Part 1
CONTENTS Foreword ...................................................................................... i Introduction ................................................................................... iv I. Necessity of True Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus ................. 1 II. The Two Hearts ............................................................................ 5 A. Introduction 5 B. History of Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus .. 7 C. Ecclesiastical Approbation ............................................................. 8 D. Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary ...................................... 9 E. The Two Hearts United ................................................................ 14 III. Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary ................................................................ 18 A. Essence of the Consecration ........................................................ 18 B. Desired Effects of the Consecration ............................................. 19
IV. The Enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus .......................... 32 V. Practices which Foster Devotion to the Sacred Heart of VI. Some Recent Developments Concerning Devotion to the VII.The Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Reign of the Sacred Heart of Jesus .................................................. 39 Epilogue ......................................................................................... 42
Dearly beloved of God, Perhaps this is the most important message that we have ever written or that you have ever read, because of the tremendous spiritual repercussions which it could have. We know that at Fatima in 1917, Our Blessed Mother told Lucia that Jesus wished to use her to establish in the world devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. And before dying Jacinta told Lucia: "Tell everyone that . . . the Heart of Jesus wants the Immaculate Heart to be venerated at His side." In October, 1942, Pope Pius XII consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in these solemn words:
At Fatima on May 13, 1967, Pope Paul VI renewed the consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and asked for the consecration of individuals, families and pations to Her. And on May 13, 1982, Pope John Paul II reconsecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary saying, "Consecrating the world to the Immaculate Heart of the Mother means . . . consecrating this world to the pierced Heart of the Savior" and, on March 25, 1984, he renewed this consecration in union with the bishops of the world. In September, 1986, an International Symposium on the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary was held at Fatima. Pope John Paul II explained that the purpose of the symposium was to promote devotion to the Heart of the Son and that of His Mother in our day. In his opening address to the theologians, Cardinal Sin, the President of the symposium stated:
During the Marian Year, on December 8, 1987, Corazon Aquino, the President of the Philippines, led over one million people in the national consecration of the Philippines to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Commenting on this, Cardinal Sin expressed the hope that the triumph of Their Hearts for all the world might begin there in the Philippines. Since that time international congresses have been held all over the world — in Moscow, Japan, Venezuela, the United States, Kenya, Fatima, Manila and Rome — to promote the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. In May of 1995, the International Theological Pastoral Convention of the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary was held in Rome, where renowned theologians declared this Alliance to be the Core and Foundation of our Faith. We, The Hearts of Jesus and Mary, are a small group of people called by God to this apostolate. We have no other purpose than the triumph and reign of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary in the hearts and lives of people everywhere. To that end they have inspired us to write this booklet. We have been praying that God would raise up many "apostles" of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary to help us in this work of making Them better known and loved. We would ask you to prayerfully consider becoming one of these "apostles." St. Margaret Mary wrote:
At Paray-le-Monial in the seventeenth century the Sacred Heart of Jesus assured St. Margaret Mary that He would reign through His Heart in spite of His enemies. At Fatima in the twentieth century the Blessed Virgin Mary assured the children that Her Immaculate Heart would triumph in the end. By our true consecration to these Two Hearts and by our undertakings to spread true love for Them we can hasten the Day of Their Final Triumph and Reign! The Hearts of Jesus and Mary invite you — They await your response. Will you answer their call to make Them better known and loved? The Hearts of Jesus and Mary Revised Edition Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes February 17, 2000
It began during the 1980's — a series of events that culminated in an outcome so astounding that it overawed the world and left political analysts and military strategists benumbed with disbelief — the 'peaceful' dissolution of the Communist Empire in the Soviet Union and eventually in the Eastern European countries as well. WHAT CAN ACCOUNT FOR A HAPPENING SO SPECTACULAR IN MAGNITUDE, SO FAR-REACHING IN ITS EFFECTS AND SO AWESOME IN ITS RAMIFICATIONS? AND WHAT IS THE MESSAGE FOR EACH PERSON WHO IS ALIVE ON EARTH TODAY?
