Immaculate Heart of Mary

Right after the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is the Immaculate Heart of Mary!

The two feast days are placed right next to each other… often, the two devotions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary are celebrated together. In fact! You’ll often find the two depicted in iconography and sacred images. For instance, in one of the most famous religious iconography of the Heart of Mary, called the Miraculous Medal, the hearts of Mary and Jesus are placed right next together.

Why are their hearts placed together? Because Mary is the mother of Jesus, of course! And so they have a special relationship with each other that is hard to even fathom… after all, at one point of time, Mary held His Sacred Heart in her very body!

Mary’s heart is typically depicted as flaming with flowers on it (usually around the heart) with a sword piercing it, from the prophecy that Simeon gave her during the Presentation of the Lord at the Temple. The

Here is an interesting depiction of her heart!

Jesus, with His Sacred Heart visible, looks up at Mary’s heart, which is pierced by a sword and has lilies, which symbolize purity, springing up from it. Her heart is flaming with love for Him and Jesus looks upon it with tenderness, showing off His own Sacred Heart in response. All around them, different saints who have loved Jesus in various ways are featured.

And it is a beautiful picture that makes me think of Heaven. After all, when we get to Heaven, all things that were invisible will become visible. For it is a place of Truth. And all the scars in our hearts that have wounded us will show… and yet, our burning love for Christ will also show.

And, how beautiful must Mary’s immaculate heart be to Christ!