July 10, 2022 // Bishop

Around the Diocese: July 10, 2020

Todays Catholic

Parish pledged to hearts of Jesus and Mary

In the Catholic Church, the month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, with the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus falling on June 24. The following day is the Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In honor of this powerful duo, St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish in New Carlisle performed a parish-wide Enthronement of the Sacred Heart and Immaculate Heart during their weekend Masses, led by Pastor Father Bob Garrow.

The idea of enthronement began in 1907 with a Peruvian priest names Father Mateo Crawley-Boevey, SS.CC., a member of the Congregation of Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. He traveled the world, fervently promoting this devotion as a means of bringing families closer to Jesus.

According to the website Men of the Sacred Hearts, when Catholics enthrone Jesus in their homes or businesses, they promise to keep Him “foremost in their lives.” This ceremony serves as a “public recognition of Jesus as Lord and King of a home, business or school.” 

The organization Men of the Sacred Hearts provided parish families with a kit that included images of both Jesus and Mary, salt for blessing the home and a ceremonial book. Together, parishioners prayed a decade of the rosary and recited consecration and blessing prayers.

In his homily, Father Garrow spoke about the nature of the heart and specifically the Sacred Heart of Jesus. “We celebrate the ‘Sacred Heart’ because the greatest of the capacities of God and man is the capacity to will, to choose, and God’s will always chooses love because God is love, and because love consists in this: Not that we have loved God, but that He has loved us and has sent His Son as an offering for our sins. 

“The Sacred Heart is a person to be imitated. The heart pumps blood to the entire body, and as His Mystical Body’s members, we share in that life-blood as we share in the offering for our sins that Christ sacrificed on the cross and memorialized sacramentally at His Last Supper.” 

He entreated those present to live out God’s calling in their lives and to ask Jesus and Mary for their aid along the journey.

Husband and wife Mark and Tenison Stone spoke afterwards about the enthronement at their parish and in their home. “It is nice to focus on the love of God through the Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart. God does such wonderful things in His loving providence,” Mark said.

“It is nice that it is also addressed to Mary,” Tenison added. “We in our faith are so lucky to have both of these hearts in our lives.”

Another parishioner, Sue Gadacz, commented, “I love this; it brings us closer to Jesus! It helps keep us focused.”

The enthronement can be done at any time of year, though having it coincide with these particular feast days can give it increased meaning. Materials for enthronement can be found at menofthesacredhearts.org/.

Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades poses with seminarian Patrick Ernst and members of his family after the Mass of Admission to Candidacy at St. Pius X in Granger on June 27. Ernst will be traveling to Rome to study for the priesthood. In his homily, Bishop Rhoades reminded Ernst to ground himself in prayer as he heeds God’s call in his vocation. “Patrick, this is important for you and for all our seminarians, and still important for me and all our priests, that we grow and mature by listening to the Lord, by studying His teachings, by learning from others, and by ‘being with the Lord’ in prayer.”

Provided by Christine Bonahoom-Nix
Recently ordained Father LeeAllen Fortin celebrates Mass at Immaculate Conception Church, his home parish in Watertown, South Dakota.

Provided by Justin Purdy
The St. Charles Borromeo Knights of Columbus Council 451 was busy on Saturday, June 4, helping build a new home for a deserving Fort Wayne family through Habitat for Humanity. Brother Knights spent the day installing vinyl siding and soffit as they worked to “build on faith, build up families and build community together,” the mission of Habitat for Humanity. Here Dave Lonsway installs vinyl soffit on the house.