Part 1 In the thirteenth century on the Feast of St. John the Evangelist, the beloved disciple, St. Gertrude had a vision of the Sacred Heart of Jesus similar to the first one experienced by St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the seventeenth century. St. Gertrude reposed with St. John on the Heart of Jesus in which are hidden all the treasures of the Godhead. And she asked the Evangelist why, in his gospel, he did not reveal the mysteries of the Heart of Jesus, since he was the first one to experience them when he reposed on that Heart at the Last Supper. St. John replied:
Who could deny that we are now living in those 'last ages'? St. Paul warned Timothy:
Is this not a perfect description of our age — an age in which people are lovers of themselves, lovers of money, lovers of pleasure rather than of God, an age in which the dire prophecies of Our Lady of Fatima have been fulfilled before our eyes in our own lifetime — Godlessness has spread throughout the world devastating its inhabitants with an atmosphere of secular humanism, materialism and atheism. Our age is torn by violence and terrorism unprecedented in the history of the world as it totters on the brink of nuclear annihilation. Drug — addiction, alcoholism and promiscuity have all but destroyed a generation of young people. The break-up of the family and the murder of the unborn have become so commonplace that they are now socially acceptable throughout the world. Satanism has become blatant in its mockery of God and all that is holy. Indeed the evils of this age all but stagger the imagination to the point that we might well say, 'This is Satan's hour when darkness reigns.' BUT INTO OUR DARKNESS AND FEAR AND DESPERATION A LIGHT APPEARS — THE BURNING LIGHT OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS ON FIRE WITH LOVE FOR US. AND AMID THE DIN OF EVIL CLAMOR WE HEAR A GENTLE SOUND — THE PULSATIONS OF HIS HEART BEATING WITH LOVE FOR US. INDEED, THE REVELATION OF THE MYSTERIES OF HIS LOVE HAS BEEN RESERVED FOR AN AGE SUCH AS OURS and for all those who now have 'eyes to see' and 'ears to hear,' He speaks those magnificent words of Love which He first spoke to St Margaret Mary in June of 1675:
St. Margaret Mary said Jesus informed Her that this devotion is as a final effort of His love which wishes to favor human beings in these last centuries
She added:
Father Mateo Crawley-Boevey, the great twentieth century apostle of the Sacred Heart echoed these words when he cried out:
Pope Paul VI, in a letter dated February 25, 1965, to all the Bishops of the world, wrote:
And in speaking to the Jesuits he affirmed that the love
Pope John Paul II has given many Angelus discourses on the Sacred Heart of Jesus and in a letter given by him to the Superior General of the Jesuits at Paray-le-Monial, he urged the Jesuits to continue to promote the devotion to the Sacred Heart. At his request an international symposium was held at Fatima, Portugal, on September 14-19, 1986, to discuss the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary and to clarify for the whole Church the importance of this devotion. Furthermore, in a letter on the occasion of the Third Centenary of the death of St. Margaret Mary, he wrote: "When I was on pilgrimage in 1986 to the tomb of St. Margaret Mary, I asked, in the spirit of what has been handed down in the Church, that veneration of the Sacred Heart be faithfully restored. For it is in the Heart of Christ that the human heart learns to know the true and unique meaning of its life and destiny; it is in the Heart of Christ that the human heart receives its capacity to love." [8] But it was Pope Pius XII who spoke most eloquently of this devotion and its necessity for the modern world in his encyclical Haurietis Aquas where he referred to Pope Leo XIII's Sacred Heart Encyclical issued in 1899. Pope Leo referred to the cross which appeared in the sky as a pledge of victory to Emperor Constantine:
Part II:
The word 'heart' has many meanings. We know that it is a fleshly organ beating within a living body. But the word 'heart' is also used to represent the innermost being of a person — the center from which flows everything that he or she is and does. It signifies the essence of a person — his or her innermost attitudes, feelings, sentiments, dispositions and motivations. It symbolizes not only the inner life of the person, but the whole, person. Thus, when we honor the 'heart' we are honoring the entire person. In the Old Testament, the word 'heart' is frequently used to connote the source and center of a person's religious and ethical life. The Psalms are replete with the word 'heart,' and there are also references to the Heart of the Messiah in the Messianic prophecies and Messianic Psalms. (Psalms 22, 69, 16) In the New Testament, Jesus used the word 'heart' several times and referred to His Own Heart when He said,
