Over there, over there, say a prayer
When one appears to seek the exultations of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ, and receives an exhilarating vision of sanctity within that which will completely envelop the soul of oneself there will emerge within and without a sense of extreme fervor that only God can administer through Grace and Holiness. This is how the exertion to climb upon a level of complete adoration in the depths of glory that eminate from the beams of light, so intense and yet not blinding our vision from the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus will not be found difficult, but will in fact allow the soul a path into a realm of ecstasy not apparent to many who reject the invite from the Crucified/Risen Christ to share an eternity of Sacred Bliss.
If the above appears to be deep and somewhat foreign to the searching mind, it is in fact just that; a consequence of allowing the clutter and confusion of everyday life, with no real conclusion to captivate our minds when the real essence of our search to find God somewhere within the depth of our finite existence becomes an open entrance to something yet unknown, and in fact known through the Holy Spirit’s intervention. If only we would take but a moment to seclude the business of everyday concerns in a small portion of our persona and find the remaining area hungering and thirsting for that which Augustine so eloquently penned; “Our heart is restless until it rests in you”. Herein then is where this trek into the unseen becomes a path which will not require something too steep or hard to climb.
There was a time, not too distant past, where the devotion to and with the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary were popular and profound within the Roman Catholic Church. But, alas, as with many past prayers and pious worshiping practices more modern (I use this term facetiously) ways of devotion have begun to appear. However, the diminishment of the above along with dedication to the Holy Rosary and much to do with the Blessed Mother, Mary Most Holy, has taken a back seat to many Pentecostals and a lot of Catholics giving up on traditional worship the landscape of what was is now covered over with: “we need to find God in a more upbeat type of worship.”
Recently, I wrote two articles that dealt with these particular issues; “A Church in Peril”, and “New-age Philosophy / INC Christianity". In both I attempted to bring out the different ways the true believers of Christ are being put down or at least diminished from what tradition has taught. This is not something Christians should bury their heads in the sand when reading them.
It makes me wonder what happened to the Church that Jesus Christ founded? I know it wasn’t Roman Catholic in the beginning nor did it have the all the traditions that the Roman Church has established. But, Martyrs, and many Holy people for 2,000 years gave their lives, wrote documents as in Doctors of the Church, and an institution that has existed for 2,000 years under the guise of Holiness and continuance has never wavered. What about that?
Do you want to find that which I alluded to in the first paragraph and delve into the very depths of extreme harmonious grace that only the resurgence of Church institutional teaching that never changed still offers? I fear that these type of devotions are not passe’ or outdated from what our grandparents followed, rather they are still relevant and just as precious to each soul who still needs Jesus, Mary, the Sacraments, and Yes a God who never changes.