A Remedy for Present-Day Evils

Pope Pius XI, whose far-seeing vision so correctly discerned the needs and the evils of the times, once said to Father Mateo during a private audience: "We are living the darkest hour that mankind has lived since the deluge." However, in a hopeful tone he immediately added: "But the Church has a wonderful hope, the greatest hope: We are living in its fullness the hour of the Sacred Heart!" ---- And that hour, says Father Mateo, will be glorious in the measure that Jesus Chris becomes in souls, in homes, in institutions and in countries, the KING ---- Rex regum ---- the King of kings.

It cannot be denied that the evil of the present times lies principally in the family, the cell of human society. If there is to be any hope of betterment, families, one by one, must be restored to Jesus Christ, must be renewed by His Divine Spirit. And the more complete and secure the reign of Christ over families, the more secure will be His reign over society and over nations.

To check the ungodly spirit of our age and to offset its evil consequences, the Popes of modem times have emphatically expressed their wish that all families consecrate themselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. They have requested that individuals, families and nations frequently renew the act of consecration and foster perfect devotedness to this royal, adorable Heart.

Pope St. Pius X adopted as his maxim: "To restore all things in Christ." Pope Benedict XV exhorted all Catholic nations to seek peace and reconciliation in the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Pope Pius XI renewed this act of consecration at the close of the Jubilee Year of 1925, when instituting the Feast of Christ the King, and issued two encyclicals ---- One in 1928 and the other in 1932 ---- urging the necessity of reparation and love. He commanded that a solemn act of reparation be made to our Redeemer on the feast of the Sacred Heart each year, in all the churches of the world, "to make amends for our sins and to compensate for the violation of the rights of Christ, our Sovereign King and most loving Lord."

Pope Pius XII, in his very first encyclical, dedicated his reign to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and declared that " At the head of the road which leads to the spiritual and moral bankruptcy of the present day stand the nefarious efforts of not a few to dethrone Christ . . . In the recognition of the royal prerogatives of Christ . . . lies the only way to salvation." ---- "Summi Pontificatus," N.C.W.C., p. 10.

Yes, the world must once more begin to believe in the Divinity of Jesus Christ, in the true and substantial presence of, Christ among us in the Holy Eucharist, in the dominion of the Sacred Heart. The Enthronement is an efficacious means to bring about this renewal of faith and love.

When nations, families, religious communities and individual souls dedicate themselves wholly to the Heart of Jesus, devote themselves to Him entirely, then will the declaration of the Heart of Jesus be realized: "I will reign despite Satan and his accomplices."

The Enthronement of Jesus means dethronement of Satan. The solemn affirmation of the rights and claims of the One means the formal renunciation of the despotism and tyranny of the other.

The spread of the Enthronement in the families of so many countries, and the wonderful fruits it has produced everywhere, is a proof that this work is destined by Divine Providence precisely as a remedy for our times. According to the desire of the Supreme Pontiffs, the veneration of the Sacred Heart should not be limited to the church, but should be carried into every family circle, in order that home life may be effectively renewed in the true Catholic sense. This should be a powerful aid in the restoration of Christ's kingdom on earth.

A new religious spirit cannot but permeate the family in which the Sacred Heart reigns as King. Such a family will fearlessly and openly profess its faith; it will love and obey the Pope and the Church, and will be a shining example for other families. "When churches are closed, when the image of the Crucified is taken from the school, the family remains the providential and, in a certain sense, impregnable refuge of Christian life." ---- " Summi Pontificatus," p. 38.

With an increased love for our Eucharistic Lord will come also a more tender and filial love for Mary, His Blessed Mother, who will prove herself the loving and compassionate Mother and Queen of the family.

Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King

At the close of the Jubilee Year of 1925, Pope Pius XI designated the last Sunday of October to be observed annually as the Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King. When instituting this feast, he issued an inspiring encyclical on the Kingship of Christ and His rights, both human and Divine, to reign over mankind. He repeated the declaration made in an earlier encyclical that the deluge of evils by which mankind was oppressed had flooded the world because so many mortals had put Jesus Christ and His holy law out of their ordinary life, their domestic relations and public affairs; and that the hope of a lasting peace among nations and states would never dawn so long as individual men and states denied and excluded the empire of our Savior.

Inspired with the hope that by this means human society might hasten its return to the most loving Savior, and that the peace of Christ might be restored in the kingdom of Christ, the Holy Father instituted this annual observance of the Kingship of Our Lord.

In his encyclical the Holy Father benevolently acknowledged that the work of the Enthronement had done much to prepare the minds and hearts of Catholics for the feast of Christ the King.

Father Mateo, whose motto during all the years of his laborious apostolate was: THY KINGDOM COME! rejoiced greatly upon the institution of this feast. Recognizing that his own work had prepared the way for a deeper appreciation of the feast, he affirmed: "I do not think that I am wrong in saying that a few years ago the feast of Jesus Christ, the King, would not have had the social weight it will now enjoy, for then it would have lacked the foundation of those thousands, nay, millions, who have enthroned their Lord in the family and have consecrated all its members to the Sacred Heart."

Even before the institution of the feast he had written to the Holy Father: "If liturgically and officially this feast is a new one, the homage which it involves has been practiced for some time past in many countries, thanks to the work of the Enthronement."

That the spirit of the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart is in perfect harmony with the spirit of the feast of the Kingship is shown by the following quotations from the encyclical:

"He [Our Lord] must reign over the human. mind, whose duty it is to adhere steadfastly and firmly and in perfect submission to the truths revealed and to the doctrine of Christ. He must reign over the will, which must obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign over the soul, which, giving up all lust, must love God above all and cling to Him alone. He must reign over the body and limbs, which are a means to the sanctification of the soul."

"Oh, what blessings we should enjoy if individuals and families and states would allow themselves to be governed by Christ! 'Then, at length,' to use the words of Our  Predecessor, Leo XIII, 'it will be possible to heal wounds; then every right will again be held sacred; then will swords be shattered and weapons fall from hands, when all shall accept willingly and obey the empire of Christ, and every tongue confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father.' "

May, then, this holy work, so admirably designed for the accomplishment of the desires of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, so highly recommended by the supreme authority of the Church and so salutary for the reform of society through the sanctification of families, continue to grow and expand until the sublime purpose conceived by its founder in the beginning has been fully realized:

TO CONQUER THE WHOLE WORLD FOR THE HEART OF JESUS, HOME AFTER HOME, FAMILY AFTER FAMILY!