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Between February 11 and July 16, 1858, the Blessed Virgin came down from heaven eighteen times and
showed herself at Lourdes to Bernadette Soubirous a little girl of fourteen years of age. On February 11, while gathering
wood, Bernadette heard a whistle of wind. With astonished eyes she saw a niche in the upper part of a rock filled with
golden light, and there in the midst of it stood a Lady of great beauty.
Her robe glowed with the whiteness of snow in the sunshine and swept in majestic folds to the ground.
Her head and shoulders were framed by a white veil, which fell the full length of her robe. A blue sash encircled her
waist, and its two ends, wide and unornamented, reached down in front almost to her feet. Each of her feet bore
a rose of purest gold. A rosary, whose beads were white and whose cross and chain were of gold, hung from her right
arm. Her hands were open, and her arms outstretched slightly in front.
In her apparitions our Lady appealed for penance and prayers from sinners. On March 25, the
feast of the Annunciation, the Blessed Mother declared her name to Bernadette and to the world. On that day Bernadette
made this request: "My Lady, would you be so kind as to tell me who you are?"
This is how Bernadette describes what happened in that last apparition: "Three times I asked
the Apparition her name. At the third instance, she stretched out her hands, which until then she held joined, raised
them, and she said: 'I am the Immaculate Conception.'" Then having completed her great message to the world, the
Lady smiled on Bernadette and withdrew without further word of farewell.
Less than four years before these apparitions, on December 8, 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaimed
that Mary in the first instant of her conception was preserved free from all stain of original sin through the merits of her
Divine Son. At Lourdes the Virgin Mary had come to confirm the infallible utterance of God's Vicar on earth and
declared herself not only immaculately conceived, the "the Immaculate Conception."
Novena to Our Lady of Lourdes, the Immaculate Conception
Almighty Father, we offer this novena to honor the Blessed Virgin
Mary. She occupies a place in the Church, which is highest after Christ and yet very close to us, for You chose her
to give to the world that very Life which renews all things, Jesus Christ, Your Son and Our Lord.
And so we praise you, Mary, virgin and mother. After the
Savior Himself, you alone are holy, free from all stain of sin, gifted by God from the first instant of your conception with
a unique holiness.
We praise and honor you.
Mary, free from all sin and led by the Holy Spirit, you embraced
God's saving will with a full heart, and devoted yourself totally as a handmaid of the Lord to the fulfillment of His will
in your life, and to the mystery of man's redemption.
We thank you and love you.
Mary, your privileged and grace-filled origin is the Father's
final step in preparing humanity to receive its Redeemer in human form. Your fullness of grace is the Father's sign
of His favor to the Church and also His promise to the Church of its perfection as the Bride of Christ, radiant in beauty.
Your holiness in the beginning of your life is the foreshadowing of that all-embracing holiness with which the Father
will surround His people when His Son comes at the end of time to greet us.
We bless you among all women.
Mary, we turn with confidence to you who are always ready to
listen with a mother's affection and powerful assitance. Consoler of the Afflicted, Health of the Sick, Refuge of Sinners,
grant us comfort in tribulation, relief in sickness, and liberating strength in our weakness. You, who are free from
sin, lead us to combat sin. Obtain for us the victory of hope over anguish, of fellowship over alienation, of peace
over anxiety, of joy and beauty over boredom and disgust, of eternal visions over temporal ones, of life over death.
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you.
(Mention your request here.)
Let Us Pray
God Our Father, we make these petitions through Mary. We
pray most especially for the coming of Your kingdom. May You, together with Your Son and Holy Spirit, be known, loved,
and glorified and Your law of love faithfully followed. We pray in faith through Jesus Christ, Your Son and Our Lord,
in whom all fullness dwells, now and forever. Amen.
Invocations to
Our Lady of Lourdes
I
Lord, we adore Thee!
Lord, we believe in Thee!
Lord, we hope in Thee!
Lord, we love Thee!
O Jesus, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God!
O Jesus, Thou art the Bread which came down from
Heaven!
O Jesus, Thy Flesh is Food indeed!
O Jesus, Thy Blood is Drink indeed!
Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me whole!
