After recalling the message of Paray-le-Monial, the source of devotion to the Sacred Heart, in the first part; and after explaining what the consecration to the Heart of Jesus is in the second part; let us now see, in this seventh step, how to live out the process of consecration by proposing a simple outline.

This process can be lived out alone, with family, or in a group. It is good to do so in a church, in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, if possible, exposed.

1. Here is a proposed simple outline:

• Those who can and wish to may kneel.
• Invoke the Holy Spirit with a prayer or a song: “Send forth your Spirit, O Lord, and all will be created. You will renew the face of the earth.”
• Gather in silence.
• Slowly and fervently pronounce a formula of consecration. There are those of Saint Margaret Mary and Saint Claude, of course. Here is one that we typically pray at the Sanctuary of Paray.

“Lord Jesus, You who came to kindle a fire on the earth, I surrender myself today to the will of the Father in the breath of the Holy Spirit. Purify my heart, enflame it with love and charity. Increase within me the desire for holiness. Through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I, …………………., consecrate myself entirely to Your Heart to love and serve You. Amen!”

In the next step, I will comment on another prayer of consecration, the one that was composed for the jubilee of the 350th anniversary.

• The consecration of the family may take place afterward. This will be presented and explained in the ninth step of our journey.
• Once again, take a few moments of silence.
• It is possible to then take a song, for example, “Heart of Jesus, burning with love, enflame us with your Spirit, may our hearts be like yours, may we burn with charity.”
• Entrust ourselves to Mary so that her Yes keeps us faithful to our own Yes. For example, by praying a Hail Mary or another beautiful Marian prayer that we cherish. We can also sing: “Totus tuus, Maria. Gratia plena Dominus Tecum. Totus tuus, ora pro nobis, Maria, Maria.” Or renew our consecration to Mary according to Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort.
• Finally, conclude this act of consecration with a song of thanksgiving, such as “Let us give glory to our God / How beautiful are your works / Blessed be the name of God / For your wonders.”

2.What Does Consecration to the Heart of Jesus Commit Us To?

Participating in Sunday Mass, not as a burden but as an obligation of love. Delving into the heart of Jesus may also allow us to appreciate the grace of attending Mass during the week from time to time.

Committing to spend a daily heart-to-heart time with the Lord. When circumstances allow, it is good to take this time in the presence of the exposed Blessed Sacrament. We can also adore the Lord in His real Presence, even before a closed tabernacle. And if material circumstances do not permit this time to be taken in a church, we can take it at home, by setting up a “prayer corner” that we have prepared.

Regularly resorting to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. In its solicitude, the Church tells us that we should confess at least once a year for serious faults. Through consecration, we enter a more intense stage of Christian life and it is suggested that we confess at least on the four major solemnities of the liturgical year: Christmas, Easter, Assumption, and All Saints.

The devotion to the First Fridays of the month: the Holy Hour the evening before; votive Mass of the Sacred Heart, adoration, and perhaps confessions on the day itself. Experience shows that this practice, recommended by Christ to Margaret Mary during the second great apparition of 1674 and to which a promise is attached for those who receive communion, bears much fruit in terms of conversion, healing, and pastoral consolation: “I promise you, in the excessive mercy of my Heart, that His all-powerful love will grant to all who communicate on nine First Fridays of the month in succession the grace of final repentance, not dying in my disgrace and without receiving their sacraments; my Divine Heart becoming their secure refuge at the last moment.” (Letter to Mother de Saumaise, 1688 or 1689).

In the next step, I will read and comment on the prayer of consecration for the 350th jubilee, which will be a way to summarise in prayer everything that has been said in our journey. Then, we will see in the fourth and final part of our journey how several initiatives have developed after the apparitions of Paray to live a life consecrated to the Heart of Jesus.