Cardinal Tobin: The eternal Son of God loves each of us with a human heart

My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

Today, June 12, is the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is also the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests.

During the past year, Pope Leo XIV has emphasized devotion to the Sacred Heart as a source of compassion, mercy, and renewal for a suffering world. A year ago, he released a new prayer to the Sacred Heart (see below), encouraging the faithful to seek Christ in daily life and urging priests to conform their hearts to the Good Shepherd.

Established in 2002 by Pope Saint John Paul II, the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests is celebrated annually on the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Its purpose is to encourage priests to reflect on their vocation and to ask the faithful to pray for their priests’ holiness and fidelity.

The prayer introduced by Pope Leo XIV last year asks priests and members of the lay faithful to ask for the grace to encounter Christ in their prayer, work, and daily routine. The prayer’s focus is on compassion, and it highlights the “tender heart” of Jesus, pouring compassion on the poor, suffering, and all who experience human miseries.

In his June 27, 2025, address, Pope Leo called on priests to “immerse their baptismal and priestly garments once more in the heart of the Savior,” placing the Eucharist and charity at the center of their ministry. He stressed that the Sacred Heart is a refuge in a world marked by wars and technological changes that threaten humanity. Devotion to the Sacred Heart is linked to a “mission of compassion for the world,” and although our priests are asked to play a leading role in this “mission of compassion,” all baptized Christians share in the responsibility to bring the tender heart of Jesus to the whole world.

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