The Sacred Heart

No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known.
John 1:18

Perhaps it is a distaste for the iconography, but when I was younger I was at best unimpressed with devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Some of the more anatomical renderings or prayers were big time turn offs.

I've opened myself a bit more to it, realizing the devotion has its roots in the need to pull God close, to remember that Jesus, while fully God and in majesty at the right had of the Father, is fully human. As such his heart knows sadness, disappointment, grief but above all love and yearning, the very human manifestation of the fundamental nature of God. The Sacred Heart is one way of portraying the aspect of Jesus who is always knocking, always calling, always thirsting for our love.

I found a litany in a copy of June's Magificat this morning in the chapel that spelled that out beautifully with none of the treacly Victorian sentamentality that turned me off in the past. With those ideas in my heart and mind I rode home in the car, and I had a odd thought. Janis Joplin was blaring from my speakers and it occurred to me I could put her cry of the heart in His mouth addressing it to me, calling me to Himself.

You're out on the streets looking good
And baby deep down in your heart I guess you know that it ain't right
Never, never, never, never, never, never hear me when I cry at night
But each time I tell myself that I, well I can't stand the pain

But when you hold me in your arms, I'll sing it once again
I'll say come on, come on, come on, come on and take it

Take another little piece of my heart now, baby
Oh, oh, break it

Break another little bit of my heart now, darling, yeah
Oh, oh, have a

Have another little piece of my heart now, baby
Well you know you got it, child, if it makes you feel good

That image probably won't be many people's cup of tea, but I could hear it. Art is in the ear of the listener sometimes.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Death and Aging

Jesus, who destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel... 2 Timothy 1:10 I look at the skin on my hands and it is withering, like the leaves that are turning brown, curling up and falling to the ground. Death is heavy with me this Autumn. Is it delayed reaction to my father's death last winter? He took with him the last buffer between me and the next world. Is it the whisper of the Holy Spirit? He whispers, "Life is temporary, let go of attachment to it." My natural reaction is rage. We are called to be more than that. Only in Jesus is there strength in the face of bodily death.
Read more

Winter

And perhaps I shall stay or even spend the winter with you, so that you may send me on my way wherever I may go . 1 Corinthians 16:6 Sometimes you have to begin again. Late winter, just before Lent is one of those times. My journey never stopped but this blog dropped by the wayside along the way. This seems like a good time to pick it up again. This time I hope to reflect on two topics: 1) what I believe and 2) marriage. What do I believe? I'm a Nicene Christian--and  Roman Catholic.  I still struggle with discerning God's will for my future, but less than before. It isn't really necessary to see the entire road map, only to continue the journey, "wherever I may go" and to trust that he is leading one step at a time. His word is a lamp to my path.
Read more

Died

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered, died, and was buried.    Nicene-Constantinople Creed Why did Jesus have to die? Because he was a human being. To be born is to die; we start dying the day we're born. Every woman who gives birth gives birth to a child who will come to natural death eventually--or, God forbid, premature death.  The big thing was the Incarnation. Everything else flows from that. Did God want His son to die? You hear that question, but I think it is absurd.  It sounds as if they sat around in heavan planning it out, "and then--crucifixion."  No, I don't think so. The decision was to be fully human. The will of the Father was "don't interfere." Don't interfere with their free will; don't interfere with nature; live it out to the very end. He took on our life and He took on our death. Why crucifixion? Was that of His own choosing? Look to mankind for that. Men invented that and myriad ...
Read more