VI. Various Prayers to the Divine Mother

Prayer of Blosius

Ave, benignissima misericordiae mater, salve, veniae conciliatrix; optatissima Maria, quis te non amet? Tu in rebus dubiis lumen, et in maeroribus solatium; in angustiis levamen, in periculis et tentationibus refugium. Tu post Unigenitum tuum certa es salus. Beati qui diligunt te, Domina! Inclina, quaeso, aures tuae pietatis precibus huius servi tui, huius miseri peccatoris, et caliginem vitiorum meorum radiis tuae sanctitatis dissipa, ut tibi placeam.

Abridged Prayer to Mary by St. Ephrem

O Immaculate and entirely pure Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Queen of the world, hope of the desperate, you are the joy of the saints, the peacemaker of sinners with God, the advocate of the abandoned, the safe harbor of the shipwrecked. You are the consolation of the world, the ransom of captives, the comfort of the afflicted, the salvation of the universe. O great Queen, beneath your protection we take refuge. Non nobis est alia quam in te fiducia, o Virgo sincerissima. Lady, after God we have no other hope but in you. We bear the name of your servants; do not allow the enemy to drag us to hell. Ave, Dei et hominum mediatrix optima. I greet you, O great mediatrix of peace between men and God, O Mother of Jesus our Lord. To you be honor and blessing with the Father and with the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Prayer of St. Thomas Aquinas

O most blessed and most sweet Virgin Mary, full of mercy, I commend to your compassion my soul and my body, my thoughts, my works, my life and my death. O my Lady, help me and comfort me against the snares of the devil; obtain for me the true and perfect love with which I may love with all my heart your most beloved Son and my Lord Jesus Christ; and after him, may I love you above all things. O my Queen and Mother, by your most powerful intercession grant that this love may endure in me always until death, after which I may be led by you to the homeland of the blessed.

In te spem meam toto ex animo collocavi (St. John Damascene).

Non est fas, o Domina, te posse deserere eum, qui spem suam ponit in te (St. Bernard).

Tantummodo velis salutem nostram, et vere nequaquam salvi esse non poterimus (St. Anselm).

Ave, filia Dei Patris; ave, mater Dei Filii; ave, sponsa Spiritus Sancti; ave, templum totius Trinitatis (Simon Garcia).

Long live Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and Teresa.

Chaplet of the Sorrows of Mary

Deus, in adiutorium, etc.

My Mother, grant that my heart may share your sorrow in the death of Jesus.

I. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, sorrowful Mother, for the first sword of grief that pierced your heart, when in the temple through Simeon there were set before you all the torments that men would inflict upon your beloved Jesus, and which you well knew from the divine Scriptures, even to seeing him die before your eyes, nailed to an infamous cross, drained of blood and abandoned by all, without your being able to defend him or help him. By that painful memory, then, which for so many years afflicted your heart, I beg you, my Queen, to obtain for me the grace that I may always, in life and in death, keep deeply impressed upon my heart the Passion of Jesus and your sorrows. — Pater, Ave, Gloria, etc. My Mother, etc. as above. (This verse is always repeated.)

II. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, my sorrowful Mother, for the second sword that pierced you, when you saw your innocent Son, scarcely born, persecuted to the death by those very men for whom he had come into the world; so that you were then compelled by night and in secret to carry him away into Egypt. By the many hardships, then, which you, a delicate maiden, suffered in the company of your exiled Child on that long and wearisome journey through deserted and harsh regions, and during your stay in Egypt where, as strangers unknown to all, you lived all those years in poverty and contempt, I beg you, my beloved Lady, to obtain for me the grace to bear with patience in your company, until death, the trials of this wretched life, so that in the next I may escape the eternal sufferings of hell which I have so well deserved. — Pater, etc.

III. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, my sorrowful Mother, for the third sword that wounded you in the loss of your dear Son Jesus, who remained for three days far from you in Jerusalem. Then, not seeing your Beloved at your side and not knowing the reason for his absence, I believe, my beloved Queen, that during those nights you did not rest, but did nothing but sigh for him who was your whole good. By the sighs, then, of those three days, for you too long and bitter, I beg you to obtain for me the grace that I may never lose my God; so that, embraced by God, I may always live, and thus depart from this world at the moment of my death. — Pater, etc.

IV. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, my sorrowful Mother, for the fourth sword that pierced you, when you saw your Jesus condemned to death, bound with ropes and chains, covered with blood and wounds, crowned with a bundle of thorns, falling along the way beneath the heavy cross that he bore upon his wounded shoulders, going as an innocent lamb to die for our love. Then your eyes met his, and those glances became cruel darts with which you wounded each other's loving hearts. By this great sorrow, then, I beg you to obtain for me the grace to live wholly resigned to the will of my God, cheerfully carrying my cross in the company of Jesus to the last breath of my life. — Pater, etc.

V. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, my sorrowful Mother, for the fifth sword that pierced you, when on Mount Calvary you found yourself present to see your beloved Son Jesus die before your eyes, little by little, amid so many agonies and insults, on that hard bed of the cross, without your being able to give him even the least of those comforts that are granted at the point of death even to the most wicked. And I beg you, by the agony that you, loving Mother, suffered together with your agonizing Son, and by the tenderness you felt when from the cross he spoke to you for the last time, and bidding you farewell, left you with John all of us as your children, and you then steadfastly watched him bow his head and breathe his last; I beg you to obtain for me from your crucified Love the grace to live and die crucified to all the things of this world, to live only for God throughout my whole life, and so one day to enter into paradise to enjoy him face to face. — Pater, etc.

VI. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, my sorrowful Mother, for the sixth sword that pierced you, when you saw the sweet Heart of your already dead Son pierced through and through — dead for those ungrateful wretches who, even after his death, were not satisfied with tormenting him. By this fierce sorrow, then, which was entirely your own, I beg you to obtain for me the grace of dwelling in the Heart of Jesus, wounded and opened for me; in that Heart, I say, which is the beautiful cell of love, where all souls who love God repose, and where, living, I may think of and love nothing but God. O most holy Virgin, you can do this; from you I hope for it. — Pater, etc.

VII. Sorrow.

I compassionate you, my sorrowful Mother, for the seventh sword that pierced you, when you saw in your arms your already dead Son — no longer fair and radiant as when you received him one day in the stable at Bethlehem, but bloodstained, livid, and all torn by the wounds that had laid bare even his bones. "My Son," you said then, "my Son, to what has love reduced you!" And when they went to bury him, you wished to accompany him and with your own hands to lay him in the tomb, until at last, giving him the final farewell, you there buried your loving heart with your Son. By so many martyrdoms, then, of your beautiful soul, obtain for me, O Mother of beautiful love, the pardon of the offenses I have committed against my beloved God, for which I repent with all my heart. Defend me in temptations; assist me at the moment of my death; so that, saving myself through the merits of Jesus and yours, I may one day, with your help, after this miserable exile, come to sing in paradise the praises of Jesus and of you for all eternity. Amen. — Pater, etc.

Ora pro nobis, Virgo dolorosissima;

Ut digni efficiamur promissionibus Christi.

Oremus

Deus, in cuius Passione, secundum Simeonis prophetiam, dulcissimam animam gloriosae Virginis et Matris Mariae doloris gladius pertransivit, concede propitius, ut qui dolores eius venerando recolimus, Passionis tuae effectum felicem consequamur. Qui vivis, et regnas in saecula, etc.

Chaplet of Mary Immaculate, customarily recited in certain churches

Deus, in adiutorium, etc. Gloria, etc.

Then one Pater is said to the Eternal Father for the graces given to Mary, with four Aves; and the same to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. At the end of each Ave one says: "Praised forever be the Immaculate Conception of Mary." And after every four Ave Marias, the following verse is said:

As a lily among thorns, so are you, O blessed Virgin, preserved from sin, because you are the Mother of the Lord.

At the end:

Ora pro nobis, Virgo immaculata,

Ut digni efficiamur promissionibus Christi.

Oremus

Famulis tuis, quaesumus, Domine, celestis gratiae munus impertire, ut quibus B. Virginis partus exstitit salutis exordium, Conceptionis eius votiva commemoratio pacis tribuat incrementum. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

Consecration of Oneself to Mary

Most holy Virgin Mother of God, Mary, I, N., though most unworthy of being your servant, moved nonetheless by your wonderful compassion and by my desire to serve you, choose you today, in the presence of my guardian angel and of the whole heavenly court, as my particular Lady, advocate, and Mother. I firmly resolve to serve and love you always in the future, and to do all I can so that you may be loved and served by others also. I beseech you, Mother of God and my most compassionate and most loving Mother, by the blood of your divine Son shed for me, to receive me among the number of your other devoted children as your perpetual son and servant. Assist me in all my thoughts, words, and deeds, in every moment of my life, so that all my steps and breaths may be directed to the greater glory of my God; and by your most powerful intercession, may I never again offend my beloved Jesus, but glorify him and love him in this life, and love you, my most beloved and dear Mother, so as to love you and enjoy you forever in holy paradise. Amen.

