Litany of the Sacred Heart of the Lord Jesus - Text

Kyrie, elejson. Christ, elejson. Kyrie, elejson.
Christ, hear us. Christ, hear us.

Father from heaven, God, have mercy on us.
Son, Redeemer of the world, God, have mercy on us.
Holy Spirit, God, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us.

Heart of Jesus, Son of the Eternal Father, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mother, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, intimately united with the Word of God, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, infinite majesty, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, temple of God, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, tabernacle of the Most High, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, house of God and gate of heaven, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, burning fire of love, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, treasury of justice and love, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, full of goodness and love, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, bottomless depth of all virtues, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, most worthy of all glory, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, King and union of the hearts of all, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father is well pleased, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, from whose fullness we have all received, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, eternal desire of the world, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, patient and of great mercy, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, generous to all who call upon you, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, source of life and holiness, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our sins, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, filled with sorrow, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, for our iniquities' sake, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, obedient unto death, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, source of all comfort, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, blood sacrifice of sinners, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, salvation trusting in you, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, hope of the dying in you, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, delight of all the Saints, have mercy on us.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, forgive us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

K. Jesus, meek and humble of heart.
W. Make our hearts according to Thy Heart.

History

Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was practiced in Christian antiquity and the Middle Ages, and spread in the 17th century through the work of St. John Eudes (1601-1680), founder of the Eudists and the Society of the Admirable Heart of the Mother, and then especially through the work of St. Margaret (Mary) Alacoque. On May 20, 1671, at the age of 24, she entered the Order of the Visitation, founded by St. Francis de Sales, at the convent of Paray-le-Monial.

Here the nun accepted name Mary and, strengthened by an ascetic Christian life, soon had her first mystical experiences.

On December 27, 1673, the feast of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, she had her first vision in which Jesus invited her to take John's place at the Last Supper, chosen by Christto carry out the great plan, "that all may be done by me."

The second vision had location in 1674 during adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, where the nun was to be the subject of an apparition in which Jesus showed her his heart, on a throne flaming and radiant as the sun, surrounded by a crown of thorns, pierced with wounds, and under a cross, while she was grieved by the scandalous ingratitude of the people and the disregard of his efforts to do them good.

Jesus asked her to pray, receive Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month, and bow face down to the ground from eleven o'clock to midnight on Thursday night to Friday night. From this vision came the devotional practice known as the nine First Fridays of the month.

The last vision, which took place on June 16, 1675, in the octave of Corpus Christi, Jesus added that he felt hurt by the attitude of the faithful, by the sacrifices of the ungodly, especially by the hearts consecrated to him, and he expressly asked her to work to give special veneration to his Divine Heart on that day (and on other First Fridays) with Communion, in reparation for the offenses he had received in the Holy Eucharist.

Claude de la Colombière (1641-1682), superior of the nearby Jesuit house in Paray-le-Monial, Margaret revealed her mystical experiences in her autobiography.

Margaret Mary Alacoque, the French mystic, was thus a messenger of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Jesus himself Christ offered us His Sacred Heart (and secondly, the Five Holy Wounds) as the true source from which radiate His light, bright as the sun, and His love, charity and forgiveness, burning like flames (so described in similar visions of other saints);

this Heart is such a sign of God's love that it was pierced with a spear.
The human heart is the vicarious organ and sensitive subject of the Divine Presence in the mystical experience of the Trinitarian Abode;
The heart of Jesus moves the faithful to meditate on the pain of Jesus and to profess gratitude to Him.
In 1856, Pope Pius IX extended the cult to the entire Church Catholic Church, establishing the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which is celebrated every year on the first Friday after Corpus Christi.

Margaret was proclaimed a saint on May 13, 1920 by Pope Benedict XV

The practice of the First Nine Fridays of the month (bowing at the holy hour of worship, and Holy Communion the next day),
attendance and Holy Communion at Mass on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (the first octave after the Solemnity of Corpus Christi).

Crown to the Sacred Heart of Jesus before the Blessed Sacrament
The crown at the Sacred Heart of Jesus may also be recited by individual believers and privately in their own homes, in a clean and appropriate place, for example, before blessed holy images, relics of saints, sacramentals.
But the benefit is greater for all if prayer before the Eucharist takes place directly in the church, in communities open to anyone who wishes to be in adoration, such as prayer families or prayer groups.

Whoever prays before the Blessed Sacrament deserves to receive 300 days of indulgence from God once a day.

