Editorial

Join our bishops in prayer as they dedicate our country to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

How is your life of prayer?

It’s a question worth asking yourself, and asking those you love.

If you’re a person of faith, your daily routine might include making a concerted effort to pray for family, friends, co-workers and others who have asked for your prayers. And in the process, you might ask them to offer prayers for your specific intentions as well.

Our faith teaches us prayer is a powerful weapon. In Scripture, we see examples of those who encourage others to develop a committed life of prayer.

We read in St. Paul’s letters that prayer was an important message he shared in his ministry.

In his First Letter to the Thessalonians, he encourages their community to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thes 5:17).

St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians tells us, “Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:6-7).

But prayer, as we read in the Gospel of Matthew, can make us uncomfortable and push us to our limits:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you” (Mt 5:43-44).

As we approach marking the 250th anniversary (semiquincentennial) of the founding of America on July 4, it’s fair to ask: Are you praying for our country? If not, why not? And if you aren’t, why not start?

Last November, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) made the decision to mark our country’s 250-year anniversary by consecrating the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 11, marking the first such formal consecration of the country to Christ’s heart.

Archbishop Alexander K. Sample of Portland, Ore., who chairs the USCCB Committee for Religious Liberty, cited several reasons the bishops voted in November 2025 for the consecration to be done during their spring meeting on June 10-12 in Orlando, Fla.

First “would be to place our nation under the kingship of Christ,” he told OSV News. “Yes, we are a democratic republic; we are a civil society—but no civil society can long endure without being under the kingship of Christ himself; to place ourselves under God’s providence and care.”

He continued, “There’s a certain reparation aspect to the Sacred Heart. I think we can’t forget that part of the consecration is to make reparation for offenses against God; against the heart of Christ.”

Finally, Archbishop Sample added, “There’s this desire, through this consecration, to also call us to have a greater heart for the poor and the suffering … as we honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus, we can’t just honor it as a private devotion. It has to move us, and move our hearts.”

Emily Schumacher-Novak, associate director of Education and Outreach at the USCCB’s Secretariat of Justice and Peace, noted the June 11 consecration is accompanied by an abundance of USCCB resources, including a prayer and downloadable prayer card; a novena to the Sacred Heart (from June 3-11); a ceremony to enthrone the Sacred Heart in the home; consecration resources for parishes; materials from the Knights of Columbus and the Pope’s Prayer Network; and the “We Hold These Truths—America 250” article and video series, which features the contributions of Catholics to the United States. To find these materials, go to usccb.org/weholdthesetruths.

“We are also offering a resource that invites people to do 250 hours of adoration and 250 works of mercy,” Schumaker-Novak said. “It’s that connection back to charity and justice that our Church calls us to—to pray for all the things in our world that need healing—that we can do in front of the Blessed Sacrament.”

The national consecration taking place at Mary, Queen of the Universe Basilica in Orlando will be live streamed via the USCCB homepage on June 11.

With the unrest so prevalent around the world these days, we believe there’s no better time to ask God to bless our nation.

As we mark this historic time in America’s history, let us pray in unison, “Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.”

—Mike Krokos