Heart of the Ark

Jen sits down with Fr. Cesar Jaramillo, JCL and Pastor of Holy Spirit Parish in Pequannock New Jersey (Diocese of Paterson) to discuss what it Evangelization is, and how it may be lived out in a parish context. Fr. Cesar Jaramillo is an Adjunct Professor for the Catholic Studies Program at Seton Hall University and for Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology’s Center for Diaconal Formati...

Pope Francis ends Dilexit Nos with a final word about the importance of mission as the visible embodiment of our response to the relationship with God. Mission cannot be accomplished apart from God's love, and a Christian can not live God's love without loving his neighbor. Pope Francis final prayer for the love of Christ to be known through the work of every Christian active in his or her own voc...

"Mission, as a radiation of the love of the heart of Christ, requires missionaries who are themselves in love and who, enthralled by Christ, feel bound to share this love that has changed their lives." Pope Francis examines the innate connection between discipleship and missionary outpouring, as a desire to unite oneself with the pattern of self-donation, Jesus Christ. He elucidates the character...

In his concluding paragraphs, Pope Francis draws us back to the catechesis of St. Pope John Paul II, and gives a natural recapitulation of the major themes of this document. Through the five statements of Pope St. John Paul the Great, we see that the plan of salvation, to unite the human heart to the love of the Father is through the Sacred heart of Jesus and the action of the Holy Spirit. Our nat...

Pope Francis clarifies the concept of reparation through the spirituality of St. Therese of Liseux's Oblation to love. Therese became a martyr for love, without risking the spiritual dangers of taking on further punishments for any other reason than love. In order to make certain that our interior life is rightly ordered in its purpose. Jen draws parallels in this from the spiritual handbook "Prac...

Pope Francis brings all of his prophetic and theological writings to the fore as he draws from the Catechism, the Conciliar Documents and Ignatian Spirituality to summarize the true freedom of living out the will of God in one's own personal life. It is only through the inner contemplative life in practice that a missionary action can be truly said to work out the will of the Holy Spirit. Chapter...

Pope Francis defines Chrisitian reparation as the "acknowledging the intention to make amends, and to do so in a concrete way, is essential for the process of reconciliation and a return to peace of heart". He outlines the two essentials for reparation, acknowledging our guilt, and asking for forgiveness. Chapter 5, Paragraphs 185-190 Each session of Dilexit Nos in a Year begins by breaking open t...

Pope Francis explores the visionary insight of Pope St. John Paul II in his recognition that the only way to build a "civilization of love" is through Gospel based understanding of reparation through a true devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Pope Francis's own understanding of how to communicate authentic reparation in a secular context this Gospel of Love in order to effect the possibility of...

Pope Francis sketches the ripples of devotion to the Sacred Heart through the eyes of five French men religious with deep theological underpinnings who either inspired, reformed or began movements within the church to minister to the poorest through fraternity, solidarity and accompaniment of the poor and marginalized throughout history. Chapter 5 Paragraphs 177-180 Each session of Dilexit Nos in...

Pope Francis traces the work of the Holy Spirit, pouring forth from the Sacred Heart of Jesus can be received in the heart of the believer as a river, or fountain that pours from His Love to our hearts, and by our goodness out through the entire human family. From the early church fathers, Pope Francis traces the spirituality of the Christian disciple as a fountain of living water. Paragraphs 172-...

In Chapter 5, Pope Francis gives us insight into the ramifications of the church's view of Human Dignity, and the way that the call of the Sacred Heart of Jesus necessitates the response to His Love to the entire human family. From the early church, Christian communities recognized the reason and the fundamental duty to love all because "He Loved us first". Paragraphs 167-171 Each session of Dilex...

Pope Francis begins the explanation of the practice of the devotion of the Sacred Heart with the call for universal understanding of the Church's concept of Reparation. Reparation is not a quid pro quo, it is a fundamental recognition of the transformation that needs to happen in each of us in order to address the root of the evil. Unlike a secular understanding, it is not a one-and-done repayment...

Mark Joseph Williams, who serves the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, as Special Advisor to Cardinal Joseph Tobin is a licensed clinical social worker and author of the book, "A Torrent of Grace". When Mr Williams was a young teen, he was victimized by clergy sexual abuse. The trauma and ensuing feelings of shame took years to come to grips with, and Mark's journey of faith back to the healin...

