The Sacred Heart, Source of Peace in the Home

Devotion to the Sacred Heart does not consist merely in sentiment or pious feeling. It is true that the deepest and tenderest feelings of our heart are stirred up by this priceless devotion, and in its exercise all the noblest sentiments of our being are called into action. But a devotion which stops short at tender feelings is not worthy of the name. To be genuine and sincere, our love for the Heart of our Blessed Lord must show itself in deeds as well as in desires, in imitation as well as admiration, in work and sacrifice as well as in contemplation.

The spirit of the Sacred Heart is a spirit of generous self-sacrifice, for the sake of others. This is one of the first lessons which the study and the imitation of that adorable Heart will teach us. It is a lesson fruitful in many holy consequences for the welfare of the Catholic family; but let us direct our thoughts to the efficacy of the spirit of self-sacrifice in honor of the Sacred Heart, to insure to the Catholic family the spirit of peace.

There is no one, be he Christian or pagan, who does not desire for his home the blessing of peace. An atmosphere of peace and repose from the troubles of the day is one of the dearest qualities of the home. On the contrary, a home where peace does not abide is no home at all. Men are driven by dissensions and wars to flee their own firesides and to seek elsewhere the peace that they do not find at home.

But the peace of home requires from all the members of the family a constant self-sacrifice. There must be forbearance, one with another. Urging of one’s own opinions begets disputes which mar the quiet of the home. Claiming one’s own rights gives rise to bitter quarrels. To be insistent on one’s own tastes and desires, to urge one’s own preferences, makes others resentful and dissatisfied. Yet, it is our human nature to want to do all these things, and we need the spirit of self-sacrifice to enable us to exercise the self-control and the forbearance required to refrain from doing always as we are inclined.

By the help of devotion to the Sacred Heart, deeply understood and perseveringly practiced, we shall acquire this spirit of sacrifice and be enabled to preserve the peace of our home. On the other hand, a home in which there is not peace cannot be said to practice in the fullest degree this admirable devotion. Our Blessed Lord is the Prince of Peace. It is His will that there shall be peace among all His followers. In an atmosphere of harmony and concord, His love and His service prosper. But in the home where there is quarreling and dissension, rancor and divisions, the devotion to the Sacred Heart cannot flourish as it should.

The very sight of that holy image, that Heart flaming with love, encircled by the crown of thorns, surmounted by the cross, pierced for us all, should serve to allay the dissensions of the Catholic home and to put all its members in that attitude of mutual forbearance, tender charity, and patient tolerance of one another’s faults and foibles, which will dispel all quarrels and differences. In moments of vexation or annoyance, when the temper is too sorely tried and the words of anger or fault-finding are about to break forth from our lips, let us fix our eyes on the image of the Sacred Heart and pray to be given grace to imitate the patience and the meekness of our Blessed Saviour.

“Learn of Me,” He says to us, as we regard that holy image, “for I am meek, and humble of heart!” Moving words, in which our Lord offers His Sacred Heart to us as a model of meekness and humility. It is from harshness and pride that most family quarrels are born and by these vices dissensions are nurtured. If we but imitate the meekness and humility of the Heart of Jesus, there will be peace in the Catholic home.

Let us each examine, in the light of these reflections, how he or she practices the imitation of the Sacred Heart in cultivating meekness and humility in the family circle, in deferring to all, yielding to all where there is no question of duty or principle, being ready to serve rather than to command, having respect for the desires and opinions of others, not forcing our own will and our own opinion upon all at the cost of harmony and peace. By correcting what has been amiss in these regards in the past and by imitating our gentle Lord in His mildness and lowliness, we shall excellently manifest in deeds more eloquent than words, that we are in very truth disciples of His Sacred Heart.