| Ninth Day |
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ACT OF REPENTANCE
I believe in Thee, O my God.
O most Excellent and Immaculate Queen of
Heaven, Remember, Virgin Mary of Good Success,
We salute thee Mary, as the Favored Daughter of God the Father. Hail Mary.... We salute thee Mary, as the Chosen Mother of the Divine Son . Hail Mary... We salute thee Mary, as the Singular Spouse of the Holy Ghost. Hail Mary... Glory be to the Father...
Consider how the humble sister felt on hearing the command of Holy Mary to have a statue made of the same size and appearance as the apparition. She excused herself saying that it would be impossible, that no sculptor could reproduce such rare beauty or render with precision its proper proportions. The beautiful Lady, with most amiable forbearance, replied to her: " Do not fear for this reason. Take off the cord around your waist and measure my height." Since, from a natural fear, the religious did not dare to touch Mary with her hands, the Heavenly Queen herself took the end of the cord and held it to her head, while the sister touched it to her feet to measure the exact height of the marvelous vision. Then Holy Mary said: " Here, as I told you, you have the height for the statue that you should order to be made, and the rest of the measurements should be in proportion to it. Place the statue in the place I have indicated with a crosier and the keys of the cloister in my right hand, for I desire to be Advocate and Protectress of this Convent." Having said this, the vision disappeared. The heart of the sister who had just received so signal a favor and so pleasing a mission was penetrated, filled with gratitude and warm sentiments for Mary Most Holy! Ah! Search, o my soul, in your heart for those sentiments, and be dissolved in gratitude for Mary of Good Success, our Advocate and Protectress. Let me venerate her Image with the most tender gratitude and the vehement desire of corresponding to such singular graces by leading a life that is holy, obedient, and observant of all the duties of my state of life. Then the holy sister who had been favored with this vision sent for a capable sculptor to begin the work on this statue that Mary herself had ordered to be made. And thus this statue, full of sweetness and majesty, will last until the end of time. Venerated in the upper choir of this Convent, the religious there always have recourse to her in their most grave conflicts. So also has she been the refuge of all the people who come to her in their necessities, and through her intercession many portentous favors and special graces have been obtained. The measurements given by Mary symbolize the measure of her humility, obedience, and love of God and neighbor, which she gives to us so that we might strive to reproduce them. Imitate her, and you will also carry an image of the Virgin Most Holy in your heart. Strive like that holy sister to make the moral image of your Virgin Mother in your customs and sentiments, in your bearing and way of acting, in your fidelity to the rule and your prayers, in your meekness and your candor, in your purity and your detachment from earthly things, thus aspiring only to heavenly goods. Prayer: Oh God! Tender Father of Thy creatures
Who in every manner demonstrates Thy paternal care and
guidance for us, principally by giving us Mary Most Holy
as our Advocate, Protectress and model ideal of virtue,
infuse our hearts with a constant desire to imitate our
Mother and Queen, modeling our thoughts, desires, and
actions after those of Mary Most Holy so that we might be
like Her in all that our fragile nature permits. Assisted
by Thy Divine Grace , may we conquer our passions and
receive the choicest graces that our Mother grants to her
children who confidently come to her as Advocate in their
pressing needs. May we find her ready to assist us in the
last difficult moment of life, and afterward enjoy the
pleasure of her company in Heaven forever and ever.
Act of Thanksgiving to the
Blessed Virgin Thus art thou, most clement Mother, our
consolation on earth, our refuge, our help and our
protection in both our public and private needs.
Safeguard us from war, pestilence, hunger, storms,
earthquakes and all the calamities, which we merit by our
guilt.. Pray for the Holy Church and for her visible
head. Hear the supplications of those who invoke thee. Be
thou our Advocate, our Mother, for as thus do we place
our confidence in thee. To thee do we have recourse, and
through thy intercession we hope to achieve from thy Son
pardon for our sins and perseverance in grace until
death. Here, each one raising up
his heart to God, should ask, through the intercession of
Blessed Mary of Good Success, that grace or favor which
he desires to receive. Praises to the Holy Virgin O Virgin Mary, our Mother preeminent
above all on earth. Above all others, thou were attentive to
the Word of the Father, who does great things in thy
honor. Thou art the most worthy temple of the Most Holy
Trinity. In thee is that same purity the Angels enjoy. The Christian world proclaims that thou doth reign on the
right side of the King of Kings. O Mother of Grace! O our
hope! Port for the shipwrecked and star of the sea. Gate
of Heaven, health of the sick, light in the darkness. Through thee, we will find ourselves before God in the
court of the Saints, where He lives and reigns. Guide our
steps and help us, O sweet Mary, in our last hours. Receive this praise from our tender lips, which cannot
express thy singular grandeur. Antiphon: Holy
Mary save the miserable,
help the weak, intercede for the afflicted, plead for the V. Pray for us, O Virgin of Good Success! R. So that we may be made worthy to receive the promises of Christ.
We ask thee, Our Lord and God, that Thou
grant us health of soul and body through the intercession
of the glorious Virgin Mary. Through her merits and those
of her sovereign Child Jesus, we hope to be freed from
the present evils and to attain eternal happiness. |