Pope Francis ends Chapter 4 with the two last Spiritual Fruits to be gained from devotion to the Sacred Heart, namely Compunction and Consolation. In referencing his own homily for Mass of Chrism 2024, Pope Francis sees an ordered understanding of compunction as the natural remedy for both hearts heardened towards the world, and indeed the remaining notions of clericalism. Through consolation, God...

Pope Francis continues with the spirituality of consolation in the writings of Pius XI and giving us theological backing for the understanding of mystical knowledge and spiritual knowledge as separate and distinct between science and opinion. Quoting Thomas Aquinas, we see how things can be seen in complexity or simplicity at the same time when viewed from a human or divine perspective. Jen quotes...

Pope Francis spends some time with the mechanics of the Devotion of the Sacred Heart, in looking at the writing of Pope Pius XI, who clearly recognizes the mystical possibility of consoling the Sacred Heart of Jesus at the time of His passion, through our own offering of suffering united with the cross. St. Margaret Mary got this idea from the Divine Revelations she received, and the church has ap...

Pope Francis traces a few currents of religious communities that have developed spiritual practices or charisms directly impacted by devotion to the Sacred Heart. Pope Francis highlights a number of saints whose intimate relationship with the source of Divine Love shaped the trajectory of their evangelizing witness or their congregation's vocation. Jen shares how merely showing up to lead the Sacr...

Pope Francis elucidates why the contemplative practices codified by St. Ignatius of Loyola, are such a natural fit to the devotion to the Sacred Heart, that beginning with St. Claude de Colombiere, and down through the centuries, the devotion has taken a special meaning and become a banner for the Society of Jesus. As someone who makes Ignatian spiritual practices a daily part of her day, to deepe...

Pope Francis spends significant time in Chapter 4, paragraphs 138-142, fleshing out the spirituality of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, for whom the Sacred Heart was a fundamental part of her devotional practice in both familial practice and mystical experience. Pope Francis recalls the importance of abandon, trust and confidence in the inexhaustable love of God for each of us, as likened unto a devoted p...

Pope Francis spends significant time in Chapter 4, paragraphs 133-137, fleshing out the spirituality of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, for whom the Sacred Heart was a fundamental part of her devotional practice in both familial practice and mystical experience. We read how she does not understand the Heart of Jesus as demanding reparation, but as "burning with tenderness." Each session of Dilexit Nos in...

Pope Francis leans into Chapter 4, paragraphs 129 to 132, and gives us the example of the French Trappist and hermit Charles de Foucauld as one who renewed the evangelizing power of devotion to the Sacred Heart to bring all to know the Love of Christ poured out for us and made manifest in the Blessed Sacrament. Each session of Dilexit Nos in a Year begins by breaking open the scriptures and topics...

Pope Francis, in paragraphs 125-128, seeks to place the devotion to the Sacred Heart which was inspired by the apparitions of Jesus to St. Margaret Mary within the obedience of the Catholic church, by including St. Claude de la Columbière, the French Jesuit who became confessor and spiritual advisor to St. Margaret Mary. By keeping us obedient to the gospel and connected to the sacramental life an...

Jen sits down with Robert Ramos, husband, dad, Knight of Columbus, and lay minister leading his family in faith, and founder of Mission Rosary. Born out of the desire to keep serving in faith, despite the darkness of the pandemic, Robert responded to a desire to keep showing up in faith for his family and uses his story and his desire to share the Good news with others as a means for healing. His...

At just exactly passed the midpoint of the encyclical, Pope Francis in Chapter 4, paragraphs 119 - 124, finally gets to the apparitions of the Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the Visitation nun who in 1673 through 1675 received private revelation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Pope Francis clarifies the significance of private revelations, as well as the connection between the Sacred He...

Pope Francis dives into the spirituality of St. Francis de Sales and St. Jean Francis de Chantal in Chapter 4, paragraphs 114-118, who together established the Order of the Visitation. St. Francis de Sales profound imagery of the Sacred Heart being engraved with the names of each of us to love individually and profoundly is a powerful one, which certainly laid the ground for St. Margaret Mary Alac...