Lord, Thy will be done!
O Mary, health of the sick,
Pray for us!
O Mary, conceived without sin,
Pray for us who have recourse to thee!
Queen of Peace,
Pray for us!
Our Lady of Lourdes,
Bless the Pope, the Vicar of Jesus Christ!
Our Lady of Lourdes,
Bless our country!
Our Lady of Lourdes,
Give us holy priests!
Saint Bernadette,
Pray for us!
Lord, we adore Thee!
Lord, we bless Thee!
All peoples of the wordl,
Praise the Lord!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be,
world without end. Amen.
II
Blessed be He Who comes in the name of the Lord!
Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God!
Thou art my Lord and my God!
Lord, we believe, do but increase our faith!
Lord, increase our love!
Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me whole!
Lord, that I may see!
Lord, that I may hear!
Lord, that I may walk!
Lord, Thy will be done!
Sacred Heart of Jesus,
Have mercy on us!
O Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ,
Pray for us!
Comforter of the afflicted,
Pray for us!
O Mary,
Show thyself our Mother!
Queen taken up into Heaven,
Pray for us!
Queen of missions,
Convert all infidels!
Queen of martyrs,
Strengthen the persecuted!
Saint Bernadette,
Pray for us!
Lord, we praise Thee!
Lord, we bless Thee!
All peoples of the world,
Praise the Lord!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be,
world without end. Amen.
III
Lord, we believe,
Do but increase our faith!
Jesus in the Holy Eucharist,
Strengthen the unity of Thy Church!
Jesus in the Holy Eucharist,
Spread fraternal love in Thy Church!
Jesus in the Holy Eucharist,
Increase the holiness of Thy Church!
O Jesus, Living Bread,
Be our Food!
O Jesus, Light of the world,
Enlighten our minds!
O Jesus, all-powerful,
Sustain our weakness!
O Jesus,
Grant that we all may love one another!
Lord, Thou art the resurrection and the life!
Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me whole!
Jesus, Son of David,
Have mercy on us!
Mary most kind,
Pray for us!
Queen of Peace,
Pray for us!
Our Lady of Lourdes,
Bless the Pope, Vicar of Jesus Christ!
Our Lady of Lourdes,
Bless our country!
Our Lady of Lourdes,
Give us holy priests!
Saint Bernadette,
Pray for us!
Lord, we bless Thee!
Lord, we adore Thee!
All peoples of the world,
Praise the Lord!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be,
world without end. Amen.
IV
Hosanna!
Hosanna to the Son of David!
Sacred Heart of Jesus,
Have mercy on us!
Jesus, Author of Life,
Have mercy on us!
Lord, save us, we perish!
Lord, he whom Thou dost love is sick!
Lord, that I may see!
Lord, that I may hear!
Lord, that I may walk!
Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me whole!
Lord, speak but the word and my soul shall be healed!
Lord, Thy will be done!
Queen of the most Holy Rosary,
Pray for us!
Queen of Heaven and earth,
Pray for us!
Queen of the Mission,
Convert all infidels!
Queen of Martyrs,
Give strength to the persecuted!
Queen of Peace,
Pray for us!
Saint Bernadette,
Pray for us!
Lord, we bless Thee!
Lord, we adore Thee!
All people of the world,
Praise the Lord!
Hosanna!
Hosanna!
Hosanna to the Son of David!
Hosanna in Excelsis!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
As it was in the beginning, is now, and every shall
be,
world without end. Amen.
Let us Pray
O ever Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Mercy, Health of the Sick, Comforter of the
Afflicted, thou knowest my wants, my troubles, my sufferings; deign to cast upon me a look of mercy. By appearing in
the grotto of Lourdes thou wert pleased to make it a priveleged sanctuary from where thou dost dispense thy favors, and already
many sufferers have obtained the cure of their infirmities, both spiritual and corporal. I come, therefore, with the
most unbounded confidence, to impore thy maternal intercession. Obtain, O loving Mother, the granting of my requests.
Through gratitude for thy favors, I will endeavor to imitate thy virtues, that I may one day share in thy glory. Amen.
O Mary, conceived without sin,
Pray for us who have recourse to thee.
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