A Messenger of Hope
It's happened to me on several occasions, when I've mentioned to people that I'm Editor of the Sacred Heart Messenger. 'Ah! The Messenger,' they say, a warm smile starting to show on their faces. 'Is that still going? I remember... ' And they start reminiscing about the 'little red book', as it's frequently called.
One elderly woman remembered how her mother used the Messenger to teach her to read as a four-year-old child; a younger woman recalled the teacher in school handing it out in class every month for delivery home; a middle-aged man remembered vividly how his grandmother used to turn eagerly to the thanksgiving letters as soon as a new issue arrived.
Stories about the Messenger have done the rounds as well: how the girls, in the days when make-up was frowned on, used to rub it on their cheeks to make them glow before going out to the local dance; or how a recalcitrant son would be threatened with a hiding that would make his skin the colour of the Messenger!
Unpromising Beginnings
The Messenger has been an integral part of Irish life right from its foundation 122 years ago. The story goes that Fr. Paul Cullen S.J. approached his rector in Belvedere College in Dublin about starting a new publication, and that he was given permission, a small room and a pound note!
From this unpromising start, Fr. Cullen set about gathering material for his magazine, the first issue of which was published in January 1888. 'When the circulation reaches 2,000,' Fr. Cullen wrote shortly afterwards, 'I will cry, "Here goes, in the name of God".' In fact, the magazine's circulation rose to 9,000 by the end of its first year, and continued to rise rapidly in the years following. By 1904, 73,000 copies were being sold each month.
Phenomenal Success
What were the reasons for this phenomenal success? First of all, the Messenger tapped into a market which no other magazine had reached at that time. Most people in Ireland at the end of the nineteenth century were staunchly Catholic and desperately poor. The Messenger cultivated a deeply personal faith, based on the heart of Christ as a symbol of God's love, and at a penny a copy was affordable even to the poorest of the poor. And so it became a fixture in many Irish homes. Indeed, up to seventy or eighty years ago, the only reading materials in many rural Irish households was the monthly Sacred Heart Messenger.
Another reason for its rapid success was the system of distribution by volunteer promoters, which Fr. Cullen established from very early on. Sisters in convents, priests in parishes, teachers in schools, housewives in their villages and farmers in their townlands undertook to recruit readers locally, to deliver the magazine to them each month and to collect the subscription for forwarding to Dublin . This method ensured that the magazine could reach the remotest parts of the country at no additional cost. It also set up a network of promoters that continued from generation to generation, and that still is going strong today.
As well as that, the Messenger quickly established an intimate rapport with its readers, not only because of its chatty and unpretentious style, but also because it started to publish letters from them each month, testifying to their deep faith and recounting the favours granted to them through prayer to the Sacred Heart. This element of personal witness was an inspiration to many readers of the magazine, and before long, letters began to pour into the office in their hundreds, establishing an almost personal relationship between the Editor and the reader.
Still Flourishing
And what of the present? With a readership of over 300,000 per month, the Messenger remains the most widely read publication (bar the RTE Guide) in Ireland at the present time - that's out of every genre of magazine available. Most of our readers are in Ireland, of course, but substantial numbers are also to be found in Britain , the US , Canada , Australia , Africa and the Far East . Indeed, it would probably be true to say that wherever the Irish went - whether as missionaries or as economic migrants - they brought the Messenger with them.
And the letters continue to pour in: well over 50,000 of them have reached us in the past year from all corners of the world, many of them testifying to God's personal help and protection. Obviously, only a handful of these letters can be published each month.
Continuing Appeal
It is surprising, perhaps, that the Messenger continues to flourish in the affluent, secularised Ireland of the twenty-first century, when its shops are stocked with endless rows of glossy magazines and its streets are buzzing with mobile phones. What is the continuing appeal of the little red book?
First of all, at a time when most news reports of the Church are about internal disputes and horrific scandals, the Messenger concentrates on the accessible spirituality of the heart of Jesus, offering nourishment to many people who feel themselves starved of anything to keep their faith alive.
The Messenger also appeals because its spirituality is fully human and grounded in real life. It is not interested solely in prayer, the sacraments and 'holy' things. It is also concerned with the concrete issues that touch our lives, either as individuals or as communities: family problems, the refugee crisis, the challenge of middle age. It also carries articles on the environment, gardening, art and cooking, and pages for the children. In that sense, it is not at all a 'pious' magazine.
Finally, the Messenger continues to appeal because it has succeeded in remaining true to its original inspiration while adapting to the changing world of our times. This contemporary feel is reflected most obviously in its lively, colourful appearance and design. At a deeper level, it can be seen in the content of the articles, which aim to be true to the inclusive teachings of the Second Vatican Council and to the rich vision of the Pope, whose monthly intentions form a central feature in the magazine each month.
In a world where it's mostly the bad news that gets aired, the Sacred Heart Messenger is a healthy reminder that goodness continues to triumph in the human spirit.
John Looby, S.J.
Editor