OCTOBER DEVOTION: UNDERSTANDING THE MARIAN TITLES IN THE LITANY OF LORETO (PART 2) – DAY 21: “MOTHER OF MERCY” (MATER MISERICORDIAE)

DAY 21 PRAYER INTENTION: Today, pray for those at the point of death in dire need of God’s mercy. May Our Lady, Mother of Mercy visit them and show unto them the Blessed fruit of her womb (Jesus) – the Face of Mercy, in order that they be favoured into the heavenly paradise, to the greater glory of God. Amen (Also add your own intention…)

Now, say the 20 decades of the Rosary…

At the end of the 20 decades, say the following Prayers:

Hail Holy Queen

Hail, holy Queen, mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To thee do we send up our sighs mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile show us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray

O God, whose only begotten Son, by His life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal salvation. Grant, we beseech Thee, that while meditating on these mysteries of the most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us! Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us! St. Joseph, pray for us!

Litany of Loreto

Lord have mercy.
Christ have mercy.
Lord have mercy.
Christ hear us.
Christ graciously hear us.

God, the Father of heaven,
have mercy on us (Repeat after each invocation)

God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
God the Holy Spirit,
Holy Trinity, one God,

Holy Mary,
pray for us (Repeat after each invocation)
Holy Mother of God,
Holy Virgin of virgins,
Mother of Christ,
Mother of the Church,
Mother of Mercy,
Mother of divine grace,
Mother of Hope,
Mother most pure,
Mother most chaste,
Mother inviolate,
Mother undefiled,
Mother most amiable,
Mother most admirable,
Mother of good counsel,
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 honour,
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,
Solace of Migrants,
Comfort 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 assumed into heaven,
Queen of the most Holy Rosary,
Queen of families,
Queen of peace.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
spare us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
graciously hear us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.

Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray
Grant, we beseech thee, O Lord God, that we, your servants, may enjoy perpetual health of mind and body;
and by the glorious intercession of the Blessed Mary, ever Virgin, may be delivered from present sorrow, and obtain eternal joy. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Memorare

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.

Prayer to Saint Joseph after the Rosary

To you, O Blessed Joseph, we come in our trials, and having asked the help of your most holy spouse, we confidently ask your patronage also. Through that sacred bond of charity which united you to the Immaculate Virgin Mother of God and through the fatherly love with which you embraced the Child Jesus, we humbly beg you to look graciously upon the beloved inheritance which Jesus Christ purchased by his blood, and to aid us in our necessities with your power and strength.

O most provident guardian of the Holy Family, defend the chosen children of Jesus Christ. Most beloved father, dispel the evil of falsehood and sin. Our most mighty protector, graciously assist us from heaven in our struggle with the powers of darkness. And just as you once saved the Child Jesus from mortal danger, so now defend God’s Holy Church from the snares of her enemies and from all adversity. Shield each one of us by your constant protection, so that, supported by your example and your help, we may be able to live a virtuous life, die a holy death, and obtain eternal happiness in heaven. Amen.

Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

DAY 21 REFLECTION: “MOTHER OF MERCY” (MATER MISERICORDIAE)

Having concluded the original Marian titles in the Litany of Loreto, we shall now examine the additional titles recently included by Pope Francis. “Mater Misericordiae” (Mother of Mercy), “Mater Spei” (Mother of Hope) and “Solacium Migrantium” (Comfort of Migrants) are the three new invocations inserted in the Litany of Our Lady, which traditionally concludes the prayer of the Rosary. The decision of the Holy Father was communicated by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, in a letter (dated June 20, 2020) addressed to the presidents of the Episcopal Conferences by Cardinal Robert Sarah and Archbishop Arthur Roche, Prefect and Secretary of the Vatican Dicastery respectively. Part of the letter reads: “The titles and invocations which Christian piety has reserved for the Virgin Mary over the course of the centuries, as the privileged and sure way to an encounter with Christ, are innumerable. Even in this present moment which is marked by feelings of uncertainty and trepidation, devout recourse to her, which is full of affection and trust, is deeply felt by the People of God…” To this effect, the first invocation, “Mother of Mercy” (Mater Misericordiae) will be inserted after “Mother of the Church” (Mater Ecclesiae), the second, “Mother of Hope” (Mater Spei) will be invoked after “Mother of Divine Grace” (Mater Divinae Gratiae) and the third, “Comfort of Migrants” (Solacium Migrantium) will be added after “Refuge of Sinners” (Refugium Peccatorum). Today, being the twenty-first day of our October Devotion, we shall be contemplating “Mother of Mercy” (Mater Misericordiae). Why do we invoke the Blessed Virgin Mary as “Mother of Mercy?”

