Behold, O Mother of God, at thy feet a miserable sinner, the slave of hell, who has recourse to thee, and trusts in thee. I do not even merit that thou shouldst look upon me, but I know that having seen thy Son die to save sinners, thou hast the greatest desire to aid them. O mother of mercy, look on my miseries, and have pity on me. I hear thee called by all, The refuge of sinners, the hope of the desperate, the help of the abandoned. Then thou art my refuge, my hope, my help. Thou must save me by thy intercession. Succor me for the love of Jesus Christ, give thy hand to a poor fallen sinner who recommends himself to thee. I know that thou dost find consolation in helping the sinner when thou canst; help me, then, for thou canst help me. I, by my sins, have lost the grace of God and my own soul. Now I place myself in thy hands; tell me what I must do to return, to the favor of my Lord, for I will do it without delay. He sends me to thee, that thou mayest succor me, and He wishes me to have recourse to thy mercy, that not only the merits of thy Son, but also thy prayers may aid in my salvation. To thee then I have recourse; thou who dost pray for so many others, pray also to Jesus for me. Ask Him to pardon me, and He will pardon me; tell Him that thou dost desire my salvation, and He will save me. Make known the good that thou canst do to those who confide in thee. Amen; thus I hope, thus may it be.

O Queen of heaven, I who once have been a miserable slave of Lucifer, now dedicate myself to thee, as thy servant forever, and offer myself to honor and serve thee for my whole life; accept me, do not refuse me as I merit. O my mother, I have placed in thee all my hopes, from thee I hope all blessings. I thank and bless God, Who in His mercy has given me this confidence in thee, which I consider as the great earnest of my salvation. Ah, how have I fallen in my past life, I a miserable sinner, because I have not had recourse to thee! Now I hope to be pardoned through the merits of Jesus Christ, and through thy prayers. But I may again lose the divine grace; the danger is not over; my enemies do not sleep. How many new temptations remain for me to conquer! Ah, my most sweet Lady, protect me, and do not permit me again to be their slave; help me always. I know that thou wilt help me, and with thy help I shall conquer, if I recommend myself to thee; but this I fear, that in occasions of falling into sin, I may neglect to call on thee, and thus may be lost. This grace I ask of thee, obtain for me that in the assaults of hell, I may always have recourse to thee, saying: Mary, aid me. My good mother, do not permit me to lose my God.

O Mary, what will be my death? I tremble and am confounded when I now consider my sins, and think of that great, decisive moment of my salvation or eternal damnation, when I shall die and be judged. O my most sweet mother, my hopes are in the blood of Jesus Christ, and in thy intercession. O consoler of the afflicted, do not abandon me then; do not cease consoling me in that great affliction. If now I am tormented with remorse on account of past sins, the uncertainty of pardon, the danger of relapse, and the rigor of divine justice, what will become of me then? If thou dost not aid me, I am lost. Ah, my Lady, before my death arrives, obtain for me a great sorrow for my sins, a true amendment, and fidelity to God for the life that remains to me. And when the last moment of my life comes, O Mary my hope, aid me then in my great distress, and encourage me then that I may not despair at the sight of my sins which the demon will present to me. Obtain for me the grace to invoke thee then more constantly, that I may expire with thy sweet name, and that of thy most holy Son, upon my lips. And now, O Lady, pardon my boldness before I expire, come thyself to console me by thy presence. This grace thou hast granted to so many of thy servants, I also wish and hope for it. I am, indeed, a sinner, and I do not merit it; but I am thy servant, who loves thee, and has great confidence in thee. O Mary, I wait for thee, do not leave me disconsolate. At least, if I am not worthy of so great a favor, assist me from heaven, that I may die in the love of God and of thee, and come to love God and thee eternally in paradise.

