The St. Benedict Medal is the most highly indulgenced medal used by the Catholic Church. The front of the medal depicts St. Benedict holding the Cross in one hand and his Holy Rule in the other. Around the image of St. Benedict are these words in Latin: "May his presence protect us in the hour of death." The back of the medal shows an image of the Cross. Around the margin are the initials of the Latin words supposed to have originated with St. Benedict himself. The English translation is: "Begone Satan! Suggest not to me thy vain things. The cup thou profferest me is evil; drink thou thy poison." In the angles formed by the arms of the Cross are the letters C.S.P.B., signifying, "Cross of the holy Father Bene- dict." The leters on the Cross itself have this meaning: "May the holy Cross be my light; let not the dragon be my guide." USE No special way of carrying or applying the Medal is prescribed. It may be worn about the neck, attached to the scapular or Rosary, or otherwise carried on one's person, put in your car, or hung in your windows. There are also no specially prescribed prayers that must be said, since the wearing of the medal is itself a silent continual prayer. BENEFITS The Medal of St. Benedict is one of the Sacramentals of the Church, and should be used as such. The value and power of the medal must be ascribed to the merits of Christ Crucified, the efficacious prayers of St. Benedict, the blessing og the Church, and the faith and holy disposition of the person using the Medal. This is a partial list of the many pious purposes of the St. Bene- dict Medal: 1. It wards off from both the soul and body all dangers arising from the devil. 2. The Medal is powerful in obtaining for sinners the grace of con- version. 3. It obtains protection and aid for persons tormented by the evil spirit, and in temptations against holy purity. 4. It procures assistance at the hour of death. 5. It has often proved an efficacious remedy for bodily sufferings, and a means of protection against contagious diseases. 6. Expectant mothers have obtained special assistance for a safe delivery. 7. In time of storms, tempests, and other dangers on land and sea it has been found to be a protection. 8. Even domestic animals have been visibly aided by it when infected with disease. *Note* - The vast majority of information on the St. Benedict Medal was obtained from a leaflet on the Medal obtainable from: Benedictine Mission House P.O. Box 528 Schuyler, Nebraska 68661 They also carry a variety of St. Benedictct Medals, in various sizes, and metal compositions, such as gold and aluminum. They also carry SOME books which I am not certain are truly compatible with the Catholic Faith, I have not read them, but from their titles and descriptions, I think they are best avoided. PRAYER TO ST. BENEDICT O glorious St. Benedict, sublime model of all virtues, pure vessel of God's grace! Behold me, humbly kneeling at thy feet. I implore thy loving heart to pray for me before the throne of God. To thee I have recourse in all the dangers which daily surround me. Shield me against my enemies, inspire me to imitate thee in all things. May thy blessing be with me always, so that i may shun whatever God forbids and avoid the occasions of sin. Graciously obtain for me from god those favors and graces of which I stand so much in need, inthe trials, miseries and afflictions of life. Thy heart was always so full of love, compassion, and mercy towards those who were afflicted or troubled in any way. Thou didst never dis- miss without consolation and assistance anyone who had recourse to thee. I therefore invoke thy powerful intercession, in the confident hope that thou wilt hear my prayers and obtain for me the special grace and favor I so earnestly implore (mention it), if it be for the greater glory of God and the welfare of my soul. Help me, O great St. Benedict, to live and die as a faithful child of God, to be ever submissive to His holy will, and to attain the eternal happiness of heaven. Amen. Books on St. Benedict: Life of St. Benedict by Pope St. Gregory the Great Saint Benedict The Story of the Father of the Western Monks by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (for children 10 & up) These are both available from Tan Books www.tanbooks.com