The title “Mother of Mercy,” was given for the first time to the Blessed Virgin by Saint Odo (†942), abbot of Cluny, as a way of honouring her because she gave birth to Jesus Christ, the visible Mercy of the invisible Merciful God, and because she is the spiritual mother of the faithful, full of grace and mercy. In fact, the Mother of Jesus, now in Heaven, presents the needs of the faithful to her Son, whom, when on earth, she pleaded in favour of the couple at Cana (cf. Jn 2:1-11).

The ecclesial tradition made the Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen) prayer come to the hearts of the faithful. In it, the Virgin Mary is invoked with the title “Mater Misericordiae” (Mother of Mercy). What made the Virgin of Nazareth recognized and invoked with such a divine name? The Church has always taught that all of Mary’s merits have their origin in Christ Jesus. There is no Marian devotion that is consequently not the way for the Son and, from Him to the Father. As Pope Paul VI reminds us in the introductory part of his “Marialis Cultus”: “The development, desired by us, of devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary is an indication of the Church’s genuine piety. This devotion fits as we have indicated above into the only worship that is rightly called “Christian,” because it takes its origin and effectiveness from Christ, finds its complete expression in Christ, and leads through Christ in the Spirit to the Father. In the sphere of worship, this devotion necessarily reflects God’s redemptive plan, in which a special form of veneration is appropriate to the singular place which Mary occupies in that plan. Indeed every authentic development of Christian worship is necessarily followed by a fitting increase of veneration for the Mother of the Lord.”

In proclaiming an Extraordinary Jubilee for the celebration of God’s Mercy in 2016, Pope Francis invites the People of God to fix their gaze on Christ Jesus, “Misericordiae Vultus” (The Face of Mercy). And, in that look, marvel at the Father’s mercy, just as Mary marveled at the Magnificat (cf. Lk. 1: 46-55). In other words, at the Magnificat, Our Lady sings of Mercy, sings the joyful love of God, who returns happiness to a saddened world. She is the first Daughter of God’s mercy; and, at the same time, she is the Mother of the God of Mercy: that is why we call her ‘Mater Misericordiae.’

The divine look of the Father comes to us through the human face of the Son. God the Father first “looked” at the humility of the Virgin Mary (cf. Lk 1:48) because she, as a servant, made herself available to her Lord’s saving will, saying: “Let it be done to me!” (cf. Lk 1:38). From that “fiat,” the Saviour was born. And so, in her humble life story, Mary contemplated the Father’s merciful face. First, because she recognized that in the entire history of her people, “The Almighty has done great things and his mercy endures from generation to generation” (Lk 1:49) and also that her Lord remembered his people because of his mercy (cf. Lk 1:54). Second, because it was she who generated the face of mercy in her own womb by the power of the Holy Spirit (cf. Lk 1:31). And not only did she generate Him, but it was also she who first contemplated taking Him in her arms, protecting and wrapping Him in swaddling cloths… (cf. Lk 2:6-7). What ineffable joy, what divine bliss! Contemplate God’s merciful face on a child’s face! We rightly call it “full of grace” because there is no greater grace than to behold the mercy of God. Thus, Mary, with her fiat, gave us a merciful face, maternally and piously (cf. Lk 2:22). And with old Simeon, contemplating that sacred face, we bless and adore the Father “because our eyes have seen salvation” (cf. Lk 2:30).

Above all, dear friends in Christ, invoking the Blessed Virgin Mary as “Mother of Mercy,” we contemplate the glory of the Father in the face of the Son, which has visited us through Mary’s fiat. Therefore, we cry out to the Blessed Virgin Mary many times as we walk in the “valley of tears,” in pain and suffering, etc. Let us resort to her, the New Eve because in our sins we see ourselves as “poor banished children of the first Eve.” May “Mary’s merciful eyes” turn to us, and after our exile, show unto us the “blessed fruit of her womb” – the Face of Mercy.

Let Us Pray:
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve: to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus, O merciful, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Amen.

Great job reflecting on Day 21! Click here for Day 22 – “Mother of Hope”