O my dearest Lady, I thank thee that thou hast so often rescued me from hell: as often as I have deserved it through my sins. A miserable sinner! I was already condemned to that prison, and that sentence would perhaps have been executed upon me after my first sin, if thou hadst not in thy mercy helped me. Thou wast not even invoked by me, but by thy mercy alone thou hast restrained the divine justice, and then subduing my hard-heartedness, hast drawn me to take confidence in thee. And oh, into how many sins I should have fallen in the dangers to which I have been exposed, if thou, my most loving mother, hadst not preserved me by the graces which thou hast obtained for me! Ah, my Queen, still preserve me from hell. But of what avail will be thy mercy and the favors thou hast bestowed on me, if I should be condemned? If once I loved thee not, now, after God, I love thee above every thing. Ah, do not permit that I should turn my back upon thee and upon God, Who, through thee, hath dispensed to me so many mercies. My most amiable Lady, do not permit that I: should hate and curse thee in hell. Wilt thou suffer a servant of thine who loves thee to be lost? O Mary, what dost thou say to me? I shall be lost if I leave thee. But who could have the heart to leave thee? How could I forget the love thou hast borne me? My mother, since thou hast done so much to save me, complete the work; continue to aid me. Dost thou wish to help me? But what do I say? If thou didst show me so much favor when I lived forgetful of thee, how much more ought I now to hope, when I love thee and recommend myself to thee! No, he who has recourse to thee is never lost; only he who does not recommend himself to thee. Ah, my mother, do not leave me in my own hands, for I shall be lost; make me always to have recourse to thee. Save me, my hope, save me from hell; but first from sin, which alone can condemn me to hell.

O Queen of heaven, who sittest above the choirs of angels, nearest to God; from this vale of misery I, a miserable sinner, salute thee, and pray thee to turn towards me those kind eyes of thine, that dispense graces to all those they look upon. See, O Mary, in how much danger I am, and must be, while I live on this earth, of losing my soul, heaven, and God. In thee, O Lady, I have placed all my hopes. I love thee, and long to come to thee, see thee, and praise thee in heaven. Ah, Mary, when will the day come that I shall see myself safe at thy feet, and shall behold the mother of my Lord and my mother, who has been so occupied with my salvation? When shall, I kiss that hand which has so many times delivered me from hell and bestowed on me so many graces, when, by my sins, I merited to be hated and abandoned by all? O Lady, I have been very ungrateful to thee in my life; but if I reach heaven, I will be no more ungrateful. There I will love thee as much as I can, every moment through all eternity, and I will make amends for my ingratitude by blessing thee and thanking thee forever. Above all, I thank God Who gives me such confidence in the blood of Jesus Christ and in thee; namely, that thou wilt save me, that thou wilt free me from my sins, and obtain for me light and strength to execute the divine will, and finally conduct me to the port of heaven. All this have thy servants hoped, and none have been deceived. Neither shall I be deceived. Mary, I wish nothing else; thou must save me. Pray thy Son Jesus, as I also pray Him, through the merits of His passion, to preserve in me, and always more increase this confidence, and I shall be saved.

O Mary, I know that thou art the creature the most noble, the most sublime, the most pure, the most beautiful, the most merciful, the most holy; in a word, the most lovely of all creatures. Oh, if all knew thee, O my Lady, and loved thee as thou dost merit! But I console myself that so many happy souls in heaven and on earth live enamored of thy goodness and beauty. Above all, I rejoice that God Himself loves thee alone more than all men and angels united. My most amiable Queen, I, a miserable sinner, also love thee, but I love thee too little: I desire a love greater and more tender towards thee; and this thou must obtain for me, for to love thee is a great sign of predestination, and a grace that God does not grant except to those whom He wishes to be saved.

I see myself then, O my mother, greatly indebted to thy Son. I see that He merits an infinite love. Thou who desirest nothing but to see Him loved, this is the grace that above all others thou must obtain for me; obtain for me a great love for Jesus Christ. Thou dost obtain from God whatever thou dost wish; ah, obtain for me this grace, to be so united with the divine will that I may never more be separated from it. I do not ask of thee the goods of earth, neither honors nor riches; I ask of thee what thy heart most desires, I wish to love my God. Is it possible that thou wilt not aid me in this my desire, which pleases thee so much! No, for thou dost even now help me, already thou art praying for me; pray, pray, and never cease to pray until thou seest me in heaven, beyond the danger of being able any more to lose my Lord, and certain of loving Him forever, together with thee, my dearest mother.

