Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
While in Pennsylvania recently I had a chance to shop at a local antique store. I just love these places, because for me "One person's junk becomes my junk" (much to my husband's dismay.) As I strolled through the store I noticed that every third booth or so was selling sacred art - mostly old framed prints of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
I know that June is devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (I'll get to that in a moment), but this had me wondering why so much sacred art ends up at a second hand shop? Is it a telling sign that today's Catholics lack interest in religious art, more specifically - the Sacred Heart of Jesus? Or have devotions to the Sacred Heart waned? One may think so, but "of all devotions, devotion to the Sacred Heart was, and remains, one of the most widespread and popular in the Church," according to the Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy (#166)
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines, 2001, no. 166, http://www.vatican.va (Accessed June 2006).
Ok, so the devotion is still popular - but we still don't have an answer for why Aunt Bessie would discard the Sacred Heart of Jesus icon, which has been in the family for a zillion years. Is traditional sacred art taking a back seat to contemporary sacred art, or perhaps to other interior decorations? I guess we'll have to ponder that one.
As I mentioned June is the month of the Sacred Heart. The Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on the Friday following the second Sunday after Pentecost (June 23 this year.) I have discovered a number of informative resources on the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Take some time to read through them. Enjoy!
Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus - from the Catholic Encyclopedia
Papal Documents on Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus - from the Saint Paul Center for Theological Studies
The Devotion to the Sacred Heart Explained
The First Friday Devotion to the Sacred Heart (includes the Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque)
Month of the Sacred Heart - from Catholic Culture
Sacred Heart of Jesus - from EWTN
Heart to Heart (with links to prayers)
Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy, # 166 - 173
Pope says devotion to Sacred Heart helps Catholics focus on love - from CNS
5 comments:
I got a beautiful lithograph of the Holy Family entitled Our Lady of the Home. It has a prayer from the local bishop on the matting. He was bishop in the 1930's. I got it in a junk shop. Every time I went in there it was calling to me. Finally I had to get it, because I would have been so heartbroken if I went in there some day and it was gone!
Great post--it's nice to have a list of sources all in the same place.
I think that the answer to why there are so many Sacred Heart prints in junk/antique shops and rummage sales probably is multi-faceted. First of all, traditional sacred art is indeed denigrated by a certain portion of Catholics. Among these people, contemporary sacred art is sometimes substituted, although there seems to be a shift away from devotional items in general (icons, statues, etc.), which I think is really unfortunate. I've also had people tell me that the exposed Sacred Heart is 'gross' or frightens their children (which seems to indicate a lack of proper catechesis on the Sacred Heart).
Aunt Bessie's "Sacred Heart of Jesus icon, which has been in the family for a zillion years" probably isn't getting discarded by Aunt Bessie herself, but by the people (whether her relatives or the agency they hire) who cleaned out her house when she died or was moved into a nursing home (this is how most of the sacred art winds up at our parish rummage sale).
Another, perhaps slightly more heartening, reason for the excess Sacred Heart prints may be that the market is saturated. My family has a veritable army of Sacred Heart images collected over generations, and, as 1 of only 2 children, I'll probably inherit most of them. I doubt I'll ever have the room to display them all. I will keep them for sentimental and family history reasons, but not everyone has that perspective. Considering that traditional Sacred Heart images are still being produced and sold, it is also possible that older prints are being replaced by newer copies.
Pasteurella Pestis - Thanks for the thoughtful comments. What you say makes sense.
Great Post. I just happened upon your site and I have a special devotion to the Sacred Heart ans always have. Fellow blogger Tom Fitzpatrick and I have started a site honoring the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts. make a Visit if you get a chance. It is called Two Hearts Ablaze. You have a great site here. Very enjoyable. I will visit again soo
I just bought a silver-plated image of Jesus with the Sacred Heart on eBay. It's European, definitely late 19th century. It may seem strange for a Protestant pastor to have such a thing, but the image was compelling and I really like it. I didn't know much about the devotion to the Sacred Heart but after reading about it online it is a comforting image--the heart of Christ representing God's compassion for the world.
Rev. Craig Cowing
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