SACRED ART: "Pietà" by Michelangelo
(Left-click once or twice on the picture to see the painting at closer range)
PRAYER: Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary ***OPTIONAL***
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
God our Father in heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, pray for us.
Holy Mother of God, pray for us.
Most honored of virgins, pray for us.
Chosen daughter of the Father, pray for us.
Mother of Christ the King, pray for us.
Glory of the Holy Spirit, pray for us.
Virgin daughter of Zion, pray for us.
Virgin poor and humble, pray for us.
Virgin gentle and obedient, pray for us.
Handmaid of the Lord, pray for us.
Mother of the Lord, pray for us.
Helper of the Redeemer, pray for us.
Full of grace, pray for us.
Fountain of beauty, pray for us.
Model of virtue, pray for us.
Finest fruit of the redemption, pray for us.
Perfect disciple of Christ, pray for us.
Untarnished image of the Church, pray for us.
Woman transformed, pray for us.
Woman clothed with the sun, pray for us.
Woman crowned with stars, pray for us.
Gentle Lady, pray for us.
Gracious Lady, pray for us.
Our Lady, pray for us.
Joy of Israel, pray for us.
Splendor of the Church, pray for us.
Pride of the human race, pray for us.
Advocate of peace, pray for us.
Minister of holiness, pray for us.
Champion of God’s people, pray for us.
Queen of love, pray for us.
Queen of mercy, pray for us.
Queen of peace, pray for us.
Queen of angels, pray for us.
Queen of patriarchs and prophets, pray for us.
Queen of apostles and martyrs, pray for us.
Queen of confessors and virgins, pray for us.
Queen of all saints, pray for us.
Queen conceived without original sin, pray for us.
Queen assumed into heaven, pray for us.
Queen of all the earth, pray for us.
Queen of heaven, pray for us.
Queen of the universe, pray for us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, spare us O Lord.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, hear us O Lord.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Pray for us O glorious Mother of the Lord, that we may become worthy of the promises of Christ.
God of mercy,
Listen to the prayers of your servants
Who have honored your handmaid Mary
As mother and queen;
Grant that by your holy grace
We may serve you and our neighbor on earth
And be welcomed into your eternal kingdom;
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
SACRED ART: "The Baptism of Christ" by Antoine Coypel
(Left-click the white slider bar in the mini picture, then drag the white slider bar left or right to find your preferred size — you might have to play with it because it’s a little tricky)
PRAYER: Invocation of the Holy Spirit ***REQUIRED***
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful,
And enkindle in them the fire of your love.
Lord, send forth your Spirit,
And you will renew the face of the earth.
O God,
Who instructs the hearts of your faithful
With the light of your Holy Spirit,
Make us responsive to his inspirations
So that we may be truly wise and
Ever rejoice in his consolations,
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
SACRED ART: "Jesus in the Temple" by Heinrich Hofmann
https://mariateresadebracamonte.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/2jesus_in_the_temple_hofmann.jpg
SCRIPTURE: Luke 2: 51-52 ***REQUIRED***
He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus advanced [in] wisdom and age and favor before God and man.
SACRED ART: "Founder Statue of St. Louis de Montfort" by Giacomo Parsini
(Left-click once or twice on the picture to get a closer view)
REFLECTION BY ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT: True Devotion to Mary (#139) ***REQUIRED***
Our good Master stooped to enclose himself in the womb of the Blessed Virgin, a captive but loving slave, and to make himself subject to her for thirty years. The human mind is bewildered when it reflects seriously upon this conduct of Incarnate Wisdom. He did not choose to give himself in a direct manner to the human race though he could easily have done so. He chose to come through the Virgin Mary. Thus he did not come into the world independently of others in the flower of his manhood, but he came as a frail little child dependent on the care and attention of his Mother. Consumed with the desire to give glory to God, his Father, and save the human race, he saw no better or shorter way to do so than by submitting completely to Mary. He did this not just for the first eight, ten or fifteen years of his life like other children, but for thirty years. He gave more glory to God, his Father, during all those years of submission and dependence than he would have given by spending them working miracles, preaching far and wide, and converting all mankind. Otherwise he would have done these things. What immeasurable glory then do we give to God when, following the example of Jesus, we submit to Mary! With such a convincing and well-known example before us, can we be so foolish as to believe there is a better and shorter way of giving God glory than by submitting ourselves to Mary as Jesus did?
QUESTIONS ***REQUIRED***
Are you an obedient person? Or rebellious? Are you a person who is faithful? Or unfaithful? Can you submit yourself to Mary like Jesus and with Jesus? Can you surrender your own will, like Jesus, to comply with the will of God?
SACRED ART: "The Visitation" by Raphael and Giulio Romano or Giovanni Francesco Penni
(Either leave the picture as it is, or you may left-click on the minus sign once or twice in order to get a farther view)
PRAYER: Jesus Living in Mary ***REQUIRED***
O Jesus living in Mary,
Come and live in your servant,
In the Spirit of your holiness,
In the fullness of your gifts,
In the perfection of your ways,
In the truth of your virtues,
In the communion of your mysteries.
Subdue within me
The power of flesh and demon
By your Holy Spirit,
For the glory of God the father.
Amen.
SACRED ART: "The Resurrection" by Carl Bloch
https://www.wikiart.org/en/carl-bloch/resurrection-of-christ-1875
(Left-click twice on the picture to get a closer view)
PRAYER: Prayer of St. Augustine ***REQUIRED***
O Jesus Christ,
You are my father,
My merciful God,
My great king,
My good shepherd,
My only master,
My best helper,
My beloved friend
Of overwhelming beauty,
My living bread,
My eternal priest;
You are my guide
To my heavenly home,
My one true light,
My holy joy,
My true way,
My shining wisdom,
My unfeigned simplicity,
The peace and harmony
Of my soul,
My perfect safeguard,
My bounteous inheritance,
My everlasting salvation;
My loving Lord,
Jesus Christ,
Why have I ever loved or desired
Anything else in my life but you, my God?
Where was I
When I was not in communion with you?
From now on,
I direct all my desires
To be inspired by you
And centered on you;
I direct them to press forward
For they have tarried long enough,
To hasten towards their goal,
To seek the one they yearn for;
O Jesus,
Let him who does not love you
Be accursed,
And filled with bitterness;
O gentle Jesus,
Let every worthy feeling of mine
Show you love,
Take delight in you
And admire you;
O God of my heart
And my inheritance,
Christ Jesus,
May my heart mellow
Before the influence of your spirit
And may you live in me;
May the flame of your love
Burn in my soul;
May it burn incessantly
On the altar of my heart;
May it glow
In my innermost being;
May it spread its heat
Into the hidden recesses
Of my soul
And on the day
Of my consummation
May I appear before you
Consumed in your love.
Amen.