Beautiful and Fervent Prayers
to the Divine Mother
by Various Saints
 Prayer of Saint Ephrem
O immaculate and entirely pure Virgin
Mary, Mother of God, Queen of the universe, our own good Lady; thou
art above all the saints, the only hope of the patriarchs, and the
joy of the saints. Through thee we have been reconciled with our
God. Thou art the only advocate of sinners, and the secure haven of
those who are sailing on the sea of this life. Thou art the
consolation of the world, the ransom of captives, the joy of the
sick, the comfort of the afflicted, the refuge, the salvation of the
whole world.
O great Princess, Mother of God, cover
us with the wings of thy mercy, and pity us. We hope only in thee,
O most pure Virgin. We are given to thee, and consecrated to thy
service; we bear the name of thy servants. O, then, permit not that
Lucifer should drag us to Hell. O immaculate Virgin, we are under
thy protection, and therefore unitedly we have recourse to thee; and
we beseech thee to prevent thy beloved Son, Who is irritated by our
sins, from abandoning us to the power of the Devil.
O thou who art full of grace, enlighten
my understanding, loosen my tongue, that it may sing thy praises;
and more particularly the angelic salutation, so worthy of thee. I
salute thee, O peace, O joy, O consolation of the whole world. I
salute thee, O greatest of miracles, O paradise of delights, secure
haven of those who are in danger, fountain of graces, mediatress
between God and men.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Bernard
We raise our eyes to thee, O Queen of
the world. We must appear before our Judge after so many sins: who
will appease Him? No one can do it better than thou canst, O holy
Lady, who hast loved Him so much, and by Whom thou art so tenderly
beloved. Open, then, O Mother of mercy, thy heart to our sighs and
prayers. We fly to thy protection; appease the wrath of thy Son,
and restore us to His grace. Thou dost not abhor a sinner, however
loathsome he may be. Thou dost not despise him, if he sends up his
sighs to thee, and, repentant, asks thy intercession. Thou, with
thy compassionate hand, deliverest him from despair. Thou animatest
him to hope, and dost not leave him until thou hast reconciled him
with his Judge. Thou art that chosen Lady in whom our Lord found
repose, and in whom He has deposited all His treasures without
measure. Hence the whole world, O my most holy Lady, honors thy
chaste womb as the temple of God, in which the salvation of the
world began. In thee was effected the reconciliation between God
and man. Thou, O great Mother of God, art the enclosed garden, into
which the hand of a sinner never entered to gather its flowers.
Thou art the beautiful garden in which God has planted all the
flowers that adorn the Church, and amongst others the violet of thy
humility, the lily of thy purity, the rose of thy charity. With
whom can we compare thee, O Mother of grace and beauty? Thou art
the paradise of God, from thee issued forth the fountain of living
water that irrigates the whole earth. O, how many benefits thou
hast bestowed on the world by meriting to be so salutary a channel!
Of thee it is that the question is
asked, "Who is she that cometh forth like the morning rising, fair
as the moon, bright a resplendent dawn, preceding with the light of
thy sanctity the coming of the Sun of justice. The day on which
thou camest into the world can indeed be called a day of salvation,
a day of grace. Thou art fair as the moon; for as amongst all
planets the moon it is that is most like the sun, so amongst all
creatures thou art the nearest in resemblance to God. The moon
illumines the night with the light that it receives from the sun,
and thou enlightenest our darkness with the splendor of thy
virtues. But thou art fairer than the moon, for in thee there is
neither spot nor shadow. Thou art bright as the sun; I mean as the
Son that created the sun; He was chosen amongst all men, and thou
wast chosen amongst all women. O sweet, O great, O all-amiable
Mary, no heart can pronounce thy name but thou inflamest it with thy
love; nor can they who love thee think of thee without feeling
themselves strengthened to love thee more.
O holy Lady, help our weakness. And who
is more fit to address our Lord Jesus Christ than thou, who enjoyest
in such close vicinity His most sweet converse? Speak, then, speak,
O Lady; for thy Son listens to thee, and thou wilt obtain all that
thou askest of Him.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Germanus of
Constantinople
O my only and sovereign Lady, who art
the sole consolation that I receive from God; thou who art the only
celestial dew that gives me refreshment in my pains; thou who art
the light of my soul when it is surrounded with darkness; thou who
art my guide in jouneyings, my strength in weakness; my treasure in
poverty, the balm of my wounds, my consolation in sorrow, thou who
art my refuge in miseries and the hope of my salvation; listen to my
prayers, have pity on me as it becomes the Mother of a God who has
such love for men.
