Feast of the Sacred Heart

When I arrived in the Diocese of Barreiras in Brasil, Dom Ricardo, the first bishop of the new diocese, gave me a Portuguese copy of the ''Liturgy of the Hours'' and wrote an inscription with the wonderful words of Luke 24:32, ''Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures for us?'' Those words have helped me to understand and appreciate the Sacred Heart. There was a time when I thought that it was a bit strange to see the heart of Jesus on the outside of his chest. It did not mean much to me as we learnt the truths of our faith and professed our belief in them in the Creed. We knew about Jesus, but we weren't always brought closer to him as a friend. I had not made the journey from head to heart. Then, reading words of Jesus in John's gospel, brought the image of the Sacred Heart into focus. ''As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you.'' Lovers do not hesitate to use words like ''sweetheart'', ''heart- throb,'' or to say ''I love you from the bottom of my heart.'' Let us rejoice that the image of the Sacred Heart reminds us that the Father, in Jesus, chose us and loved us first and that we are called to respond by allowing our hearts to burn within us as we realize all that he has done for us.