Becoming the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Since Jesus is fully divine, we can say he is God. Since Jesus has a human heart, we can clearly say God has a human heart. God, therefore, is not a distant abstract lover but loved us with a human heart. This means he knew what he was asking from his disciples when he gave them a new commandment: love one another as I have loved you.
The key to understanding this new command is the qualifier, “as I have loved you.” How did he love us? With the compassion in his sacred heart, he healed the sick, forgave sinners, raised the dead, fed the hungry, preached about the kingdom, and cast out demons. However, the definitive display of the love in his sacred heart is that he died for us.
When scientists were studying the Sacred Shroud, one of the things they scrutinized was the blood and water that marked the linen. They wanted to find out what the water was that flowed out from the side of Christ. After a careful study, Dr. Pierre Barbet concluded that the blood and water came from the pericardial sac that surrounds the heart. The Shroud shows marks of a wound on the chest of Christ were the lance would have passed through the ribs and punctured the pericardial sac. He explains that if the heart ruptures, blood seeps into the pericardial sac. When it sits there, the red cells separate from the serum that then begins to look like water. Modern doctors agree with this. What is interesting is in these findings is that Christ died of a ruptured heart. It is through a literal “broken heart” that Jesus gave us his life so that we may live.
For Catholics, the Church is the perpetuation of Christ’s presence on earth for it is through the Church we encounter Christ in the sacraments when he forgives sins in baptism and confession, when he feeds us in the Eucharist, when he cures in the anointing of the sick, etc. Since the Church is the mystical body of Christ, we are the different cells that make up its tissues and organs.
It would be nice to think that we can also be the heart of Christ’s mystical body – his mystical heart made of humans (a human heart). Let us, all of us, especially those who have a devotion to the sacred heart of Jesus, configure our hearts to his so that we learn to love like him. That way when others meet us along the streets, the corridors of our office, or at home, they get to encounter the love of the “sacred heart” of Christ through us.
Typology for Beginners
A Catholic Perspective on understanding the New Testament through the Old Testament
First-century Jews converted to Christianity in droves because of the way the New Testament was written to show Jesus was the Messiah promised by the Old Testament. We also learn about how Mary is the New Eve and the Ark of the Covenant in the way the writers portray her.
Through typology, the patterns that connect the Old and New Testaments make the Bible stories more accessible so that one becomes excited to read Sacred Scripture again.
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A Sky Full of Stars
Know Our Lady through her Titles in the Litany
The Church helps us understand who Mary is by honoring her with different titles in the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Unfortunately, over time and difference of culture, we might not grasp what it is the Church is ascribing to her and lose that opportinity to get to know her.
In A Sky Full of Stars, each title of the Litany is explained so we get know Mary more and fall in love with her all over again.
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Beyond the Veil
Contemplating the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary
Prayer giants like Pope St. John Paul II, Pope Paul VI, Bl. Archbishop Fulton Sheen, and Bishop Robert Baron advocate that we contemplate on the mysteries of the rosary while we say the vocal prayers. Unfortunately, there are not many books that teach us how to do this. Beyond the Veil comes to the rescue by suggesting seven ways we can pray the rosary the way it was intended.
The larger part of the book offers mental images for each of the mysteries we can use in our contemplation, for how can we imagine the scenes in the rosary if we don't know about them?
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100 Things Every Catholic Should Know
Whether or not you are new to the Catholic Church, or struggling, or lapsed, or dynamically involved, this book will enlighten you with the essentials of the Faith that have been handed down to us by the apostles.
Each of the 100 topics is easy to read and distilled into bite-sized portions. Through cross-referencing, the book also shows how the topics are interrelated. Those who are new to the Faith will find this book an edifying handy reference, and those who have simply forgotten will find it a great review material that might spark a new love for God and religion.
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Posted by Joby Provido
