In grieving loss of husband and father, family finds healing, hope in Sacred Heart of Jesus
Amy Nash and her three children in Shoreline, Washington, grieved the death of husband Song Hwan Nash in 2017 after his battle with stage 4 stomach cancer. The family found healing when their 6‑year‑old son Mason reported a vision of Jesus’ Sacred Heart, described as a real, glowing heart that gave him comfort and a sense of Jesus’ love. Mason’s experience helped him overcome depression and grief, improving his emotional well‑being and giving him hope for the future. The story illustrates how the Sacred Heart devotion can provide solace to families dealing with loss and illustrates the Catholic faith’s role in community healing.
about 1 month ago
The Nash family of Shoreline, Washington, turned to the Sacred Heart of Jesus after the 2017 death of husband and father Song Hwan Nash, finding renewed hope and emotional healing that reshaped their daily life and faith practices. 1
Amy Nash and her three children—Mason, Christian and Mercy— struggled with deep sorrow following Song Hwan’s passing from stage 4 stomach cancer. Mason, then six, experienced intense triggers that made ordinary family moments feel painful. 1
One night Mason dreamed that Jesus, described as “tall” and wearing a red sash, gave him a heart “on fire with light.” The vision matched a photo of the Sacred Heart he later saw, and he interpreted it as Jesus’ love and sacrifice for him. The dream marked a turning point, lifting Mason’s mood and outlook. 1
Before the dream, Amy asked family and friends at St. Luke Parish to pray a novena to St. Kateri Tekakwitha, whose own loss resonated with Mason’s experience. The novena preceded Mason’s encounter with the Sacred Heart. 1
Mason began drawing the Sacred Heart in Mass pews, sharing his testimony at youth retreats, and the family consecrated themselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. They now display two images of these hearts, say the Morning Offering prayer each day, and feel Jesus’ heart “beating as the other life” in their home. 1
The family’s devotion was reinforced by Archbishop Paul D. Etienne’s pastoral letter on the Sacred Heart and the U.S. bishops’ consecration of the nation to the Sacred Heart for the country’s 250th anniversary, which inspired the Nash family to invite others to share in the devotion. 1
Amy describes the Sacred Heart as a source of light that entered their darkest moments, offering a tangible sign of Jesus’ love that helped the family move beyond grief toward renewed hope and spiritual vitality. 1*
Sacred Heart devotion as a source of familial healing after loss
The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus can become a profound path of healing for families after bereavement—not by erasing grief, but by placing suffering within Christ’s wounded, compassionate love. It helps family members mourn honestly, remain united, rediscover their mission, and hope in the Resurrection.
Catholic faith does not require a grieving family to hide pain or immediately “move on.” Jesus Himself wept at the death of Lazarus. Pope Francis therefore recognizes the anguish of losing a spouse, child, or other beloved family member, including the anger and questions that may arise toward God.
This is central to Sacred Heart spirituality: the Heart of Jesus is not distant from human suffering. His Heart is the human heart of the incarnate Son, and His risen body still bears the marks of His Passion. Pope Pius XII teaches that Christ remains with the Church through the love of His Heart and that His wounds manifest His victory over “the devil, sin, and death.”
For a bereaved family, an image of the Sacred Heart can therefore communicate a consoling truth: Christ does not observe their grief from outside; He has entered suffering and transformed it from within.
Devotion to the Sacred Heart gives families a language for prayer when ordinary words fail. They may bring before Christ their sadness, anger, guilt, memories, and fears. Such prayer need not be emotionally peaceful at first. The family’s act of turning toward Jesus—even amid confusion—is already an expression of faith.
Pope Francis describes grief as a process involving difficult questions about death, responsibility, and what happens at the moment of dying. He emphasizes that peace ordinarily returns through “a sincere and patient process of prayer and interior liberation.”
This means that Sacred Heart devotion should not be presented as a quick remedy. Healing may involve tears, silence, conversation, confession, participation in Mass, and patient accompaniment. The devotion becomes fruitful when it leads the family into a deeper relationship with Christ rather than merely providing an external religious symbol.
Loss can divide a family. Members may grieve differently: one may speak openly, another may remain silent; one may seek prayer, another may struggle with anger; children may feel abandoned or confused. The Sacred Heart offers a common center in which these different experiences can be brought together.
St. John Paul II describes the Divine Heart as “the inexhaustible source of the union of all hearts.” He presents the Church as a communion whose mission is to serve the unity of human hearts in Christ.
Applied to family life, this means that devotion should encourage—not replace—concrete acts of reconciliation:
The family can pray together before an image of the Sacred Heart, attend Mass on the First Friday or the feast of the Sacred Heart, and entrust the deceased to God’s mercy. These practices can create a stable rhythm of communion when life feels disordered.
Christian healing does not mean forgetting the deceased. It means allowing love to take a new form. Pope Francis explains that the dead can no longer be physically present, but love remains strong; the bereaved gradually learn to accept their loved ones as they now are, transformed by death.
Sacred Heart devotion supports this transformation because it directs affection toward Christ, who is both the source and fulfillment of love. Family members may continue to honor the deceased through prayer, charitable acts, family traditions, and fidelity to the good values received from that person. In this way, remembrance becomes active rather than imprisoning.
The goal is not to prolong suffering as though ongoing pain were the only proof of love. Pope Francis explicitly warns that the bereaved still have a mission to carry out and that destroying their lives is not a fitting tribute to those who have died.
A death can leave a family asking: “How do we live now?” Sacred Heart spirituality responds by inviting the family to receive a renewed mission from Christ. Pope Francis notes that some widowed persons discover a deeper dedication to their children and grandchildren, finding in love a renewed sense of purpose.
This mission may include:
The family does not earn healing by doing more. Rather, service can be a way of cooperating with grace already received. The wounded heart gradually becomes capable of comforting others because it has encountered the compassionate Heart of Christ.
Familial healing should not be left entirely to the family. Pope Francis emphasizes that those without relatives or affection should receive particular attention from the Christian community.
A parish shaped by the Sacred Heart can support grieving families through:
St. John Paul II also describes interparochial cooperation as a way of providing what one parish may not be able to accomplish alone, with service returning to strengthen local communities and families.
Sacred Heart devotion is neither superstition nor a promise that suffering will disappear immediately. It is a Christ-centered devotional practice that leads the faithful toward the mysteries of the Incarnation, Passion, Eucharist, Resurrection, and Christian communion.
Its fruits may appear gradually:
The Sacred Heart does not remove the wound of loss as though the relationship had never existed. It teaches the family to bring that wound into Christ’s own wounded Heart, where grief can slowly be purified into hope, memory into love, and suffering into compassionate service.