The Feast of the Immaculate of Mary

By Jean M. Heimann

On (the Saturday following the Feast of the )1, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of the Blessed Virgin Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and above all, her virginal love for , her maternal love for her son , and her compassionate love for all persons.* This feast takes place one day after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The proximity of both celebrations reflects the deep connection between the Heart of Jesus and the Heart of His Mother.

The connection between the of Jesus and Mary was prophesied by Simeon at the Presentation in the Temple of Jerusalem. In Luke 2:35, we read: “and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

The fulfillment of this prophesy is found in John 33-34: “But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.”

It was at the piercing of Christ’s Heart at His death, then, that Mary's Heart was also pierced in spirit, thus fulfilling Luke 2:35, signifying the profound mystical union of the Heart of Jesus with the Heart of Mary.

1 This information was inserted to the original article