My Mother Mary, I commend my soul to you, especially in the hour of my death.

Consecration of One's Family to Mary

Blessed and Immaculate Virgin, Queen and Mother of us all, refuge and consolation of all the wretched, I, prostrate before your throne with all my family, choose you as my Lady, Mother, and advocate before God. With all who are mine I dedicate myself forever to your service, and I beg you, O Mother of God, to place us among the number of your servants by taking us all under your protection, helping us in life and especially at the time of our death. O Mother of Mercy, I constitute you Lady and ruler of my entire household, of my relatives, of my affairs, and of all my interests. Do not disdain to take charge of them; dispose of all as you please. Bless me, then, and all of my family, and do not permit any of us to offend your Son. Defend us in temptations, deliver us from dangers, provide for us in our needs, counsel us in our doubts, console us in our afflictions, assist us in our sicknesses, and especially in the anguish of death. Do not allow the devil to glory in having in his chains any of us who has already been consecrated to you; rather, grant that we may come to heaven to thank you, and together with you to praise and love our Redeemer Jesus for all eternity. Amen. So be it.

Aspirations to the Blessed Virgin Mary

Mother of God, remember me. — St. Francis Xavier.

Virgin and Mother, grant that I may always remember you. — St. Philip Neri.

Virgin Mary, Mother of God, pray to Jesus for me. — The same saint.

O Lady, grant that Jesus may not cast me away from himself. — St. Ephrem.

O Mary, may my heart never cease to love you, nor my tongue to praise you. — St. Bonaventure.

O Lady, by the love you bear to Jesus, help me to love him. — St. Bridget.

O Mary, deign to make me your servant. — Blessed Joan of France.

O Mary, I give myself entirely to you; accept me and keep me. — St. Mary Magdalene de' Pazzi.

O Lady, do not abandon me until death. — Fr. Spinelli of the Society of Jesus.

Hail Mary, my mama. — Fr. Francesco Brancaccio of the same Society.

Holy Mary, my advocate, pray for me. — Fr. Sertorio Caputi.

If I love Mary, I am sure of perseverance and salvation, and I shall obtain from God whatever I desire. — Brother John Berchmans.

Prayer of Louis of Blois to the Blessed Virgin:

Ave, desperantium spes, destitutorum adiutrix Maria, cuius honori tantum tribuit Filius, ut quidquid petieris, mox impetres, quidquid volueris, mox fiat. Tibi regni caelestis thesauri commissi sunt. Praesta, Domina, ut inter procellas huius vitae semper te attendam. Tuae pietati commendo animam et corpus meum. Dirige et protege me singulis horis atque momentis, o dulce praesidium meum.

Exclamation of Brother Alphonsus Rodriguez of the Society of Jesus:

Iesus et Maria, amores mei dulcissimi, pro vobis patiar, pro vobis moriar: sim totus vester, sim nihil meus.

Exclamations of St. Bernard, or of another devout author, on the Salve Regina:

Ad te clamamus, regina misericordiae, revertere, ut intueamur te largientem beneficia, conferentem remedia, ponentem fortitudinem. Ostende nobis faciem miserationum tuarum, et salvi erimus.

Domina rerum, sancta sanctorum, virtus nostra et refugium, decus mundi, gloria caeli, agnosce te diligentes; audi nos, nam te Filius nihil negans honorat.

Curre, festina, Domina, et tuum iniquissimum servum ad te clamantem parcendo adiuva, et eripe de manu hostis.

Quis ad te non suspirabit? Amore suspiramus et dolore. Quomodo ergo ad te non suspiramus, solatium miserorum refugium expulsorum, liberatio captivorum? Non dubitamus, quin si nostras aspexeris miserias, non poterit tua miseratio suum retardare effectum.

O Domina nostra, advocata nostra, tuo Filio nos commenda. Fac, o Benedicta, per gratiam quam meruisti, ut qui te mediante dignatus est fieri particeps infirmitatis et miseriae, te quoque intercedente, participes nos faciat beatitudinis et gloriae suae.

The Blessed Virgin Mary revealed to a soul devoted to her that she was greatly pleased to be honored by her servants with the following devotion:

I thank you, O Eternal Father, for the power given to Mary your daughter. Pater, Ave, Gloria.

I thank you, O Eternal Son, for the wisdom given to Mary your Mother. Pater, Ave, Gloria.

I thank you, O Eternal Holy Spirit, for the love given to Mary your spouse. Pater, Ave, Gloria.

Long live Jesus our love, and Mary our hope.

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END OF THE GLORIES OF MARY.