The Heart Of Jesus As Described By the Saints

Dilexit nos,” Pope Francis’ fourth Encyclical, retraces the tradition and relevance of thought on “the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ,” calling for a renewal of authentic devotion to avoid forgetting the tenderness of faith, the joy of serving, and the fervour of mission. It is packed with testimonies from the saints of prayer and devotion to the heart of Christ throuhout the centuries as described by the pope’s new encyclical.

Jesus revealed to the saint His heart, burning with love for humanity. Pierced and crucified, offering salvation and mercy. Jesus’ heart longs for us to offer our love and devotion in return. If some distorted forms of spirituality focused only on God’s punishment, the Sacred Heart emphasized mercy. If many believers inordinately feared God, here divine love and joy were manifest. If Jesus had seemed distant and unapproachable before, the Sacred Heart beckons us to enter into the divine furnace of charity.

In his “Spiritual Exercises,” St. Ignatius of Loyola (1491–1556) - a Basque Spaniard Catholic priest and theologian, who, with six companions, founded the religious order of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), and became its first Superior General, in Paris in 1541 - encourages retreatants to contemplate the wounded side of the crucified Lord to enter into the heart of Christ. Ignatius founded the Society of Jesus, also known as the Jesuits, which has promoted devotion to Jesus’ divine heart for more than a century. The society was consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 1871.

Other saints mentioned in Pope Francis' encyclical:

St. Francis de Sales (1567–1622)

was a Savoyard Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Geneva and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He became noted for his deep faith and his gentle approach to the religious divisions in his land resulting from the Protestant Reformation. He is known also for his writings on the topic of spiritual direction and spiritual formation, particularly the Introduction to the Devout Life and the Treatise on the Love of God.

St. John Henry Newman (1801–1890)

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647–1690)

St. Claude de La Colombière (1641–1682)

St. Gertrude of Helfta (1256–1302)

St. Mechtilde of Hackeborn (1241–1298)

St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660)

St. Catherine of Siena (1347–1380)

St. John Paul II (1920–2005


St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153)


St. Bonaventure (1221–1274)

St. John Eudes (1601–1680)


St. Charles de Foucauld (1858–1916)

St. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274)


St. Thérèse of Lisieux (1873–1897)

St. John of the Cross (1542–1591)

St. Ambrose (340–397)

St. Augustine (354–430)

St. Daniel Comboni (1831–1881)