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This
spiritual doctrine, which ultimately contributes to the Triumph
of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and of Her Divine Son, Jesus
Christ, is very pertinent for our time. Hence, why we
reprinted the 1948 edition (which was the first time it had been
published in English, though this work was originally printed in
French in 1681)!
St.
John Eudes' devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary was so
great that he sought to have a feast day founded in her honor
and even composed texts for a proper Mass and Office in hopes
that the Church would adopt them. His wish for the
establishment of a Mass in honor of her Most Pure Heart would
have to wait until 1855, nearly a year after the proclamation of
the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.
The
Apostle of Jesus and Mary reveals to his disciples how Our
Lady's heart was the first-fruit of Her Divine Son's Passion, given to all of Mary’s children, that it might be honored, cherished, invoked and, ultimately, with that of her Son, reproduced in them. This is the essence of
St. John Eudes' spirituality which spilled over into the
foundation of many religious congregations, literary works and
of course, the practice of heroic virtue while on earth.
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"But one thing is certain: there can be no times so difficult that they will not produce saints.
Indeed, times of crisis are invariably times of great Sanctity. Wherefore we rejoice that, among the many books being published on current events, sociology, politics and history as these affect the Church, there is an increase in books on the Science of the saints, the art of loving God and the means of growing in His favor. In the rich harvest of such books now made ours by modern publishing
tech-niques, none are more fervently
wel-come than the works of Saint John Eudes, the
'prodigy of his age,' and among his books none will more enrich the spiritual lives of its readers than this
incom-parable devotional classic The Admirable Heart of
Mary."
Cardinal Richard Cushing (Archbishop of
Boston).
Feast of St. John Eudes, 1947 |
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The
high-quality features of this spiritual classic demonstrates the
fine attention to detail made in its reprinting: hardbound in
blue cloth with embossing (not shown in the picture above, but
which contains the book title and the pierced heart of Our
Lady), sewn binding, a colorful dust jacket and printed
endsheets, making it a book that can be cherished and used over
and over again.
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