Chapel Open to Visitors for Upcoming Illumination of the Sacred Heart

Chapel Open to Visitors for Upcoming Illumination of the Sacred Heart

Story by Joe Pisani

Almost 60 years ago on an October afternoon, a young novice was praying in the Mount Sacred Heart Chapel in Hamden, when sunlight came through a stained glass window and cast a red beam across a white marble statue of Jesus. In seconds, it turned into a narrow ray of red light that illuminated his Sacred Heart.

Sister Marilyn Lagerman watched in amazement as Jesus’ Sacred Heart glowed red and ran to get a camera and tell the community of the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. When she returned, it had disappeared, but they saw it the following year, at precisely the same day and time.

Every year on Oct. 21 around 4 p.m., when the autumn sun shines through the stained glass window of St. Francis Xavier, the Sacred Heart of the statue of Jesus is illuminated by a heavenly red glow.

Apostles of the Sacred Heart’s Sister Colleen Therese Smith, who has witnessed the phenomenon over the years, says, “It’s a moment of grace for everyone there. You sense this awe, and you are reminded again of God’s love for us.”

Sister Colleen, who is the provincial secretary, says it lasts for about 30 to 60 seconds.

“It’s breathtaking to see,” she says. “It comes through a pane on a western window in the apse of the chapel, where St. Francis Xavier’s name is. You see this reflection moving across the gold mosaic of the sanctuary. There is a red glow, and suddenly in the blink of an eye, a narrow red streak of light completely illuminates the Sacred Heart, and then disappears.”

In recent years, the sisters have opened the chapel to others, including students, parents and alumni of Sacred Heart Academy, to gather for a prayer service before the illumination.

“It’s beautiful. Everyone waits in absolute silence until that moment,” she says. “We are happy to share it because if this opens someone to the beauty of God’s love, that’s a wonderful thing. This is a little gift that God gives us to remind us of his love every day.”

And the gift is particularly meaningful to the community of women who have consecrated their lives to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

“We are Apostles of the Sacred Heart, and he is everything to us,” Sister Colleen says. “We dedicate ourselves to spreading the love of God, and the heart of Jesus is a manifestation of the love of God. The devotion was born when Christ’s heart was pierced on the cross. Christ gave everything for the salvation of the world, and Christ’s heart is the heart that gives everything for us.”

Sister Colleen says that in Jesus’ apparitions to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, which celebrated the 350th anniversary this year, he spoke of his infinite love for humanity and his sorrow over humanity’s response.

‘“Behold this Heart which has so loved men that it has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming itself in order to testify its love,’” she repeats. “In return I receive from the greater only ingratitude… .’”

Adds Sister Colleen: “This heart loves humanity and yet is forgotten, but how much God thirsts to be in a love relationship with us.”

Sister Marilyn, who first saw the illumination in 1966, died on March 27, 2021, after 57 years in the community.

Visitors are welcome to share the occasion with the Apostles of the Sacred Heart on Oct. 21. They should arrive about 3:45 p.m. at the Mount Sacred Heart Chapel, 295 Benham St., Hamden. To watch a broadcast, click here: https://bit.ly/illumination25