PRAYERS AND ORDER FOR THE NOVENA TO ST. MARY MAGDALEN DE PAZZI
A. Rosary
B. Litany of the Blessed Virgin
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God, the Father of heaven, have mercy on us.
God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have have mercy on us.
Holy Mary,
Holy Mother of God,
Holy Virgin of virgins,
Mother of Christ,
Mother of Divine Grace,
(Mother of Mercy),
Mother most pure,
Mother most chaste,
Mother inviolate,
Mother undefiled,
Mother most amiable,
Mother most admirable,
Mother of our Creator,
Mother of our Saviour,
Virgin most prudent,
Virgin most venerable,
Virgin most renowned,
Virgin most powerful,
Virgin most merciful,
Virgin most faithful,
Mirror of justice,
Seat of wisdom,
Cause of our joy,
Spiritual vessel,
Vessel of honor,
Singular vessel of devotion,
Mystical rose,
Tower of David,
Tower of ivory,
House of gold,
Ark of the Covenant,
Gate of Heaven,
Morning star,
Health of the sick,
Refuge of sinners,
Comforter of the afflicted,
Help of Christians,
Queen of Angels,
Queen of Patriarchs,
Queen of Prophets,
Queen of Apostles,
Queen of Martyrs,
Queen of Confessors,
Queen of Virgins,
Queen of all Saints,
Queen conceived without original sin,
Queen of the most holy Rosary,
(Queen, Beauty of Carmel),
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
C. To the Eternal Father.
1. I adore Thee, O Eternal Father, together with the First Hierarchy, and I thank Thee on the part of Thy beloved Daughter, Mary Magdalen, for all the graces by Thee granted her, and in particular for having chosen her as the resting-place of Thy Divine Being, in that manner, and as far as mortal creatures can become capable thereof; and for having promised her to grant her whatsoever she would ask Thee, saying to her : “Bride of My Only-Begotten Word, ask of Me what thou wilt.”; I beg of Thee, for the sake of her merits and prayers, to infuse into my heart a true humility and conformity to Thy Divine Will.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father, etc.
D. To the Eternal Word.
2. I adore Thee, O Jesus, Word Incarnate, together with the Second Hierarchy, and I thank Thee, on the part of Thy most loving Bride, Mary Magdalen, for all the gifts by Thee granted her, especially for those five with which Thou didst adorn her. 1. With Thy most sacred stigmata. 2. When Thou didst place a ring on her finger, as to a bride. 3. When Thou gavest her Thy own Heart, as to a true lover. 4. When Thou didst crown her with Thy most sacred crown of thorns. 5. When Thy most holy Mother covered her with the veil of purity, and Thou didst grant her that naked suffering so much wished for by her. I beg of Thee, for the sake of her merits and prayers, to grant me the grace of imitating Thee and her, and particularly of being willing to suffer for Thy love; and grant me also, I beseech Thee, a perfect observance of Thy divine law and counsels.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Feather, etc.
E. To the Holy Ghost.
3. I adore Thee, O Spirit Paraclete, and I thank Thee, together with the Third Hierarchy, in the name of Thy dear Disciple, Mary Magdalen, for all the gifts granted her by Thee, for having chosen her for Thy agreeable dwelling place, and particularly for the seven times Thou didst infuse Thyself into that most pure soul, under seven various forms of cloud, of fire, of column, of river, of dove, of wind, and of flames, in order to strengthen her in the temptations and sufferings she was to endure during the five years of her probation, having made her victorious over hell itself. I beg of Thee, O Spirit of Sovereign Goodness, to grant me strength in all adversities and temptations in life and death, and to enkindle in my heart a burning flame of Thy Love.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father, etc.
F. To the Blessed Virgin.
Behold me prostrate before thee, O most holy Virgin, Mother of God, to thank thee on the part of our St. Mary Magdalen, with all the Saints of heaven, for all the gifts and graces thou hast obtained for her, and especially for having given into her arms thy Divine Son, the Infant Jesus, and covered and protected her with the veil of purity, putting also into her bosom thy most pure heart, and then adorning her with a most beautiful gold necklace on the day which commemorates thy glorious Assumption into Heaven ; and for many other marked favors granted to her. I beg of thee, O Mother of God and of us poor sinners, that for the sake of the merits of this our Saint, thou wilt reconcile us with thy Divine Son, and render us thy worthy children, leading us constantly, till the end of our days, through the path of grace and justice.
Three Hail Mary’s.
