There are two hearts that beat with incredible love. They are the The Sacred Heart of Jesus and The Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Immaculate Heart of Mary intercedes for us and The Sacred Heart of Jesus grants us blessings.
The Feast Day of The Sacred Heart of Jesus is June 19 and the Feast Day of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is June 20. Along with these Feast Days are the First Fridays and the First Saturdays.
“What are the First Fridays?
The First Fridays is a very important devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The First Fridays devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus consists of going to Confession, Holy Mass, and receiving Holy Communion and offering each time as an act of atonement for offenses against the Blessed Sacrament on nine consecutive First Fridays of each of the nine months. This devotion started when Jesus appeared to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque within the octave of the Corpus Christi feast in 1675 and said to her “Behold this heart which, not withstanding the burning love for men with which it is consumed and exhausted, meets with no other return from most Christians than sacrilege, contempt, indifference and ingratitude, even in the sacrament of my love [the Eucharist]. But what pierces my heart most deeply is that I am subjected to these insults by persons especially consecrated to my service.” He also made a great promise when he said “I promise you in the unfathomable mercy of my heart that my omnipotent love will procure the grace of final penitence for all those who receive communion on nine successive first Fridays of the month; they will not die in my disfavor, or without having received the sacraments, since my divine heart will be their sure refuge in the last moments of their life.”
“First Friday Devotion.” Catholic News Agency, https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/resources/prayers/devotions/to-our -lord-jesus- christ/first-friday-devotion.
What are the First Saturdays?
The First Saturdays is a very important devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The First Saturdays devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary consists of going to Confession, Holy Mass, and receiving the Holy Eucharist on five consecutive Saturdays of each of the five months. This devotion was requested by Our Lady of Fatima when she appeared to the 3 kids in Fatima, Portugal. She said to Lucia “I shall come to ask . . . that on the First Saturday of every month, Communions of reparation be made in atonement for the sins of the world.” Years later Sister Lucia was the only child still alive and Mother Mary appeared to her again and said these words “Look, my daughter, at my Heart, surrounded with thorns with which ungrateful men pierce me at very moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You at least try to console me, and say that I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the rosary, and keep me company for 15 minutes while meditating on the 15 mysteries of the rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me.”
To obtain the promise from the Immaculate Heart of Mary, we must fulfill the five requirements on five consecutive first Saturdays of the month which are:
- Intention: Have the intention of consoling the Immaculate Heart in a spirit of reparation.
- Confession: Within eight days before or after the first Saturday, go to Confession.
- Holy Communion: Receive Holy Communion and offer it to the reparation to Our Lady.
- Holy Rosary: Pray five decades of the Holy Rosary.
- Meditate for 15 minutes: This is meant to meditate on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary with the goal of keeping Our Lady company (for example, while in church or before an image or statue of Our Lady).
To those who faithfully complete this devotion Our Lady made a great promise of “I promise to assist at the hour of death with the graces necessary for salvation.”
CO Now LLC. “~ The Five First Saturdays Devotion ~.” The Most Holy Rosary, http://www.themostholyrosary.com/appendix2.htm.
Cunningham, Genevieve, et al. “What Are the First Friday and First Saturday Devotions?” The Catholic Company, 29 July 2019, https://www.catholiccompany.com/getfed/what-is-the-first-friday-and-first -saturday-devotion-5781.”
(Excerpt from Miracles Exist in Today’s World)
God Bless,
Dana
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.