The turning point of St. Margaret’s mystical experiences occurred in June 1675, during the days following the feast of Corpus Christi, the Church's great celebration of the Body and Blood of Christ. This encounter is known to history as "The Great Apparition," because it was here that Jesus moved beyond revealing His sorrow and laid out a specific, actionable plan for the universal Church.
The devotion was no longer to remain hidden behind the walls of the Visitation convent; it was meant for the world.Opening His Heart to the humble nun, Jesus spoke words that would echo through the centuries: “Behold the Heart which has so loved men that it has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself, in order to testify Its love; and in return, I receive from the greater part only ingratitude, by their irreverence and sacrilege, and by the coldness and contempt they have for Me in this Sacrament of Love."But the deepest wound, He confided to Margaret Mary, did not come from the world's unbelievers. What pained Him most was that this piercing indifference often came from hearts entirely consecrated to Him. It was the apathy of priests, religious souls, and devout laypeople—those who should have been His closest friends and consolers—that struck the most agonizing blow to His Sacred Heart. "But what I feel most keenly is that it is hearts which are consecrated to Me that treat Me thus.”He then requested that a special, universal feast day be established to honor His Sacred Heart, specifically designating the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi for this purpose.
On this day, the faithful should approach the altar and receive Holy Communion with the express intention of making amends for reparation—repairing the spiritual damage caused by the neglect, irreverence, and sacrilege of humanity. To those who would answer this call, He offered a breathtaking assurance: "And I promise that My Heart shall dilate to pour out abundantly the influences of its love on all that will render it this honor or procure its being rendered."In that sacred moment, a private vision transcended the convent walls, igniting a devotion that would invite a cold, indifferent world back into the warmth of the Heart of God."Every night between Thursday and Friday I will make thee share in the mortal sadness which I was pleased to feel in the Garden of Olives."*