O thou who art our defense and joy,
grant me all that I ask; make me worthy to enjoy with thee the great
happiness that thou enjoyest in heaven. Yes, my Lady, my refuge, my
life, my help, my defense, my strength, my joy, my hope, grant that
I may one day be with thee in Heaven. I know that, being the Mother
of God, thou canst, if thou wilt, obtain it for me. O Mary, thou
art omnipotent to save sinners, nor needest thou any other
recommendation; for thou art the Mother of true life.
Amen
Prayer of Blessed Raymond
Jordano, Abbot of Celles
Draw me after thee, O Virgin Mary, that
I may run to the odor of thy ointments. Draw me, for I am held back
by the weight of my sins and by the malice of my enemies. As no one
goes to thy Son unless the heavenly Father draws him, so do I
presume to say, in a certain manner, that no one goes to Him unless
thou drawest him by thy holy prayers. It is thou who teachest true
wisdom, thou who obtainest grace for sinners, for thou art their
advocate; it is thou who promiest glory to him who honors thee, for
thou art the treasurer of graces.
Thou, O most sweet Virgin, hast found
grace with God, for thou wast preserved from the stain of original
sin, wast filled with the Holy Ghost, and didst conceive the Son of
God. Thou, O most humble Virgin, didst receive all these graces not
for thyself only, but also for us, that thou mightest assist us in
all our necessities. And this thou dost indeed; thou succorest the
good, preserving them in grace, and the wicked thou preparest to
receive divine mercy. Thou assistest the dying, protecting them
against the snares of the Devil; and thou helpest them also after
death, receiving their souls and conducting them to the kingdom of
the blessed.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Methodius
Thy name, O Mother of God, is filled
with all graces and divine blessings. Thou hast contained Him who
cannot be contained, and nourished Him who nourishes all creatures.
He Who fills heaven and earth, and is Lord of all, was pleased to
stand in need of thee, for it was thou who didst clothe Him with
that flesh which He had not before. Rejoice then, O Mother and
handmaid of God; be glad then, with exceeding great joy, for thou
has Him for thy debtor Who gives their being to all creatures. We
are all God's debtors, but He is a debtor to thee. Hence it is, O
most holy Mother of God, that thou hast greater goodness and greater
charity than all the other saints, and hast freer access to God than
any of them, for thou art His Mother. Ah, deign, we beseech thee,
to remember us in our miseries, who celebrate thy glories, and know
how great is thy goodness.
Amen
Prayer of Saint John Damascene
I salute thee, O Mary; thou art the hope
of Christians; receive the supplication of a sinner who loves thee
tenderly, honors thee in a special manner, and places in thee the
whole hope of his salvation. From thee I have my life. Thou dost
restore me to the favor of thy Son; thou art the certain pledge of
my salvation. I implore thee, then, deliver me from the burden of
my sins, dispel the darkness of my mind, banish earthly affections
from my heart, repress the temptations of my enemies, and so rule my
whole life that by thy means and under thy guidance I may attain the
eternal happiness of heaven.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Andrew of Crete
I salute thee, O full of grace, our Lord
is with thee. I salute thee, O cause of our joy, through whom the
sentence of our condemnation was revoked and changed into one of
blessings. I salute thee, O temple of the glory of God, sacred
dwelling of the King of heaven. Thou art the reconciliation of God
with men. I salute thee, O Mother of our joy. Truly thou art
blessed, for thou alone amongst all women wast found worthy to be
the Mother of thy Creator. All nations call thee Blessed.
O Mary, if I place my confidence in
thee, I shall be saved; if I am under thy protection, I have nothing
to fear, for the fact of being thy client is the possession of a
certainty of salvation, which God only grants to those whom He will
save.
O Mother of mercy, appease thy beloved
Son. Whilst thou wast on earth thou didst occupy only a small part
of it, but now that thou art raised above the highest heavens, the
whole world considers thee as the propitiatory of all nations. I
implore thee, then, O Holy Virgin, to grant me the help of thy
prayers with God; prayers which are dearer and more precious to us
than all the treasures of the earth; prayers which render God
propitious to us in our sins, and obtain us a great abundance of
graces, both for the pardon of our offences and the practice of
virtue: prayers which check our enemies, confound their designs, and
triumph over their strength.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Ildephonsus
I come to thee, O Mother of God, and
implore the to obtain for me the pardon of my sins, and that I may
be cleansed from those of my whole life. I beseech thee to grant me
the grace to unite myself in affection to thy Son and to thyself: to
thy Son as my God, and to thee as the Mother of my God.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Athanasius
Give ear to our prayers, O most Holy
Virgin, and be mindful of us. Dispense unto us the gifts of thy
riches, and the abundance of the graces with which thou art filled.
