NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP PRAYER DAY ONE

OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP PRAYER DAY 1

ACT OF CONTRITION

My Lord Jesus Christ, true God and true man, my father and redeemer, behold at Thy feet a poor sinner who has so grievously afflicted Thy loving Heart. O lovable Jesus, how could i have offended thee and filled with bitterness that Heart that love me so and that has spared no effort to attain my love? How great has been my in gratitude! But, O my saviour, be consoled, be consoled, I say to thee; now i find myself repentant, such grief i feel for the afflictions i have caused thee, that i would like to die of poor sorrow and contrition. O my Jesus! who could have make me weep for sin as Thou hast wept for them in Thy mortal life! My soul is oppressed for having offended Thee. Eternal father, in satisfaction for my offences I offer Thee the affliction and sorrow the Heart of Thy Divine Son has felt for them. And Thou, O Loving Jesus! give me such a horror for sin that from now on it may make me avoid even the most trifling of faults. Depart from my heart, earthly affections; I do not want to love anything now but my most bountiful Redeemer. O my Jesus, help me, strengthen me, and pardon me.

My Mother of perpetual help, intercede for me and obtain for me the pardon of my sins.

PREPARATORY PRAYER

(To be said everyday)

O Most Blessed Virgin Mary! Who to inspire us with boundless confidence has been pleased to take the sweet name of Mother of Perpetual help, I implore Thee to come to my aid always and everywhere, in my temptations, after my falls, in my difficulties, in all the miseries of life, and above all, at the hour of my death. Give me, O loving Mother, the desire, nay more, the habit always to have recourse to Thee, for i feel assured that if i am faithful in invoking Thee, Thou will be faithful in coming to my assistance. Obtain for me, then, this grace of graces, the grace to pray to Thee without ceasing, and with childlike trust, that, by means of my constant plea, I may ensure Thy Perpetual Help and final perseverance. Bless me, O tender and solicitous Mother, pray for me now and at the hour of my death. Amen

FIRST DAY MEDITATION

The Title Our Lady of perpetual Help

Among the innumerable titles under which Christian piety is pleased to invoke the Blessed virgin, there are few that are as likely to lift our hearts and fill them with unlimited confidence as the sweet name of Mother of perpetual Help, a name that pleases Her so.

To convince you of this: consider, on one hand, what the life of man on earth is, and on the other hand, what the name of Our Lady of Perpetual Help means.

Truthfully, what is life but a chain of miseries, dangers, afflictions and labours? in the temporal order, who is exempt from illness or from poverty? who is there who does not have to weep? in the spiritual order, who knows how, on every occasion, to be on guard against the great misfortune of sin, against the snares of lukewarmness, against the coaxing of temptations? Who does not weaken from time to time in the service of God, in the practice of virtue, and who does not tire at times in the path of good? Finally, what Christian does not tremble at the thought of the decisive and difficult moment of death, of the purifying fire of purgatory? In view of such miseries and necessities, the soul, overwhelmed, feels itself weakening and would like to burst into tears. But upon hearing the sweet name of Mother of Perpetual Help, it becomes serene, it takes courage, and continues joyfully on its path toward eternity. Why? Because it then feels that its lamentations are not lost in a desert, but that they find a gracious echo in the heart of a Mother Who desires, and is able, to help it. In truth, the Virgin of Perpetual Help means: a remedy for all the evils that afflict us – a remedy not just for a day, but perpetual, from the cradle to Heaven, help in everything and help at all times. Perpetual Help means: consolation in afflictions, in poverty, in illness, in labours; strength to give up sin, whether mortal or venial, and not to fall into it again. Perpetual Help means: fidelity in the service of the lord and of the virgin Herself, and therefore, final perseverance. Perpetual Help means: courage in the practice of virtue; special protection in the terrible hour of death; prompt and efficacious relief in the dreadful prison where just souls, who are still indebted to Divine justice, suffer before entering the heavenly homeland. Perpetual Help means: that even when circumstances or situations occur where everything seems hopeless, there is still one certain recourse: the Protection of the Blessed Virgin.