O my most holy mother, I know what graces thou hast obtained for me, and I see the ingratitude of which I have been guilty towards thee. The ungrateful are no longer worthy of favors; but I will not on this account distrust thy mercy, which is greater than my ingratitude. O my great advocate, have pity on me. Thou art the dispenser of all the graces which God grants to us miserable sinners, and for this end He has made thee so powerful, so rich, and so merciful, that thou mightest succor us in our miseries. Ah, mother of mercy, do not leave me in my poverty. Thou art the advocate of the most wretched and abandoned sinners who have recourse to thee, defend me also, who recommend myself to thee. Do not tell me that it is difficult to gain my cause, for the most desperate causes are all gained when they are defended by thee. In thy hands, then, I place my eternal salvation, and to thee I commit my soul. It was lost; thou, by thy intercession, must save it. I wish to be enrolled among thy most devoted servants; do not cast me out: thou dost go in search of the wretched to relieve them; do not abandon a miserable sinner who has recourse to thee. Speak for me; thy Son does whatever thou dost ask of Him. Take me under thy protection, and this will be enough: yes, for if thou dost protect me, I fear nothing; nothing from my sins, for thou wilt obtain for me the remedy for the injury I have inflicted upon myself; nor from the demons, for thou art more powerful than all hell united; nor from Jesus my Judge Himself, for by one prayer of thine He is appeased. I only fear that through my negligence I may cease to invoke thee, and shall thus be lost. My mother, obtain for me the pardon of all my sins, love to Jesus, holy perseverance, a good death, and finally, paradise; especially obtain for me the grace always to recommend myself to thee. It is true that these graces are too much for me who do not merit them, but they are not too much for thee who art so much beloved by God that He grants thee whatever thou dost ask of Him. It is enough that thou dost begin to speak, and He denies thee nothing. Pray then to Jesus for me; tell Him that thou dost protect me, and He will not fail to have pity on me. My mother, I trust in thee; in this hope: I repose and live, and in this I wish to die. Amen.

Live always, Jesus our love and Mary our hope!

O most excellent, glorious, most holy and ever inviolate blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, Queen of the world, and Mistress of all creatures! Thou who forsakest no one, despisest no one, who leavest in sadness none who seek help at thy hands with pure and lowly hearts; do not despise me because of the number and hatefulness of my sins, do not abandon me on account of my grievous iniquities nor on account of the hardness and uncleanness of my heart. Do not refuse me, thy servant, a share in thy favour and thy love.

Hear me, a wretched sinner, who trusts in thy mercy and pity. Help me, O most loving Virgin Mary, in all my perils and needs, and obtain for me from thy beloved Son, Almighty God and our Lord Jesus Christ, the forgiveness of all my sins, the grace of the fear and love of thee, health and chastity of body, and deliverance from all the dangers which beset both soul and body.

In the last moments of my life be thou my kind helper, and save from eternal darkness, and from evil of every kind, my poor soul, and the souls of my parents, brothers, sisters, friends, relatives, and benefactors, together with the souls of all the faithful, both living and dead; through the grace of Him whom for nine months thou didst bear in thy most holy womb, and Whom thou didst place with thy holy hands in the manger, Jesus Christ our Lord, to Whom be all honour given for endless ages. Amen.

Hail, O Queen of heaven, enthroned!
Hail, by Angels Mistress owned!
Root of Jesse, Gate of morn,
Whence the world's true Light was born:

G lorious Virgin, joy to thee,
Loveliest whom in heaven they see:
Fairest thou where all are fair,
Plead with Christ our sins to spare.

Hail to the Queen who reigns above,
Mother of clemency and love,
Hail, thou, our hope, life, sweetness; we
Eve's banished children cry to thee.

We from this wretched vale of tears
Send sighs and groans unto thy ears;
Oh, then, sweet Advocate, bestow
A pitying look on us below.

After this exile, let us see
Our Blessed Jesus, born of thee.
O merciful, O pious Maid,
O gracious Mary, lend thine aid.

My Queen! my Mother! Remember thine own.
Keep me, guard me, as thy property and possession.

(Indulgence 40 days, each time, when tempted.--Pius IX. Aug. 5th, 1851)



Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, pray for us.

(Indulgence 300 days, each time)