The Church Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D. pointed out that Jesus Christ exists in two natures (human and divine) in One Divine Person. The human nature of Jesus, which is hypostatically united to the Word, belongs to the divine Person and therefore must receive the same type of worship as the Word, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. The Fifth General Council clearly stated that Jesus Christ must not be adored in His two natures (human and divine) which would be two adorations, but He must be adored as the Incarnate Word with its flesh in one and the same adoration. Pope Pius XII in Haurietis Aquas explained that there are two reasons why the Church gives the highest form of worship to the Heart of Jesus. The first rests on the principle whereby we recognize that His Heart is hypostatically united to the Person of the Divine Word.
The other reason which refers in a special way to the Heart of Jesus, and also demands that the highest form of worship be paid to It, arises from
His Holiness went on to say:
Love is the object of devotion to the Sacred Heart. Love is its motive and love is its purpose. Thus, by devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus we mean the ardent love of Jesus Christ which. induced Him to offer Himself to die on the Cross for us on Calvary and to continue to immolate Himself for us on our altars at every Holy Mass and to give Himself entirely to us in the Eucharist until the end of time; the grief which we experience at the sight of the outrages committed against Him and the indifference shown toward Him by so many people; and our great desire to make a return of love and reparation. One of Pope Pius XII's most profound statements sums up the reasons for our love for the Sacred Heart:
At the same time, it is important to realize that devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus must not stand alone. Pope Pius XII clearly pointed this out when he wrote:
We know that God chose Mary at the time of Adam's sin to crush the serpent's head by bringing us the Redeemer. Jesus chose to come into the world through Her, He chose to have Her share in His redemptive sufferings, He chose to make Her the Mediatrix of all grace, He chose to entrust the peace of the world to Her, and He chose to have Her share in the glory of His reign. Indeed, it has taken centuries for the Church to ever more fully realize the extent of the role assigned to Her by God in the plan of salvation. B. History of Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Veneration of the Heart of Jesus goes all the way back to the early Church which honored His Heart pierced with a lance, witnessed by the Blessed Mother and St. John and recorded in the Gospels. In the Middle Ages the Church venerated the Five Wounds of Jesus, and viewed the wound of the Heart as a secure place of refuge and protection. St. Bernard in the eleventh century saw something even more profound in the Heart of Jesus. He exclaimed that the iron pierced through to Jesus' Soul and touched His Heart so that He could know compassion for our sufferings. He said that the body's wounds reveal the secret of His Heart and a great mystery of love. However, it was not until the seventeenth century that the devotion became widespread when the great mystery of love and the desire for reparation was clearly revealed by the Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary. He plunged her heart into His Own so that she could return love for love. But countless saints throughout the history of the Church have had great love for the Sacred Heart of Jesus even before the revelations to St. Margaret Mary — St. John the Evangelist, St. Bernard, St. Gertrude, St. Mechtilde, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Bonaventure, St. Albert the Great, St. Francis de Sales and many others. St. John Eudes widely propagated the devotion just prior to the revelations to St. Margaret Mary. Then there was Blessed Claude de la Colombiere, St. Margaret Mary's spiritual director, Venerable Father Damien in the nineteenth century, and Venerable Charles de Foucauld in the twentieth century. C. Ecclesiastical Approbation The Church gave its official approbation to the Sacred Heart devotion many centuries ago beginning with Pope Clement X in 1674, followed by Popes Clement XIII, Innocent XII, Pius IX, and Leo XIII WHO SOLEMNLY CONSECRATED THE HUMAN RACE TO THE SACRED HEART IN 1899 AND DECLARED THIS TO BE THE 'GREATEST ACT' OF HIS PONTIFICATE. Furthermore, he stated in his encyclical, Annum Sacrum, that the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was