G. Supplication to the Saint.
To thee, glorious Mary Magdalen, to thee I confidently address my supplications and the sighs of my heart, making known to thee all the wounds which sadden and distress it; and I invoke thy powerful patron age, hoping thou wilt benignly lend me thy hand, to draw me out of the misery in which I find myself. But, from heaven, thou dost see my misery; thou hearest my moans, and thou measurest perhaps my afflictions, with that immense charity which distinguishes thee ! Ah ! pray, stretch forth also the arms of thy beneficence over the storms which surround me and which make me sink. In contemplating thee, so rich in virtues and merits, so powerful with God in behalf of thy fellow beings, I take complacency in thee with the most lively and grateful affection which a human creature is capable of; but with as much warmth I beg of thee to admit me to all the efficacy of thy intercession. With the powerful and unfailing depth of thy compassion, see how the passions have disfigured me. Not only have I lost the character of a true follower of Jesus Christ, but almost the human character itself, and yet, there was a time when I, too, tasted the sweetness of the celestial peace. There was a time in which devotion to thee made me long to imitate thee, turn my back on the world, and plunge into the contemplation of heavenly things. Then my heart, filled with God’ s grace, during those happy years of innocence, rested tranquilly in the intimate consciousness of right-doing. But furiously assailed by the infernal enemy, tossed about by evil suggestions, and especially by that self-love which, unhappily, predominates in us forgetful, on the other hand, of what a thousand others likewise have done, or rather, too weak in my will to follow thy example, I lent ear to the malicious tempter. I answered his accursed calls, and, soon becoming their victim and target, found myself cast about on every side by violent incitements to evil, lost in the tortuous ways of error, a slave to darkness, running after deceitful phantoms, which vanished at every step, like an abandoned ship, which the winds and the waves are seeking to swallow. Such has been and is my unhappy lot! Without truth in the soul, without charity in the heart, I go on hoping where there is no ground to hope, and fearing where there is no reason to fear, a toy to vain desires, the satisfying of which is immediately followed by ennui, which, in its turn, is followed in succession by a thousand other desires, that disturb and agitate me more and more, either because of the impotency of satisfying them, or by the rancor and envy of others, or by like unfavorable circumstances. Such is the case with human desires, which continually alternate a momentary delight with incessant restlessness and anxiety. And what reminiscences have I of all worldly enjoyments but bitterness, remorse and confusion? The world, of which I made myself the vile servant, now despises me; my friends delude and defame me; the very shadow of man disgusts me, betokening to me deception and seduction ; and with my heart ill-used on all sides, scarce enduring myself, bound at every setting of the sun, to confess that all is vanity and affliction of spirit, nothing is left but a horror of the sepulchre, which indicates to me the terrible and irrevocable account which I will soon be called upon to render. And yet these causes of terror, these prostrations of spirit, are still voices of paternal affection, by which God calls on me: repent and do penance. And I, tired and annoyed by so many afflictions, disabused and burning with a desire to set my heart at rest, would like to correspond to the Lord s voice, would like to return to the arms of so loving a Father, Who, for so long, and in so many and such different ways, stretches them forth to offer me forgiveness. I desire to follow the maxims thou hast practiced, and by which (instructing me at the school of Bethlehem and Calvary) thou declarest to me so eloquently that the true triumph of human strength and power is to conquer one s self; that he who suffers and abstains, lives more happily and tranquilly than he who, letting loose the reins of the carnal appetites and pride of the spirit, amuses himself in the midst of the voluptuousness and the haughtiness of this world. I would desire, well convinced as I am and oppressed by my own experience, to draw back from vice and set forth, instead, upon the path of virtue. But being too weakened in the spirit by so many irregularities of the senses, wholly incapable of arising of myself, I need a special grace, a prodigy of Divine grace, to draw me out of this profound misfortune. This is what I ask and hope for from thy patronage. Thou canst do it. God hears thee. Oh! delay not to come to my rescue ; let not my demerits keep thee from doing it. Transfuse into my understanding a portion of that light which was wont to reveal so plainly to thee the monstrosity of sin, and then strengthen my will that it may detest and abhor it, and, with true contrition, and works of severe and humble penance, go on purifying my heart from all stains which contaminate it. Quench in me my sinful appetites, calm my restless wishes, and work in me, in one word, my reconciliation and peace with the Father of Mercies. Once free from the irregular and excessive affection for creatures, animated by thy example, obtain for me that I may elevate myself to the love of the Sovereign Good, and progress in It so that, never checked by the power of the great ones, or paralyzed by the abasement of the lowly ones, I may, with evangelical freedom, overcome all human miseries so far as to know and see in every creature nothing but God ; to have God alone as the beginning and the end of all my affections and actions. Do thou grant that my heart, being inflamed with that fire with which thou didst burn, may become wholly enamored with the Divine Bridegroom, Jesus; serve Him with all its powers, follow Him with all its strength and sentiments; that it may never know or speak of anything but Jesus, that it may never think or live for anything but Jesus. Finally, obtain for me, that the rest of my days being constant in the practice of every virtue that goes to make the good Christian and the good citizen, I may be crowned with the precious death of the just, and thus guided to the possession of that heavenly beatitude, where, in the grateful admiration of thy glory, I may sing for everlasting ages the benignity and mercy of the Divine Saviour. Amen.
Chapter (2 Cor. x, 17-18).
Brethren, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord, for not he that commendeth himself, is approved, but he whom God commendeth.
R. Thanks be to God.
Hymn.
Thou Crown of the entire Virgin choir!
That Holy Mother s Virgin Son!
Who is, alone of womankind,
Mother and Virgin both in one.
Encircled by Thy Virgin band,
Amid the lilies Thou art found;
For Thy pure Brides with lavish hand
Scattering immortal graces round.
And still, wherever Thou dost bend
Thy lovely steps, O glorious King,
Virgins upon Thy steps attend,
And hymns to Thy high glory sing.
Keep us, O Purity Divine,
From every least corruption free;
Our every sense from sin refine,
And purify our souls for Thee.
To God the Father, and the Son,
All honor, glory, praise be given;
With Thee, O Holy Paraclete!
Henceforth by all in earth and heaven. Amen.
V. Pray for us, O St. Mary Magdalen.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ
V. Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
(V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.)
Let us pray:
Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord God, that we, Thy servants, may enjoy perpetual health, both of mind and body; and, by the glorious intercession of Blessed Mary ever Virgin, may be delivered from the present sorrow, and attain unto eternal joy. O God, the lover of virginity, Who didst inflame the breast of Saint Mary Magdalen with the fire of Thy love, and enrich it with heavenly gifts, grant that we may imitate, by our purity and charity, her whose festival we celebrate [or, whose commemoration we devoutly make].
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
N. B. It is recommended to approach the Sacraments, if possible, after the Novena or the Devotion of the Five Fridays.
