“Reconciled with one another, united and transformed by the love that flows abundantly from the Heart of Christ, let us walk together humbly and resolutely in his footsteps, firm in faith and open to all in charity. Let us bring the peace of the risen Lord to our world, with the freedom born of the knowledge that we have been loved, chosen and sent by the Father.”
Pope Leo XIV, Homily for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Friday, 27 June 2025
On this Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I’m delighted to share an accessible and enlightening new book that deepened my understanding of this beautiful devotion.
Available in paperback (160 pp., $17.99), e‑book (Kindle $11.96), and audiobook
In The Sacred Heart: A Love for All Times, Dawn Eden Goldstein offers readers a timely exploration of one of Catholicism’s most cherished teachings. At just 160 pages, Goldstein’s book integrates tradition, papal teaching, history, and aspects of her own spiritual journey that will help readers grow closer to the heart of Jesus Christ and the love he has for each of us.
In her introduction, Goldstein describes that during a 2023 visit to the painting of the Sacred Heart of Jesus by Pompeo Batoni in the Church of the Gesu in Rome, she felt something as she prayed:
“Something lovely.
It wasn’t exactly love so much as it was an offer of love.
What I felt was Jesus’s vulnerability” (p. 7).[1]
For Goldstein, the spiritual reality at the core of the Sacred Heart devotion is a recognition of Jesus’ personal love for each of us, and how devotion to his Sacred Heart helps us to recognize and receive his love. When we enter deeply into a “heart-to-Heart” friendship with Christ, our love for him intensifies and our desire to unite our words, thoughts, and deeds with God’s will increases.
In addition to providing a well-researched history of the devotion to the Sacred Heart, Goldstein also discusses how devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus helped shape the devotion and transformed the lives of many important figures. She writes, “The friends of Jesus’s heart are the saints—not only canonized saints but also other holy people whose lives tell of their deep love for him (and his for them)” (p. 8).
According to Goldstein, the writings and biographies of these holy people are essential to embracing devotion to the Sacred Heart more fully. She explains, “When I study the saints’ different expressions of devotion to the Sacred Heart, I gain a wider understanding of what friendship with Jesus looks like. That in turn helps me equip and, where necessary, reshape myself to be a better friend to him” (p. 9).
The first half of The Sacred Heart covers the traditional and historical roots of the devotion, going back to John, the Beloved Apostle, whose head rested on Jesus’ chest at the Last Supper (cf. Jn 13:25), and whose Gospel was marked by acts of Christ’s love and love for Christ. Goldstein writes, that in “John’s Gospel, we come to understand that when we listen to the Heart of Jesus, we find that we ourselves are beloved disciples” (p. 22).
Goldstein’s historical portrait includes St. Augustine (whose most famous quote is “You have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you”), the stories of St. Margaret Mary (whose mystical experiences popularized the devotion and laid the groundwork for the feast to be added to the Church’s calendar), and St. Faustina (whose writing deepened and expanded the Church’s understanding of the Sacred Heart).
The writings of Pope Pius XII are key to Goldstein’s devotion to the Sacred Heart. In the fifth chapter, “The Heart of the Church,” Goldstein’s reflection on his encyclical Haurietis Aquas is particularly enlightening. She argues that it corrects the overemphasis on reparation by earlier popes and theologians “came to identify two key aspects of the spirituality of the Sacred Heart … redamatio and reparatio” (p. 68). She explains that Pope Pius XI’s encyclical on the Sacred Heart (Miserentissimus Redemptor) was focused on reparatio or “making reparation.”
Goldstein reveals how Pius XII, on the other hand, chose to emphasize the aspect of redamatio or “returning love” in Haurietis Aquas. Goldstein comments, “Much like Pope Francis, who, while acknowledging the reality of sin, felt the need to counter a trend toward rigorism by consistently reminding the faithful of God’s mercy, Pius XII felt that talk of reparatio needed to be counterbalanced with talk of redamatio” (p. 69). In her exploration of this encyclical, Goldstein succeeds in making Pius XII’s theology feel intimate, compelling, and urgently needed today.
The later chapters feature an interesting and unexpected array of holy men and women who were devoted to the Sacred Heart: Julia Greeley (a Black laywoman and Servant of God who died in 1918 in Denver), St. Tarcisius (a young martyr of the early Church), St. Juliana Falconieri (a medieval Florentine saint who desired closeness with Christ), Catherine de Hueck and Eddie Doherty (a married couple who founded the Madonna House Apostolate, a lay Catholic community rooted in simplicity and service), and Fr. Pedro Arrupe (who served as Jesuit superior general from 1965 to 1983 and was devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus).
In summary, Goldstein invites us to explore anew the powerful and long-cherished devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus because this will help us grow closer to Christ and to understand more fully his love for each of us. “Through his personal experience of taking on human nature, as well as the omniscience he possesses in his divine nature, Jesus knows and loves each of us from within” (p. 41). Through stories of the saints, she bridges sacred history and modern spirituality with grace.
The Sacred Heart: A Love for All Times is both theologically rich and spiritually enriching. It is filled with scholarly and spiritual treasures. Sadly, it went to print just before Pope Francis released Dilexit Nos, so Goldstein was unable to include a chapter on our late pope’s devotion to the Sacred Heart, which was doubtless influenced by many of the figures listed above. Nevertheless, this book serves as an excellent preparation and companion guide for Dilexit Nos, as well as Haurietis Aquas and other spiritual writing on this important devotion.
Ultimately, The Sacred Heart: A Love for All Times by Dawn Eden Goldstein is more than a book about a devotion; it’s a heartfelt invitation to draw closer to Jesus Christ, whose Sacred Heart remains open to each of us. His Heart is not closed off but vulnerable and intimately personal. This book will assist anyone seeking to rekindle or deepen their relationship with Christ.
The Sacred Heart: A Love for All Times by Dawn Eden Goldstein, JCL, SThD, was published by Loyola Press on March 18, 2025. Available in paperback (160 pp., $17.99), e‑book (Kindle $11.96), and audiobook (narrated by Laura E. Richcreek).
Note
[1] All page numbers are taken from the Kindle edition. Goldstein, Dawn Eden. The Sacred Heart: A Love for All Times. Loyola Press. Kindle Edition.
Mike Lewis is the founding managing editor of Where Peter Is. He and Jeannie Gaffigan co-host Field Hospital, a U.S. Catholic podcast.
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