Everywhere: Human love and divine love of the Sacred Heart

We held a retreat at the St. Julie Billiart Formation House, owned by the SPM sisters in Lawang, East Java. There were 27 participants. Our retreat leader was Fr. Johny Astanto. The theme of the retreat was ‘Human love and divine love of the Sacred Heart’ (inspired by the encyclical Dilexit Nos).

Day I. Began with a short session to explore the context of our retreat, which was based on Pope Francis’ encyclical Dilexit Nos. Starting from today’s troubled world, Pope Francis reflected on this situation and what we need to do—namely, to understand the world and return to the heart as the core of life that has been lost.

Day II. Return to the Heart. We are encouraged to recognise the importance of the “heart” as the core of authentic life, decisions, and community. By understanding what touches the heart and where we stand.

First, by examining and understanding the current world situation, which is described as a period of anxiety and superficiality. Sociologist Zygmunt Bauman refers to this as the “Liquid Society,” marked by ongoing uncertainty, fluid identities, fragile social bonds, rapid changes, and unstable institutions.

All of this has given rise to the phenomenon of “strangers,” the erosion of commitment and loyalty, relational consumerism, individualism and fragmentation within communities, and fear of change and irrelevance. Ultimately, this has led to a crisis of “heartlessness”/insensitivity, a lack of sensitivity of the heart.

This also impacts the lives of religious people, leading to a shallower sense of life and relationships, where living according to routine and working for targets become common. As a result: activism replaces genuine encounters, self-image takes the place of authenticity, and noise or busyness displaces silence. This kind of life divides our hearts and causes us to lose the inner unity that allows us to discern, love, and serve with sincerity.

Pope Francis emphasises the importance of returning to and embracing the Heart as the source of life, where we can find God and our true selves. We can learn from Scripture how to understand the meaning of the heart and rekindle our warmth. We are also invited to see the Heart of Christ as a unifying element: the human heart and the divine heart. The event of the Incarnation becomes the centre of reflection on the divine heart and the human heart.

We are invited to renew ourselves by returning to the heart and rediscovering all that has been lost in the flow of time.

Day III. School of the Heart. On the third day, we observe the actions and words of divine Love as an expression of Jesus’ Love. We are invited to learn from Jesus’ human and divine gestures and actions, so that we may become more open and generous like the Heart of Jesus, embodying a spirit of kenosis. We unite our attitudes, joys, and sorrows from our lives of devotion and mission with the Heart of Jesus.

Gestures of love are God’s active love, God’s love that Love manifests in concrete actions that are both human and divine, with Love incarnate in the man Jesus—so close, touchable, tangible, and palpable. Through words and touch, Jesus expresses God’s love that is so near. God is full of mercy and tenderness. The Sacred Heart of Jesus is the synthesis of the entire Gospel, revealed through how He acts and what He says. This is evident in the power of touch, the gaze of recognition, and the inclusive embrace. Every time Jesus uses touch in tangible actions towards people seeking healing and freedom, He also offers an unconditional and affirming gaze—dignifying, inviting change, and calling people. The Heart of Jesus welcomes everyone and embraces all with unconditional love.

The challenge is how we translate the gestures of God’s Heart into our daily lives with
1. Liturgical touch: when we bless, lay hands, give absolution, we are the hands of God.
2. Pastoral gaze: learning to encounter those entrusted to us, going beyond administrative tasks and routine greetings, caring for them.
3. Ministry of closeness: go to the margins and touch those who are poor, weak, and powerless.

We are also invited to use the language of the heart by:
· Preaching with empathy: how we preach, give advice, and speak in our daily lives
· Becoming trusted friends, by building inner silence and intimacy with Jesus
· Encouraging and strengthening: recognizing the goodness and potential of others.

Living from a pierced heart with:
· A spirit of sacrifice and self-emptying
· Practising active love
· Being a source of life

Day IV. Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus: a profound expression of the Church’s identity and mission. We are invited to draw from the missionary spirit of the Heart of Jesus by being ready to be sent as the Heart of Jesus in the world, expressed through personal commitment.

Devotion to the Sacred Heart is very relevant because it reveals the core of Christian identity, which is to live and love from the Heart of Christ.

Additionally, we are called to make reparation with a renewed purpose: to build a civilization of love alongside Christ that confronts the structures of sin, heals relationships, and restores bonds of brotherhood. We offer ourselves to His merciful Love and become a mission by proclaiming God’s Love to the world.

We are also encouraged to renew our lives and ministry by deepening our prayer intimacy with Him, entering the sacred space within ourselves to unite with the heartbeat of God’s Heart, and to discover our calling and the fire of our mission.

Day V. Compassio Mission. Beginning with a profound experience of God’s love found in the Heart of Jesus, we come to believe that God is Love. This belief motivates us to proclaim God’s love to the world so that others may come to know it. Our lives serve as a continuous witness to God’s love as we share that love among our brothers and sisters.

We are called to carry out the Compassio Mission for the world, to pray and to motivate ourselves to face the challenges confronting humanity and the Church’s mission, allowing ourselves to be drawn into a culture of encounter, because we are always united with the Heart of Jesus and strive to make our hearts like His Heart as Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.

We are invited to see with new eyes, namely the eyes of Jesus, with a heart full of love and tenderness, without being swept away by the atmosphere, which comes from the joyful event of the Resurrection.

The Compassio Mission embodies God’s essence and His complete surrender, demonstrated through giving up His only Son in unity with the Holy Spirit.

During this retreat, we are encouraged to engage in personal reflection and communal discernment, as well as to share in groups. We also have the chance for personal renewal and reconciliation or repentance, restoring our personal commitment.

Dwi Rahadi (Indonesian Province)