Meditate and ask for what you wish to obtain from Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

JOYS

AT THE END OF EACH PARAGRAPH SAY

“Come hasten to assist me, O Mother sweet and kind!”

Thou art Perpetual Help benign;
Come, therefore, I implore Thee:
Come hasten to assist me.
O Mother sweet and kind!

Hear, O Virgin pure,
Our fervent prayers of love
That fly to Thee above
On Thine exalted Throne.

Stained by guilt and sin
I bow my head and cry;
And at Thy feet I sigh
for clemency and love.

Free the careless soul
From it tepid ways,
And set the soul ablaze
with fervour in devotion

Wretched in this vale
Of pain and tribulation,
For heavenly consolation
I humbly beg of Thee.

If my virtue wanes
When tempests howl and roar,
My energies restore
Beloved Morning Star.

To Thy faithful child
Encouragement provide,
And toward virtue guide
His weak unsteady step.

Free my fickle heart
from all its lassitude,
And grant it fortitude
To lead a sinless life.

In the final clash
With death in all its fright,
How great my soul’s delight
If then i can exclaim:

In purgatory’s fire,
Dear Mother, please be sweet;
Great Lady, I entreat,
Alleviate my pains.

Grant me, Mother dear,
As fond farewell to Thee,
To sing eternally
With love and praise to Thee:

Come hasten to assist me
O Mother sweet and kind!

EJACULATORY PRAYER

O Mother of Perpetual help, may your name never depart from my lips, nor forsake my heart.

EXERCISE

A visit to the image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, reciting ten Hail Marys and commending to Her all your necessities and those of your family.

PRAYER

O Mother of Perpetual Help! For the ingratitude with which, until now, I have repaid Thy mercies and those of God, I deserve, as just punishment, Thy depriving me of Thy favours; but, O my sweet Mother, no matter how great my ingratitude is, Thy kindness is even greater. Do not disdain, therefore, to help a poor sinner who confides in Thee! Thy Heart overflows with charity for all and never has one heard it said that any unfortunate soul has left Thy feet without having his tears dried. Do not forget my miseries; intercede for me before the God of goodness, Who refuses Thee nothing and prove once more that Thou art worthy of the sweet name of Perpetual Help.

EXAMPLE

During the last years of the 15th century, when the Turks were afflicting the Christians on the isle of Crete with bloody persecutions, a pious merchant was obliged to abandon his native soil forever and seek asylum under the skies of Italy.

The vessel that conveyed him had scarcely reached the high seas, when it was lashed by a violent tempest, and in a few moments the hurricane tore off it sails and the raging waves destroyed it rudder. The crew, upon seeing their ship lost and made a plaything by the waves, terrified and struck with fear, awaited the death that would give the depths of the ocean for their tomb.

In the mist of that frightful scene, only the merchant of Crete appeared to be serene. There was courage in his words and confidence glowed in his eyes. And as the fury increased, the pious traveller ran to the ship’s interior, found his luggage, and uttering sighs of hope, returned to the deck carrying in his hand the image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

“Look,” he exclaimed, addressing the afflicted crew: “Behold the star of the sea; behold the beacon of navigators. Let us invoke Her in our afflictions. She will save us.” Upon saying this words, the merchant lifted the precious image before the terrified crew members who grouped themselves on their knees around his feet.

“Petitions rise from the earth and prodigies descend from heaven”, according to saint Augustine.

And sure enough: the travellers had hardly invoked Mary with that powerful cry of faith, when the hurricane stopped the course of its winds and the great ocean calmed its waves. The sun shore in the skies and the ship, rocked by the gentle breeze, went on to drop it anchors on the beautiful shores of Italy.

This was the first wonder the miraculous image of Our lady of Perpetual Help manifested before the face of Christianity. She wanted to commence Her favours in a vanquished tempest, to teach us that, in all the torments of life, no matter how lost we feel ourselves to be, She will always be our life, our sweetness and our hope.

May Our Lady Of Perpetual Help be loved, praised, invoked and eternally blessed! May she be my hope, my love, my Mother, My refuge and my life. Amen.

NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP PRAYER DAY 2