The archangel saluted thee, and called thee full of grace. All
nations call thee blessed. The whole hierarchy of heaven blesses
thee; and we, who are of the terrestrial hierarchy, also address
thee, saying, Hail, O full of grace, our Lord is with thee; pray for
us, O holy Mother of God, our Lady and our Queen.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Anselm
We beseech thee, O Most holy Lady, by the favor that God did thee, in
raising thee so high as to make all things possible to thee with Him, so
to act that the plenitude of grace, which thou didst merit, may render
us partakers of thy glory. Strive, O most merciful Lady, to obtain for
us that for which God was pleased to become Man in thy chaste womb. O,
lend us a willing ear. If thou deignest to pray to thy Son for this,
He
will immediately grant it. It suffices that thou willest our salvation,
and then we are sure to obtain it. But who can, restrain thy great
mercy? If thou, who art our Mother, and the Mother of mercy, dost not
pity us, what will become of us when thy Son comes to judge us?
Help us, then, O most compassionate Lady, and consider
not the multitude of our sins. Remember always that our Creator took
human flesh of thee, not to condemn sinners, but to save them. If thou hadst become Mother of God only for thine own advantage, we might say
that it signified little to thee whether we were lost or saved; but God
clothed Himself with thy flesh for thy salvation, and for that of all
men. What would thy great power and glory avail us, if thou dost not
make us partakers of thy happiness? O, help us, then, and protect us:
thou knowest how greatly we stand in need of thy assistance. We
recommend ourselves to thee; O, let us not lose our souls, but make us
eternally serve and love thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ.
Amen
Prayer of Saint Peter Damian
Holy Virgin, Mother of God, succor those who implore thy aid. O,
turn towards us. Hast thou, perhaps, forgotten men, because thou has
been raised to so close a union with God. Ah no, most certainly. Thou knowest well in what danger thou didst leave us, and the wretched
condition of thy servants; ah no, it would not become so great a mercy
as thine to forget so great misery as ours is. Turn towards us, then,
with thy power; for He Who is powerful has made thee omnipotent in
heaven and on earth. Nothing is impossible to thee, for thou canst
raise even those who are in despair to the hope of salvation. The more
powerful thou art, the greater should be thy mercy.
Turn also to us in thy love. I know, O my Lady, that
thou art all benign, and that thou lovest us with a love that can be
surpassed by no other love. How often dost thou not appease the wrath
of our Judge, when He is on the point of chastising us? All the
treasures of the mercies of God are in thy hands. Ah, never cease to
benefit us; thou only seekest occasion to save all the wretched, and to
shower thy mercies upon them; for thy glory is increased when, by thy
means, penitents are forgiven, and thus reach heaven. Turn, then,
towards us, that we also may be able to go and see thee in heaven; for
the greatest glory we can have will be, after seeing God, to see thee, to
love thee, and be under thy protection. Be pleased, then, to grant our
prayer; for thy beloved Son desires to honor thee, by denying thee
nothing that thou askest.
Amen
Prayer of William, Bishop of Paris
O Mother of God, I have recourse to thee, and I call upon thee not to
reject me; for the whole congregation of the faithful calls and
proclaims thee the Mother of mercy. Thou art that one who, from being
so dear to God, art always graciously heard; thy clemency was never
wanting to any one; thy most benign affability never despised any sinner
who had recourse to thee, however enormous his crimes. Can it be
falsely or in vain that the Church calls thee her advocate, and the
refuge of sinners? Never let it be said that my sins could prevent thee
from fulfilling the great office of mercy, which is peculiarly thine
own, by which thou art the advocate and mediatress of peace, the only
hope and most secure refuge of the miserable. Never shall it be said
that the Mother of God, who for the benefit of the world brought forth
Him Who is the fountain of mercy, denied her mercy to any sinner who had
recourse to her. Thine office is that of peacemaker between God and
men: let, then, the greatness of thy compassion, and which far exceeds
my sins, move thee to help me.
Amen
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