Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

When they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.

All the early Fathers of the Church saw this passage as signifying the sacraments of baptism and Eucharist given us by Jesus. Significantly, they were seen as coming from the very heart of Christ. This is especially appropriate for us today, as we tend to see the heart as the source of love. It embraced much more in Jesus’ day, including one’s entire emotional nature and understanding. The heart was the source of behavior such as desire, doubt, fear, gladness, love, obedience, and sorrow. But it was also seen as the primary source of such bad behavior as adultery, hatred, lust, mischief, pride, and rebellion.

In the stream of blood and water pouring out from the heart of the dead Jesus, Saint John saw that his death was the source of life for us. Does not Scripture tell us that “From his heart shall flow streams of living water” (John 7:37; cf. Ezekiel 47:1, Zechariah 14:8; Is 44:3; 55:1, etc.).

The blood and water flowing from Jesus’ side are not merely a sign; they are full of divine power: the power to wash away sins, to redeem, to cleanse, to forgive, to bring about a new birth, to heal, to make us children of God; to divinize, and so forth. This feast celebrates the love of Jesus and the suffering of Jesus because of sin, which are both aspects together.

In contemplating the heart of Christ, do we grow in love for the one who gave his life for us, or do we contribute, at times, to the sin that nailed him to the cross?

Let Us Pray:

O loving Jesus, let the contemplation of the blood and water flowing from your side fill me with love and gratitude and inspire me to love you entirely in return.