Pope Pius X commanded Father Mateo to become the apostle of the Sacred Heart and Pope Pius XI wrote in Miserentissimum Redemptor in 1928:
Pope Benedict XV, in a letter to Father Mateo, considered to be the 'magna carta' of the Enthronement, wrote:
Pope Pius XII in Haurietis Aquas declared in 1956:
Pope John XXIII, in his autobiography, The Journal of a Soul, wrote so beautifully:
Pope Paul VI in his Apostolic Letter of February, 1965, wrote:
Pope John Paul II, in his angelus Message on June 24, 1979, in St. Peter's Square, said:
D. Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary In speaking of devotion to the Heart of Mary it is necessary to make a distinction between the kind of veneration paid to the Heart of Jesus and that given to the Heart of Mary. The highest type of worship or adoration referred to by theologians as latria is accorded to Jesus Christ. The honor paid to Mary and the saints is infinitely lower. When it is given to the saints, it is referred to as dulia and when it is given to Mary it is referred to as hyperdulia because it surpasses the veneration given to the angels and saints combined. For She is full of grace and as Mother of God is more intimately associated with the mysteries of Jesus Christ and has more power over His Sacred Heart than any other creature. This veneration given to Mary is in no way idolatrous because it is rendered to a creature and is not a substitute or an alternative to the worship owed to the Divinity. Indeed, the more Mary is venerated the more She draws all humankind to Her Divine Son and to the Father. In origin and history the veneration of the Heart of Mary is closely related to that of the Heart of Jesus. It had its origin in the Sacred Scriptures where the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady are all either directly or indirectly contained in the Gospel. In the first of these, Simeon pictured the Heart of Mary pierced by sorrow. (Luke 2:34, 35) Besides this, St. Luke related that Mary kept all the things Jesus said and did in Her Heart. (Luke 2:19, 51) Many Church Fathers and saints expressed their love for the Heart of Mary — St. Augustine, St. Leo the Great, St. John Chrystostum, St. Anselm, St. Bonaventure, St. Bernard and countless others. St. Augustine wrote:
Yet, veneration of Mary's Heart was a gradual process throughout the history of the Church. The first instance of anything resembling a genuine devotion to the Heart of Mary came in 1184 when Ekbert of Schonau addressed a prayer to Her Heart. In the first part of the fifteenth century St. Bernardine of Siena stressed devotion to the Heart of Mary and St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622) made frequent references to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. It was St. John Eudes, however, who propagated the devotion to the Heart of Mary (and the Heart of Jesus) far and wide in the seventeenth century. In 1836 the Archconfraternity of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was launched by Abbe Desgenettes at Our Lady of Victories in Paris which may be looked upon as the birthplace of devotion to the Heart of Mary under the specific title "Immaculate" Heart of Mary. And in the nineteenth century St. Anthony Mary Claret was instrumental in widely spreading this devotion. Ecclesiastical approbation for the devotion to the Heart of Mary goes all the way back to Pope Julius II in the early sixteenth century, and many other Popes throughout the ages have added their approval. BUT IT WAS NOT UNTIL THE TWENTIETH CENTURY THAT -THE 'FULLNESS' OF THE ROLE ASSIGNED TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY BY GOD WAS REVEALED LARGELY BECAUSE OF THE APPARITIONS OF OUR LADY OF FATIMA. In her Memoirs Sister Lucia wrote:
In July of 1917 Our Lady informed the children that in order to prevent a future war, She would come to ask
Before dying, Jacinta told Lucia:
On June 13, 1929, Sister Lucia had a vision of the Most Holy Trinity with the Immaculate Heart of Mary who said:
When, in answer to this request, Pope Pius XII consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in October of 1942, he clearly manifested to us that with due subordination, devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is not only closely related to, but parallel with the devotion to the Sacred heart of Jesus. On that occasion, he pronounced these solemn words:
It must always be kept in mind that while the act of consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is one of latria or highest worship to the Divinity, the act of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a subordinate one of hyperdulia or highest veneration given to a creature. At Fatima on May 13, 1967, Pope Paul VI renewed the Consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary (as Pope Pius XII had done in 1952) and asked for the consecration of INDIVIDUALS, FAMILIES AND NATIONS TO HER. On May 13, 1981, the 64th anniversary of Our Lady's first appearance at Fatima, Pope John Paul II was shot in Rome. As he lay recuperating in the hospital, he reflected on the significance of what had happened, and realized that it was through the intercession of Our Lady of Fatima that God had preserved his life. He determined to go to Fatima on May 13, 1982, to reconsecrate the world to Her Immaculate Heart. On that occasion he explained that Jesus' words from the Cross, 'Woman Behold Your Son' opened in a new way Mary's Immaculate Heart. Then the Roman soldier opened the Sacred Heart of Jesus with a lance shortly after He expired. Thus,
He went on to say that
Then he prayed:
However, in none of these papal consecrations had the bishops of the whole world united with the pope as had been the express wish of Jesus and Mary. And so, in December of 1983, Pope John Paul H wrote to every bishop throughout the world requesting each one to join with him in consecrating the world (including Russia) to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on March 25, 1984, at the close of the Extraordinary Holy Year of Redemption. The large Pilgrim Virgin statue was flown from Fatima to Rome for this occasion. There at St. Peter's Basilica, humbly kneeling before it, Pope John Paul II, in union with the bishops of the world, solemnly entrusted and consecrated the whole world, specifically mentioning 'those people for which You have particular love and solicitude' to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. THIS MOMENTOUS EVENT WHICH TOOK PLACE IN ROME PASSED ALMOST UNNOTICED BY THE SECULAR MEDIA, BUT THE HEARTS OF JESUS AND MARY WERE WELL AWARE OF IT IN HEAVEN. Shortly afterwards, Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union and changes began to take place so rapidly behind the Iron Curtain that WITHIN A MATTER OF A FEW YEARS THE COMMUNIST EMPIRE IN EUROPE UNRAVELED, THE BERLIN WALL CAME DOWN, THE SOVIET UNION DISSOLVED, THE EASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES WERE LIBERATED AND UNBELIEVABLY ON OCTOBER 13, 1991, FORTY MILLION FORMER SOVIET CITIZENS WERE ABLE TO WATCH A LIVE BROADCAST OF CEREMONIES TAKING PLACE AT FATIMA, WHERE ALMOST A MILLION PILGRIMS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD WERE PRAYING FOR CONVERSION AND PEACE. At Fatima in 1982, Pope John Paul II had said,
INDEED, THIS WAS PROVEN TO BE TRUE AFTER THE CONSECRATION WAS MADE IN UNION WITH THE BISHOPS OF THE WORLD IN ANSWER TO THE DIVINE REQUEST. A little known, but very significant incident is the fact that Bishop Paolo Hnilica, in answer to the prayers of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, was able to obtain a visa into Russia. There in Moscow, within the Kremlin itself, he was able to join the Holy Father in making the Consecration on March 25, 1984. After secretly celebrating Holy Mass in the adjoining Church of the Assumption, he related his belief that the Communist system would be overcome because "now Russia was placed into the Heart of Mary." [23] In his book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, Pope John Paul II stated that in a certain sense the Communist system fell by itself due to its own mistakes and abuses. And yet he did not hesitate to conclude that God's action was manifested in its downfall. E. The Two Hearts United Although the Hearts of Jesus and Mary have been venerated together for centuries, it was not until recently that we have begun to penetrate more deeply into the oneness existing between Them. Mary's Heart is what our hearts could have been if there had