The Sacred Heart and Mine in Holy Communion offers thirty-three brief meditations upon the titles of the Sacred Heart, intended especially for preparation before or thanksgiving after Holy Communion, as well as for visits to the Blessed Sacrament. For those who sometimes struggle to keep their Communions from becoming routine, each meditation provides a fresh subject for thought and prayer during those precious moments with Our Lord.
Drawing extensively upon the writings of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Sister Mary Philip takes each title in turn and considers what it means when the Heart of Christ is united with our own in Holy Communion. The Sacred Heart is a “Glowing Furnace of Charity”—will contact with that fire kindle greater charity in me? He is an “Abyss of all Virtues”—is each Communion making me more humble, patient, and kind? He is our Father, Shepherd, Friend, Guide, and Consolation—and in the Eucharist, He comes personally to bring all these things to us. Thus familiar invocations become something more than beautiful titles: they become invitations to know the Heart of Jesus more intimately and allow His Heart to transform our own.
Sister Mary Philip entered the Bar Convent in 1905, during Mother Mary Loyola's tenure there as Mistress of Novices, and went on to produce more than a dozen books, with a particular devotion to the Sacred Heart. Mother Loyola herself contributed the preface to this volume, warmly recommending its meditations as especially suited to those precious moments surrounding Holy Communion.
4.37" x 7" paperback 124 pages
Q. Can this book be used for Eucharistic Adoration or visits to the Blessed Sacrament?
A. Absolutely. Although Sister Mary Philip wrote these meditations especially for preparation before and thanksgiving after Holy Communion, their focus on the Sacred Heart and the Eucharistic Presence makes them equally well suited to time spent before the Blessed Sacrament. Each brief meditation provides a subject for prayer and reflection when you may otherwise find yourself wondering what to say to Our Lord.
Q. Do the meditations need to be read in order?
A. No. Each of the thirty-three meditations stands on its own, taking a different title of the Sacred Heart as its theme. You can choose one that particularly speaks to you that day, or work gradually through the book over many Communions or visits to the Blessed Sacrament. The variety makes it especially useful for returning to again and again.
Q. Does the book contain prayers as well as meditations?
A. Yes. In addition to the thirty-three meditations, the book includes the Litany of the Sacred Heart, several forms of consecration as well as invocations to the Sacred Heart, the Offering of the Hour of Guard, an Act of Oblation, and an Act of Reparation.
