Pastor’s Corner

Dear Sacred Heart Family,

The month of July is the Month of the Precious Blood. This is a powerful devotion that can give us healing and grace, and many of us can learn more about the shed Blood of Jesus as life changing for us.

Historically, figures in and outside of Catholicism have misunderstood the historic faith of the Church about how we are saved.

Catholic mistaken tendencies like Jansenism, as well as Calvinism, Lutheranism and others thought of salvation as something external. This meant they thought we were fundamentally corrupt by sin, and that the Blood of Jesus covered our evil nature so that we could appear before God and be justified.

However, the Faith of the Church is that by the Blood of Jesus and His Saving, Redemptive Passion and Death, we are transformed from the inside out. We are slowly transformed by cooperating with His Mercy and Grace.

The Body and Blood of Jesus, which we receive in the state of grace, continues to transform us and when we confess our sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we are continuously washed clean of sins we may commit out of weakness and choice.

The Blood of Jesus saves us, cleanses us, heals us in the Sacraments and in our devotions and spiritual life. Let us remember that we can lift up our intentions to the Lord, our world, society, and families, and offer them to the Lord, spiritually covered and cleansed by the Precious Blood. This is a powerful remedy for the wounds we have, as well as our families, communities and nation.

As we celebrated the Fourth of July this week, we remembered the sacrifices made for us, for our freedoms and our country. Ultimately as Catholics, we give thanks in the Holy Mass for the Ultimate Sacrifice of Jesus on Calvary to set us free and to continue blessing us.

Let us invoke the Precious Blood on ourselves, our families, our country, the Church and the world. It is the powerful remedy to help us today.

May God bless you this summer and in this month of July and the month of the Precious Blood.

Our Lady”™s Immaculate Heart, Fr. Bjorn Lundberg