Ireland to be re-consecrated to Sacred Heart at Knock Shrine

Ireland will be nationally re-consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on Sunday June 22 at Knock Shrine, Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan of Waterford and Lismore has announced in a pastoral letter.

The re-consecration marks the 350th anniversary of the first apparition of the Sacred Heart to St Margaret Mary Alacoque. Ireland was the first country to be consecrated to the Sacred Heart in 1873.

Bishop Cullinan said: “For centuries, amid persecution, famine, and great suffering, our ancestors clung to the Heart of Jesus as their refuge. When churches were closed, the Mass forbidden, and Catholic families driven underground, the image of the Sacred Heart remained etched in their hearts and, when possible, on the walls of their homes. The Sacred Heart beat with them in times of sorrow and sustained their hope through unimaginable trials.
“Today, different trials face our society – trials not of hunger and exile, but of confusion, individualism, and ideologies that erode the sanctity of family life and human dignity. The Sacred Heart remains our answer,” he said.

The bishop called on families during June to: Pray daily to the Sacred Heart of Jesus – especially the Litany of the Sacred Heart; Place an image of the Sacred Heart in your home; Trust in the promises he made to St Margaret Mary Alacoque…; Attend First Friday Masses and to spend time in Eucharistic Adoration.

The bishop invited all the faithful to attend the national event in Knock, describing the devotion as “a spiritual lifeline” in modern times.