Mike Mortucci, a parishioner at St. Mary Student Parish in Ann Arbor, leads a group of University of Michigan students that meets weekly to learn more about the devotion to the Sacred Heart. “Words like consecration, enthronement, and devotion scare people, sometimes,” Mortucci says, but he is eager to demystify these terms. “Having a devotion is as simple as having a change of intentionality. It’s doing the same stuff a regular Catholic does, just more fervently.” Like Mortucci, Father Bill explains the process of enthronement in nonintimidating terms. “The invitation to enthrone an image of the Sacred Heart in your home is an invitation to make visible and concrete the immense love the Lord has for you by placing an image of the Sacred Heart in a prominent spot in your home. It is there to help the family palpably feel his love, like I did, even as a young boy in my grandma’s dining room.”
With the desire to help the love of Christ reign in every home, Father Bill began promoting home enthronements in his parish about two years ago. Since then, he estimates he has celebrated around 20 enthronements. There are many beautiful images, statues, and even carvings of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to choose from for an enthronement, making it easy for each family to find something that feels right for their home. If someone in the family is artistic, they might even create their own image. What matters most in enthronements is not the particular image or ceremony, but the love and welcome offered to Christ in the home.
“There are a lot of demands on your time, and it’s hard to know where to spend your limited resources,” observes St. Thomas parishioner, Alisa Maile, mother to seven children with her husband, Michael. “By enthroning his heart, you’re saying he is the priority. I believe the Sacred Heart has opened our hearts and helped us make sure that the things and people God has given us authority over are taken care of first.”
Judith Joseph, a member of the Sacred Heart Devotion group at St. Mary’s Student Parish, lives at St. Catherine House, a vocational discernment house for young Catholic women next to St. Thomas parish where the Sacred Heart has been enthroned. Joseph confesses, “I grew up Catholic, but being a part of the St. Mary’s group and having the Sacred Heart enthroned at St. Catherine House has helped the Mass become so much more meaningful to me. Growing close to the Sacred Heart is also growing close to Jesus in the Eucharist.”
As our nation marks 250 years, and the U.S. Bishops dedicate the country to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, may all Catholics join in the celebrations by making Jesus, the King of the Universe, known in their homes.
* Learn more: More information about the Sacred Heart Devotion and enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus can be found on the St. Thomas the Apostle website. https://sta2.org/church/discipleship/sacred-heart/
