EUROPE/SPAIN - “The Heart of Jesus opens us the way to the mission, to become missionaries wherever we are.” The Archdiocese of Toledo prepares to renew its Consecration to the Heart of Jesus this Sunday.

Toledo (Agenzia Fides) – This Sunday, November 23, Solemnity of Christ the King, the Archdiocese of Toledo (Spain) will renew its consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in a Mass in the Cathedral, presided by the Archbishop of Toledo, Cardinal Antonio Cañizares Llovera. The celebration will include an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which will be carried in procession from the church of the Jesuit Fathers, to the Cathedral.
“It is much more than a merely devotional act,” the Cardinal explained in the Message he sent out to all the faithful of the Diocese, encouraging them to participate in an active manner in the event. “It means opening oneself and surrendering oneself to the love of God, to His infinite mercy. With it, we will express our complete adhesion and communion with Jesus Christ, in whom is found the infinite treasures of God's goodness and wisdom...and in whom we are given the living Gospel of mercy, which we are so in need of and which is the only thing that can save the world.”
He also recalls that “only from this infinite source of love which is the Heart of Jesus, can we draw out all the energy we need to love, to live, and to carry out our vocation to love, to carry out our mission.” Thus, he asks that all the faithful contemplate the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, “to learn what love is and what it means to love...to open wide the doors of our hearts to mystery of God and His love, letting ourselves be transformed by Him...to allow a new civilization of love to come about, to respond and meet the demands of the great poverties and miseries of our time with love...not only the economic ones, but above all the human, social, moral, spiritual, and religious ones.”
Cardinal Cañizares also affirmed in his Message that “the Heart of Jesus opens us the way to the mission, to become missionaries wherever we are,” as according to the Cardinal, “for the evangelization of today, what is necessary is that the Heart of Christ be recognized as the heart of the Church: it is He who calls for conversion and reconciliation. It is He who draws hearts toward His own...He is the one who brings about this strong communion among the members of His One Body. It is He who makes it possible for us to accept the Good News and the promises of eternal life. He is the one who sends us on our mission.”
The Archbishop of Toledo concludes his Message with an appeal to all the faithful to participate in the event, renewing the consecration in their families, dioceses, and in all Spain, “in these crucial moments in which we are living.” “Let us not pass up this grace-filled event. May we all join in participating.” (RG) (Agenzia Fides 21/11/2008)