NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP

[Martyneeky]

NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP 

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 HelpAmong 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.