“I need nothing but God, and to lose myself in the heart of Jesus.”
Margaret was born on July 22, 1647, in Burgundy, France, and was the 5th of 7 children for Claude Alacoque, who did well as a notary, and her mother, Philiberte Lamyn.
When she was 8 her father died of pneumonia, and she was sent to a convent school. Already at the age of 9 she practiced severe corporal mortification after her 1st Communion.
She contracted rheumatic fever which confined her to a bed for 4 years. Having made a vow to the Blessed Virgin Mary to consecrate herself to religious life, she was restored to perfect health. In recognition, she added the name Mary to her baptismal name.
She had visions of Jesus, which she thought were a normal part of human experience.
Her uncle had taken over and held the family’s assets, plunging her family into poverty. Her brother came of age and all improved. Her mother encouraged her to socialize which she believed negated her vow and began to attend dances and balls.
After a late return from a ball, she experienced a vision of Jesus and He reminded her of her pledge and at the age of 24, she entered the Visitation Convent at Paray-le-Monial.
She continued to receive visions of our Lord as well as private revelations. They also revealed practices for the devotion to the Sacred Heart, 1st Friday Devotion in Act of Reparation, and a Holy Hour during Eucharistic Adoration on Thursdays, meditating on Jesus’ Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Another vision of Jesus asked for “the 1st Friday after the octave of the Blessed Sacrament, be dedicated to a particular feast to honor My Heart, by receiving Communion on that day, and making reparation to it by honorable amends.” That vision later led to the institution of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
She had convinced her superior of her visions as authentic, but struggled with others, including her own community. A group of theologians declared them as delusions. Even parents of the children she instructed began calling her an imposter.
The community’s confessor had declared her visions as genuine, and she was made Assistant to the Superior, led the monastery in observing the Feast of the Sacred Heart, and inspired the construction of a chapel to honor the Sacred Heart. Observation of the Feast spread to other convents.
In 1689, she received a private request from Jesus to urge the King of France to consecrate the nation to the Sacred Heart, so that He may be “triumphant over all the enemies of Holy Church.” The King either never received the letter or he refused to reply. 100 years later, in 1789, the French Revolution, and persecution of the Catholic Church began.
She died several years later, at the age of 43, on October 17, 1690.
She is the patron saint of those suffering with polio, loss of parents, and devotees of the Sacred Heart.
Her feast day is October 16.
For God’s Glory.
