Pope Francis’ new encyclical Dilexit Nos (“On the Human and Divine Love of the Heart of Jesus Christ”), released Oct. 24, is a much-needed salve for the Catholic faithful, according to analysts who shared insights with the Register.

“Dilexit Nos is a breath of fresh air,” said Father Jeffrey Kirby, pastor of Our Lady of Grace parish in Indian Land, South Carolina, and the host of YouTube’s “Daily Discipleship With Father Kirby.” 

“It bypasses the turbulence of synodality, with all its questions and uncertainties, and points us to love and stability of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.” He finds the encyclical offers “consolation in the burning fires of God’s divine love. The encyclical talks about Jesus and his love for us. It’s encouraging and inspiring. We need more of this message in the Church today.”

Father Kirby explained that Ignatian spirituality has always had “a soft spot for the Sacred Heart,” adding, “In Dilexit Nos, Pope Francis gives us a reflection of that devotion. The encyclical honors the 350th anniversary of the apparitions of the Sacred Heart to French nun St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. At the time, the messages of the apparitions shook the Church as she struggled with Jansenism [which denied human free will and God’s desire to save everyone]. Once again, in our day, the messages of the Sacred Heart are needed as our world seeks to cancel and destroy itself by division, hatred and technological irresponsibility. Pope Francis uses Dilexit Nos to echo the messages of the Sacred Heart and call humanity back to a humane civilization, a civilization of love and mercy.”

Father Kirby added, “As the world wallows in its darkness and seems hell-bent on destroying itself, when humanity is replaced by raw technology, and neighbor seems unable to be civil to neighbor, the Pope is redirecting our attention to the Sacred Heart. As his vicar, the Pope is pointing us to the Lord Jesus and to his open heart, which burns with a love for us. It is the love of the Lord that can restore life, bring light, grant healing and usher in a time of true peace. No human being, no legislative body and no technological advancements can accomplish this work. It is only the vibrant, life-giving love of God that can restore peace and make all things new. And so, the Pope directs us to the Sacred Heart of Jesus as the wellspring of that love.”

 

Antidote for Society’s Ills

Father Dwight Schlaline is pastor of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Hanover, Pennsylvania. The basilica was dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on Aug. 15, 1787, a month before the Constitution was signed in Philadelphia. 

The Pennsylvania pastor also sees Dilexit Nos as the answer to society’s callousness.

“According to the encyclical, contemporary society is becoming increasingly heartless — trying to capture all of life by algorithms [20] and threatening humanity through certain uses of technology [31],” he pointed out. “Some attempts to correct this inhumanity — even within the Church — are mechanistic [30], dualistic and even gnostic [87] at times. By referring us all to the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Pope Francis hopes to see a ‘social miracle’ (28) that would unite the hearts of all people with the heart of Christ and thus bring about peace and justice in the world. May it be done!”

Father Schlaline also focused in on another aspect of the encyclical. “It is easier to sin when you don’t think of Jesus’ heart,” he said. “The transgressive inclination in the sinner’s soul leads him or her to find pleasure in breaking the ‘rules.’ But breaking someone’s heart? We think twice about that. We are less motivated to break someone’s heart. This seems to be Francis’ core desire here: We need to focus on the Heart of Christ if we want real change in ourselves and the world. Good change happens once we fully realize how personal is our faith. Christ is not my employer: He is my friend, my Savior, my Brother, my Love. May true devotion to the Heart of Jesus motivate us to abandon sin, knowing that when we sin we aren’t just breaking the rules, we’re breaking his heart.”

 

Deepening Our Devotion

Kris McGregor, founder and executive director of Discerning Hearts, is a regular on EWTN Radio and commentator for EWTN’s The Doctors of the Church series. She calls Dilexit Nos “truly an invitation to revisit and deepen our devotion to the Sacred Heart as a source of divine mercy, unity and peace — so needed in today’s world.”

Focusing on Christ’s heart as a divine remedy for a fragmented world, she explained that “Pope Francis invites us to contemplate the Sacred Heart as the unifying principle of all reality. In an age when technology, self-centeredness and division seem to pull us apart, Christ’s heart becomes the ‘heart of the world,’ drawing all things toward divine unity. His heart doesn’t just respond to our needs but pours out the fullness of God’s love, transforming our fractured experiences into a coherent story of salvation. When we feel lost in the whirlwind of modern life, the Sacred Heart grounds us, reminding us that the love of Christ unites our deepest yearnings with the divine purpose.”

McGregor told the Register that the encyclical also brings out the thirst of the Sacred Heart for love, citing that “Francis highlights a profound aspect of St. Margaret Mary’s vision, where Jesus reveals his ‘thirst’ for humanity’s love. This divine thirst reflects not a distant deity but a God who, in taking on human nature, longs to be received in return. In the Eucharist, the Sacred Heart offers himself, yearning to be known and loved by each soul. Yet, in a world that often pushes love aside for momentary gains or distractions, Christ’s heart persists, offering himself fully and awaiting our response — a return of love for love.”

McGregor sees the message of human hearts transformed in the fire of Christ’s love. She said that St. Bonaventure taught that “it is not light but ‘raging fire’ that we should pray for. Francis extends this in Dilexit Nos, calling us to let our hearts be transformed by the flame of divine love. True devotion to the Sacred Heart does not end in pious sentiment but becomes a radical commitment to let Christ’s love reshape our lives. As we place our heart near his, we find a love that not only consoles but stirs us into action for others, reflecting God’s mercy and presence in a world that desperately needs it.”

She shared a personal connection highlighted by the encyclical. McGregor has enthroned her home to the Sacred Heart and had the grace of twice visiting Paray-le-Monial, France, where St. Margaret Mary first experienced her vision. 

“Dilexit Nos resonates deeply with me,” she said. “Pope Francis, in true Jesuit tradition, renews this centuries-old devotion, emphasizing it as a pathway of mercy and unity for a fragmented world. I’m so grateful he’s brought this devotion back into focus — it is an invitation to let the love of Christ settle even deeper in our hearts and lives.”

 

Laying Historical Foundation

Father of Mercy Ken Geraci, mission director for his religious congregation, shared that his personal experience of reading this encyclical is “that the Holy Father has laid out the historical ground work to stir our memories towards what the Church has always taught about the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which historically was heavily devotional and interior. But now the Holy Father wishes to introduce a new dimension, by moving from the interior spiritual dimension to expanding our concept of the devotion to include physically going out to those in need: to the lonely, abandoned, despised, poor, those in unforgiveness, in rigorism, and other references.”

Most of all, the world needs love.

“God the Son shares the same flesh as us. He has loved us with a human heart. The whole world has changed because of that Heart that has loved us,” said Franciscan Father John Paul Mary Zeller, EWTN chaplain and a priest of the Franciscan Friars of the Eternal Word. He added, “His heart gives us the capacity to love as he loves. You might say that because his heart is united to our hearts, that there is nothing that Heart has not felt. His heart feels our burdens.”

“The title of the encyclical says it all,” said Father Zeller. “‘He loved us.’”