been no original sin. Her Heart reveals the union that a creature can attain with its God. Jesus lives and reigns in Her Heart as in that of no other creature because of Her perfect response to Him. Her Heart is thus the most 'perfect image' of His Heart that is possible for a creature to attain. HER HEART IS THEREBY OUR MODEL IN RESPONDING TO HIM AND ALLOWING HIM TO LIVE AND REIGN IN US. The excellency of the Immaculate Heart of Mary depends in large measure upon its union with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. By Her destiny as Mother of God, Mary has been called to a union with Him far above and beyond that granted to any other creature. Her Heart echoes all the feelings, desires, sentiments, longings, affections, motivations, and dispositions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Her Heart is thus capable of purely loving God more than any other creature in heaven or on earth The holiness of the Immaculate Heart of Mary likewise arises from its most perfect union with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Her Heart is as a brilliant mirror reflecting the sanctity of His Heart. His perfections are reproduced in Her Immaculate Heart, although in a finite way, in virtue of Her communion with His Heart. St. John Eudes exclaimed:
He explained in greater detail:
Before dying, Jacinta told Lucia:
It is of great significance that on May 18, 1936, Sister Lucia asked Jesus why He would not convert Russia without the Holy Father making the consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and He replied:
Thus, Jesus Himself has requested that the devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary be placed alongside devotion to His Sacred Heart thereby indicating the `oneness' of Their Hearts. Sister Lucia is reported to have said that God accepted the Papal Consecration of the world made by Pope John Paul II on March 25, 1984 in union with the bishops of the world — that the events which followed speak for themselves. HENCE, NOW IS THE TIME,,TO FULFILL JESUS' REQUEST TO PUT DEVOTION TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY BESIDE DEVOTION TO HIS SACRED HEART. The Church has attempted to manifest this union in a visible manner by moving the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary so that it is now on the day after the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The two Feasts are thus side by side on the Friday and Saturday after the octave of the Feast of Corpus Christi. It is significant that in his Angelus Address of September 15, 1985, Pope John Paul II used the phrase 'that admirable Alliance of the Hearts' in referring to the covenant of love between the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. And an international symposium on the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary was held at Fatima in September of 1986. The Holy Father summarized its purpose:
Cardinal Sin, the President of the Symposium, stated that it was a response to the Fatima message to not only promote devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, but to unite it more closely with devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in order to bring peace to the world. As a result of the symposium, the Alliance of the Holy Family International was formed in Manila to emphasize THE IMPORTANCE OF CONSECRATION TO THE HEARTS OF JESUS AND MARY — OF PLACING OUR HEARTS INTO THE ALLIANCE OF THEIR HEARTS AS ST. JOSEPH DID, THUS SANCTIFYING THE FAMILY AND THE WORLD. Since that time international congresses have been held all over the world — in Moscow, Japan, the United States, Venezuela, Kenya, Fatima, Manila and Rome — to promote the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. On May 23-25, 1995, the International Theological Pastoral Convention on the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary was held in Rome. DURING THIS CONVENTION RENOWNED THEOLOGIANS DECLARED THE ALLIANCE OF THE HEARTS OF JESUS AND MARY AS THE CORE AND FOUNDATION OF OUR FAITH, AND THE ESSENTIAL THEME OF THE BIBLE. FURTHERMORE, THEY DECLARED IT TO BE A WAY OF LIFE AND WORTHY OF A LITURGICAL FEAST. Is it any wonder then that Fr. Michael O'Carroll in his farewell address said,
COULD ANY THINKING PERSON ANY LONGER IGNORE OR DENY THE NECESSITY OF CONSECRATING HIMSELF OR HERSELF TOTALLY AND FOREVER TO THE MOST SACRED HEART OF JESUS AND THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY? Part 2
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