The Heart of Christ and Our Journey to the Father

by Fr. John Granato  |  02/02/2025  |  Words from Fr. John

My Dear Friends,

When we read the letters of St. Paul, or truly listen to the words of Jesus Christ in the Gospels, or even listen intently to the prayers of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we begin to notice that we are a theocentric religion; in other words, we praise and worship the Trinitarian God. But it goes deeper than just worshiping the Trinity. All of our prayers are, or should be, directed to the Father, through the Son and in the Holy Spirit. Jesus wants to bring us to the Father’s heart. In the second part of chapter three in Pope Francis’s encyclical, we see this more clearly. Francis writes, “Jesus wants to bring us to the Father. That is why, from the very beginning, the Church’s preaching does not end with Jesus, but with the Father. As source and fullness, the Father is ultimately the one to be glorified.” (paragraph 70). Francis quotes Pope St. John Paul II in paragraph 71, “the whole of the Christian life is like a great pilgrimage to the house of the Father.”

Our Lord’s heart is directed to the Father, but the heart of our Savior is also filled with the fire of the Holy Spirit. In paragraph 75, Francis writes, “As St. John Paul II once said, ‘Christ’s heart is the Holy Spirit’s masterpiece.’ And we rejoice in the Spirit for “when the Spirit unites us to the sentiments of Christ through grace, He makes us sharers in the Son’s relationship to the Father, whereby we receive ‘a spirit of adoption through which we cry out, Abba! Father!’” (paragraph 76). Quoting Pope St. John Paul II again in par. 77, Francis writes, “The Savior’s heart invites us to return to the Father’s love, which is the source of every authentic love.” Francis (referencing Pope Pius XII) goes on to say that “Devotion to Christ’s heart is essential for our Christian life to the extent that it expresses our openness in faith and adoration to the mystery of the Lord’s divine and human love. In this sense, we can once more affirm that the Sacred Heart is a synthesis of the Gospel.” (par. 83). Francis then promotes Eucharistic Adoration and Communion, especially on first Fridays and every Thursday. Francis writes, “While no one should feel obliged to spend an hour in adoration each Thursday, the practice ought surely to be recommended. When we carry it out with devotion, in union with many of our brothers and sisters and discover in the Eucharist the immense love of the heart of Christ, we ‘adore, together with the Church, the sign and manifestation of the divine love that went so far as to love, through the heart of the incarnate Word, the human race.’” (par. 85).

Again, all of this points the way to the Father and his great love for us. He sent his Son, so that we would see the face of the Father. I want to finish this letter with a quote from paragraph 88, which is so important for the life of the Catholic Church today as we see nothing but decline in many areas of the country and world. Francis writes, “I would add that the heart of Christ also frees us from another kind of dualism found in communities and pastors excessively caught up in external activities, structural reforms that have little to do with the Gospel, obsessive reorganization plans, worldly projects, secular ways of thinking and mandatory programs. The result is often a Christianity stripped of the tender consolations of faith, the joy of serving others, the fervor of personal commitment to mission, the beauty of knowing Christ, and the profound gratitude born of the friendship he offers and the ultimate meaning he gives to our lives.”

God bless.