The assurance given by Christ to his apostles – that he will send the Holy Spirit to them; to lead them to the truth – attains its realization fifty days after the glorious resurrection of Christ. Gathered in the upper room, the apostles in union with Mary, witnessed the descent of the Holy Spirit like tongues of fire and became courageous in the mission of preaching the good news – the gospel – of Christ to the ends of the earth. This essential and historic event is what the Church celebrates yearly during the Solemnity of Pentecost, wherein she appreciates the place of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church and recognizes the need to harness the various gifts which He has given to the Church, for the effective spread of the gospel. Indeed, the coming of the Holy Spirit was born out of the love of Christ for the Church.

It is in recognition of such immense love which Christ continues to show to the Church that the Association of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary offers devotions to the most loving hearts of Jesus and Mary. This devotion has, however, been pronounced due to the apparition of our Lord Jesus Christ to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque on the 16th of June, 1675, where he said “Behold this heart which so loved men that it has spared nothing to testify its love for them, even to the exhausting and consuming of itself for their sake….” Sadly, enough, mankind has shown great ingratitude towards this heart of love through irreverence and sacrileges done against the Eucharist – the Sacrament of Love.

The Seminary community is not devoid of this reputable association, as on the 20th of May, 2018 (Pentecost Day), she witnessed the consecration of 17 seminarians as members of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary. The ceremony which began with the Holy Mass had Rev. Fr. Kenneth Adesina as the Chief Celebrant, the presence of other priest formators, representatives of the Association from both Lagos and Ibadan archdioceses, and the seminarians. The other part of the event was the handover ceremony to the new executive of the association within the seminary.