Come and listen! Let me tell you a secret which is revealed only to little children (cf. Lk. 10.21). In the Eucharist there is a blazing furnace of divine charity which will utterly consume all of your sins and ravish you in your heart of hearts. It is true! He is really there! His Heart beats there with love unimaginable for you and for me! 

St. Therese Lisieux, in her astonishing masterpiece and vindication of divine love, The Story of a Soul, writes, "It is not only because I have been preserved from mortal sin that I fly to Jesus with such confidence and love, even if I had all the crimes possible on my conscience, I am sure I should lose none of my confidence. Heart broken with repentance, I would simply throw myself into my Savior's arms, for I know how much He loves the prodigal son.... No one can make me frightened any more, because I know what to believe about His mercy and love; I know that in the twinkling of an eye all those thousands of sins would be consumed as a drop of water cast into a blazing fire.'' (Story of a Soul, X). 

St. Margaret Mary also calls out to all humble souls and invites them to know where to find the mercy and love of which St. Therese speaks: in the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in the Eucharist! Listen what happened to St. Margaret Mary on December 27, 1673, the feast of St. John the Apostle (the one who laid his head on the breast of Jesus [cf. Jn. 13:23]): "Once however, when I happened to have a little more time to myself than usual and I was spending it in front of the Blessed Sacrament, God's presence seemed to envelop me completely. I forgot all about myself, and where I was, it was so intense; I simply gave myself up to the Spirit of God my heart, a willing prey to the violence of His love. For a long time he kept me leaning on His breast, while He revealed the wonders of His love and the mysterious secrets of His Sacred Heart." 

We notice here the connection between St. Margaret Mary's being in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament and the revelation of the Sacred Heart. Jesus spoke to St. Margaret Mary that day; He said, "My divine Heart is so passionately fond of the human race, and of you in particular, that it cannot keep back the pent up flames of its burning charity any longer. They must burst out through you and reveal my Heart to the world, so as to enrich mankind with my precious treasures." ~, Jesus asked for St. Margaret Mary's heart and she begged him to take it. He placed her heart in His Heart and then lifted her heart out on fire with love (cf. Lk. 12:49). 

In 1674, our precious Redeemer again appeared to her, during exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. Jesus came in a "blaze of glory His five wounds shining like five suns, flames issuing from all parts of his human form, especially from His divine breast which was like a furnace, and which He opened to disclose His utterly affectionate and lovable Heart, the living source of all those flames." Then Jesus, reigning from the Blessed Sacrament, let forth a scorching flame of love from His Sacred Heart to strengthen her in her mission of making reparation for the ingratitude shown to His Heart. He instructed her to receive Holy Communion as often as obedience allowed. He also commanded that she get up every Thursday night to keep Him company in the Blessed Sacrament between eleven o'clock and midnight, exactly as He had spent His night of agony on Holy Thursday. St. Margaret Mary was to keep this Holy Hour not only to allay God's anger by asking mercy for sinners, but also to soothe the heartache which Jesus felt when His apostles deserted Him, when He had to reproach them for being unable to watch with Him even for one hour. 

Perhaps there is someone who is reading this now who does not yet give the Lord a weekly hour of adoration before the Blessed Sacrament, and yet is able to do so. If this is true, then you are now being invited by His Divine Majesty to join the host of humble little souls, who are His warriors of love in the battle for the eternal welfare of God's children, by imitating St. Margaret Mary in her Holy Hour of reparation. 

The Sacred Heart of Jesus is the source, within this fallen world, of pure love and we draw close to this Heart as we draw close to the Eucharist. We see this teaching reflected in one of the Church's prayers: "Lifted high on the cross, Christ gave His life for us, so much did He love us. From his wounded side flowed blood and water, the fountain of sacramental life in the Church. To His open heart the Savior invites all men, to draw water in joy from the springs of salvation" (Roman Missal, Preface of the Sacred Heart). St. John Chrysostom reflects this teaching when he says, "The Gospel records that when Christ was dead, but still hung on the cross, a soldier came and pierced his side with a lance and immediately there poured out water and blood. Now the water was a symbol of baptism and the blood, of the Holy Eucharist" (Cf. Catecheses of St. John Chrysostom; Office of Readings for Good Friday). 

It is for this reason that the tabernacle, after the Sacrifice of the Mass is completed, is the heart and center of our churches. Pope Paul Vl, of happy memory, states clearly that Jesus "remains present after the Sacrifice in the Most Blessed Sacrament which is reserved in the tabernacle, the living heart of our churches. " (Paul VI, Credo of the People of God, 26). In another place the same pontiff states, "You realize, Venerable Brothers, that the Eucharist is reserved in churches or oratories to serve as the spiritual center of a religious community or a parish community, indeed of the whole Church, and the whole of mankind, since it contains, beneath the veil of the species, Christ the invisible Head of the Church, the Redeemer of the world, the center of all hearts" (Paul VI, Mysterium Fidei, nn. 68 69). 

Where is the spiritual center of the whole of mankind? In the Eucharist! Out of the unfathomable depths of His love, the Lord Jesus has granted many miracles to confirm this truth. One in particular is appropriately mentioned here because the miracle not only manifested the Real Presence, but also the Sacred Heart. In the 8th century, at Lanciano, Italy a Basilian monk was praying to be relieved from his doubts about the Real Presence. One morning when he was having a strong attack of doubt, he began the consecration of the Mass. What he beheld as he consecrated the bread and the wine caused his hands to shake, indeed his whole body. He stood for a long time with his back to the people, and then slowly turned round to them. He said, "O fortunate witnesses to whom the Blessed God, to confound my disbelief, has wished to reveal Himself in this Most Blessed Sacrament and to render Himself visible to our eyes. Come, brethren, and marvel at our God so close to us. Behold the Flesh and Blood of our most beloved Christ." The host had turned into Flesh. The wine had turned into Blood. 

This was just the beginning of the miracle. Twelve centuries have passed and the Flesh and Blood, without any preservatives, remain fresh. In 1970 extensive scientific investigation on the Eucharistic miracle was permitted which revealed the Flesh and Blood to be truly human. The blood type is AB+ and what is truly awesome and marvelous: the flesh was shown to be part of the muscular tissue of the heart. 

In this way, His Divine Majesty manifested to our scientific world to all who are humble before reality, that He is truly, really, substantially present in the Most Holy Eucharist. As John Paul II stated on June 8, 1994: "Devotion to Christ's Heart cannot be separated from the Eucharist, the sacrament of the Lord's Body and Blood." Adoremus in Aeternum, Sanctissimum Sacramentum!