  1. O most beloved Heart of Jesus, I humbly adore your sweetest goodness, which you manifest in a special way in the Divine Sacrament, with souls still sinful. I am sorry to see you so ungratefully paid, and I intend to make amends for so many offenses you receive in the Most Holy Eucharist from unholy sacrificial victims, heretics, unbelievers, or ungrateful and irresponsible Christians. Pater, Ave, Gloria.
  2. O most worthy Heart of Jesus, Holy King, I humbly adore the deepest invisible light which thou canst radiate into the human soul from the Divine Eucharist, showing thee our love beyond the species of Bread and Wine. I beg you, Jesus, to infuse me with such beautiful virtue in my heart; in the meantime, I will endeavor to make amends to you for so many offenses you receive in the Blessed Sacrament from heretics, impious victims, unbelievers, or ungrateful and ruthless Christians. Pater, Ave, Gloria.
  3. O Heart of Jesus, who out of love for us suffered so much and suffers to this day, I adore your love so ardent and grace to teach you a way that is pleasing to you and sure to make up for the wrongs of the Blessed Sacrament that you have foreseen. Jesus, our God, I intend to make up for this with my own life; I wish that those offenses you receive in the Blessed Eucharist were not holy sacrifices, heretics, infidels, or ungrateful and shameless Christians. Pater, Ave, Gloria.
  4. O most patient Heart of Jesus, I humbly adore your invincible patience in bearing so many pains for my love on the Cross, and so many offenses against the Divine Eucharist. Since with my blood I am not able to wash away those places where, in various mysteries, You suffer with Your Precious Blood and Your Five Holy Wounds, I ask with due insistence for myself and for every natural or spiritual family beside me to receive from You, O Supreme Good, Supreme Pleasure and Total Beauty: every strength, every determination, and every righteous intention, to pursue only, as far as possible, and throughout my life, the one supreme good, to follow and serve Thee, Truth and True Justice, through the Church of the Saints, our Mother and Teacher; and to make reparation to Thy Sacred Heart for the many outrages it receives from ungodly sacrificial victims, heretics, unbelievers, or ungrateful and irresponsible Christians. Pater, Ave, Gloria.
  5. O Heart of Jesus, prodigal of love for the soul and body of those who pray in adoration of the Most Holy Eucharist, I humbly proclaim the truth of the immense love You bring to us by giving us the food and sacrifice of salvation, Your Divine Body and Your Divine Blood. What is this heart that should not be longed for at the sight of so much love? Jesus, give me abundant tears to weep and then quickly make reparation for the many offenses you receive daily in the Blessed Sacrament from unholy victims, heretics, unbelievers, or ungrateful and irresponsible Christians. Pater, Ave, Gloria.
  6. O Heart of Jesus, our only source of eternal salvation and earthly health, I humbly adore the most ardent love which impelled you to the unimaginable sacrifice of the Cross, and I renew it daily on the consecrated altars of the Mass. Is it possible that such love should not burn the human heart with gratitude? Yes, alas, O my God, but I promise to do my best in the future to make reparation to you for all the outrages, vilifications and slanders you receive in this Mystery of Love from unholy sacred victims, heretics, unbelievers or ungrateful and irresponsible Christians. Pater, Ave, Gloria.

Formula for consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
O glorious and strong Jesus Christ, our God, King of Saints and King of Kings, our Liberator and Savior, Redeemer of mankind, triumphantly descended into the Underworld, the door of Paradise, look upon us humbly prostrate before Your altar.

We are already Yours and we want to be Yours more and more; and to be able to live even closer to You, behold, each one of us today spontaneously consecrates himself to Your Immaculate Heart. Many unfortunately never knew about You; many others, despising Your commandments, rejected You.

O merciful One, have mercy on one and all, and bring all to the adoration of Your Sacred Heart. Lord God, be King not only of those who have never departed from you, but also of those children prodigal who have departed from you; let them return to their Father's house as soon as possible, lest they die of toil and hunger and lose their eternal salvation.

Be King of those who live in the deceitfulness of error, or for discord separated from thee; call them back to the fountain of truth and to the unity of faith, so that in short the whole flock may no longer be scattered, but gathered under the guidance of their Shepherd. Finally, be King of those who are wrapped up in the superstitions of the heathen, and do not refuse to draw them out of the miserable darkness of sin, into the gentle light of the Kingdom of God, already present in this earthly life.

Finally, look with mercy upon the children of this people who were once beloved; let piety descend upon them also The Blood of Christas the washing of redemption and life, otherwise already upon them in the Passion referred to.
Give, O Lord God, security and grant your Church freedom; grant to all nations your true peace and the joyful tranquility of the Law, in all things according to the will of its Creator, immutable in time; let angels and holy souls, as already in heaven, so also from one end of the earth to the other, as if they belonged to the same Holy Mystical Body of the Risen Christ and victorious King, this one voice be imposed upon the whole world: -Praise be to that Divine Heart from which our health and salvation came; to it be sung all glory and honor forever and ever.
As it is true and right that it should be so. Now and until the end of time.

Other forms of worship and indulgence

The grace and charisms that can benefit from prayer, as well as communion (and confession) at Mass, are greatly and before others, favored and enhanced by works of charity (almsgiving, volunteer work, direct gifts of food, food and useful goods, etc.

In fact, until 1953, those who wished to attend Mass and Communion were required to fast from midnight of the previous day (until the end of Mass, where they attended a Christian dinner): Communion is prepared by confession and post Eucharistic.

The fast itself is linked to the centuries-old idea of agape, applied from the first Christians until the Council of Trent: the faithful invited the poor to participate in the Eucharist, in a renewal of the Last Supper, and at the end of the Mass, everyone shared lunch.
Fasting can thus return to being a work of mercy in this sense, if the same food that is deprived, in good condition and intact, is given to people in need.

Whoever, during the month of June, gives the Sacred Heart some daily pious homage, may merit the divine gift of a 7-year indulgence and 7 quarantines each day (of prayer), and a plenary indulgence if the prayer is made on a day of that month or on one of the first eight days of July.