The material here is taken from the book "The Passion and the Death of Jesus Christ" by St. Alphonsus de Liguori. The Clock of the Passion P.M. 5 to 7 Jesus, having taken leave of Mary, celebrates His Last Supper 8 Jesus washes the feet of the Apostles, and institutes the most Holy Sacrament. 9 Discourse of Jesus; He goes to the Garden of Olives. 10 Prayer of Jesis in the garden. 11 Agony Midnight The Sweating of Blood 1 Jesus is betrayed by Judas, and is bound. 2 Jesus is led before Annas. 3 Jesus is taken before Caiphas, and receives a blow in the face. 4 Jesus is blindfolded, struck, and scoffed at. 5 Jesus is led to the council, and declared guilty of death. 6 Jesus is taken to Pilate, and accused. 7 Jesus is mocked by Herod. 8 Jesus is conducted to Pilate, and Barabbas is preferred to Him. 9 Jesus is scourged at the pillar. 10 Jesus is crowned with thorns, and exhibited to the people. 11 Jesus is condemned to death, and goes to Calvary. Midday Jesus is stripped and crucified. 1 Jesus prays for His murderers. 2 Jesus recommends His spirit to His Father. 3 Jesus dies. 4 Jesus is pierced with a lance. 5 Jesus is taken down from the cross, and delivered over to His Mother. 6 Jesus is buried, and left in the sepulchre. Steps of the Passion My sweetest Jesu, who, while praying in the garden, didst sweat blood, wast in agony, and didst suffer a sorrow so great as to suffice to cause Thee death, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, who wast betrayed by Judas with a kiss, and deliv- ered over into the hands of Thine enemies, and then wast taken pris- oner by them and bound, and abandoned by Thy disciples, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, declared by the council of the Jews guilty of death, and in the house of Caiphas blindfolded with a piece of cloth, and then buffeted, spit at, and derided, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, led away as a malefactor to Pilate, and then turned by Herod into ridicule, and treated as a madman, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, stripped of Thy garments, and bound to the pillar, and so cruelly scourged, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, crowned with thorns, covered with a red mantle, buffetted, and in mockery saluted as King of the Jews, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, rejected by the Jews, and placed after Barabbas, and then unjustly condemned by Pilate to die upon a cross, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, laden with the wood of the cross, and as an inno- cent Lamb led away unto death, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, nailed upon the cross, placed between two thieves, ridiculed and blasphemed, and for three hours in an agony of the most horrible torments, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, dead upon the cross, and in sight of Thy holy Mother, transfixed in Thy side with the spear, from whence there iss- ued forth blood and water, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, taken down from the cross, and placed in the bosom of Thy afflicted Mother, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. My sweetest Jesus, who, torn with stripes and stamped with Thy five wounds, wast laid in the sepulchre, have mercy on us. R. Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. V. Surely He hath borne our infirmities. R. And He hath carried our sorrows. Let us pray: O God, who, for the redemption of the world, didst will to be born, to be circumcised, rejected by the Jews, betrayed by the traitor Judas with a kiss, bound with cords, led as an innocent Lamb to the sacri- fice, and with so many insults taken before Annas, Caiphas, Pilate, and Herod, accused by false witnesses, beaten with scourges and buff- etings, overwhelmed with ignominies, spit upon, crowned with thorns, smitten with the reed, blindfolded, stripped of Thy raiment, fastened with nails to the cross, lifted up on the cross, numbered amongst thieves, with gall and vinegar given Thee to drink, and wounded with the spear,-- do Thou, Lord, by these sacred pains, which I, unworhty, venerate, and by Thy holy cross and death, deliver me from hell, and vouchsafe to conduct me whither Thou didst conduct the thief that was crucified with Thee: Thou, who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost for ever and ever. Amen. So do I hope; and so may it be. Little Chaplet of the Five Wounds of Jesus Crucified I. O my Lord Jesus Christ, I adore the wound in Thy left foot. I thank Thee for having suffered it for me with so much sorrow and so much love. I compassionate Thy pain, and that of thine afflicted Mother. And, by the merit of this sacred wound, I pray Thee to grant me the pardon of my sins, of which I repent with all my heart, because they have offended Thine infinite goodness. O sorrowing Mary, pray to Jesus for me. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be. II. O my Lord Jesus Christ, I adore the wound in Thy right foot. I thank Thee for having suffered it for me with so much sorrow and so much love. I compassionate Thy pain, and that of Thine afflicted Mother. And, by the merit of this sacred wound, I pray Thee to give me the strength not to fall into mortal sin for the future, but to persevere in Thy grace unto my death. O sorrowing Mary, pray to Jesus for me. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be. III. O my Lord Jesus Christ, i adore the wound in Thy left hand. I thank Thee for having suffered it for me with so much sorrow and so much love. I compassionate Thy pain, and that of Thine afflicted Mother. And, by the merits of this sacred wound, I pray Thee to deliver me from hell, which I have so often deserved, where I could never love Thee more. O sorrowing Mary, pra to Jesus for me. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be. IV. O my Lord Jesus Christ, I adore the wound in Thy right hand. I thank Thee for having suffered it for me with so much sorrow and so much love. I compassionate Thy pain, and that of Thy most afflicted Mother. And, by the merit of this sacred wound, I pray Thee to give me the glory of paradise, where I shall love Thee perfectly, and with all my strength. O sorrowing Mary, pray to Jesus for me. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be. V. O my Lord Jesus Christ, I adore the wound in Thy side. I thank Thee for having willed, even after Thy death, to suffer this additional injury, without pain indeed, yet with consummate love. I compassionate Thine afflicted Mother, who alone felt all its pain. And, by the merit of this sacred wound, I pray Thee bestow upon me the gift of holy love for Thee, that so I may ever love Thee in this life, and in the other, face to face, for all eternity, in paradise. O sorrowing Mary, pray to Jesus for me. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be. PRAYERS TO JESUS By the merit of each particular pain which He suffered in His Passion. Oh my Jesus! by that humiliation which Thou didst practice in washing the feet of Thy disciples, I pray Thee to bestow upon me the grace of true humility, that I may humble myself to all, especially to such as treat me with contempt. My Jesus, by that sorrow which Thou didst suffer in the garden, suff- icient, as it was, to cause Thy death, I pray Thee to deliver me from the sorrow of hell, from living forevermore at a distance from Thee, and without the power of ever loving Thee again. My Jesus, by that horror which Thou hadst of my sins, which were then present to Thy sight, give me a true sorrow for all the offenses which I have committed against Thee. My Jesus, by that pain which Thou didst experience at seeing Thyself betrayed by Judas with a kiss, give me the grace to be ever faithful unto Thee, and nevermore to betray Thee, as I have done in times past. My Jesus, by that pain which Thou didst feel at seeing Thyself bound like a culprit to be taken before the judges, I pray Thee to bind me to Thyself by the sweet chains of holy love, that I may nevermore see myself seperated from Thee, my only good. My Jesus, by all those insults, buffetings, and spittings which Thou didst on that night suffer in the house of Caiphas, give me the stren- gth to suffer in peace, for love of Thee, all the affronts which I shall meet with from men. My Jesus, by that ridicule which Thou didst receive from Herod in be- ing treated as a fool, give me the grace to endure with patience all that men shall say of me, treating me as base, senseless, or wicked. My Jesus, by that outrage which Thou didst receive from the Jews in seeing Thyself placed after Barabbas, give me the grace to suffer with patience the dishonor of seeing myself placed after others. My Jesus, by that pain which Thou didst suffer in Thy most holy body when Thou wast so cruelly scourged, give me the grace to suffer with patience all the pains of my sicknesses, and especially those of my death. My Jesus, by that pain which Thou didst suffer in Thy most sacred head when it was pierced with the thorns, give me the grace never to consent to thoughts displeasing unto Thee. My Jesus, by that act of Thine by which Thou didst accept the death of the cross, to which Pilate condemned Thee, give me the grace to accept my death with resignation, together with all the other pains which shall accompany it. My Jesus, by the pain which Thou didst suffer in carrying Thy cross on Thy journey to Calvary, give me the grace to suffer with patience all my crosses in this life. My Jesus, by that pain which Thou didst suffer in having the nails driven through Thy hands and Thy feet, I pray Thee to nail my will un- to Thy feet, that so I may will nothing save that which Thou dost will. My Jesus, by the affliction which Thou didst suffer in having gsll given Thee to drink, give me the grace not to offend Thee by intemper- ance in eating and drinking. My Jesus, by that pain which Thou didst experience in taking leave of Thy holy Mother upon the cross, deliver me from an inordinate love for my relatives, or for any other creature, that so my heart may be wholly and always Thine. My Jesus, by that desolation which Thou didst suffer in Thy death in seeing Thyself abandoned by Thy Eternal Father, give me the grace to suffer all my desolations with patience, without ever losing my confi- dence in Thy goodness. My Jesus, by those three hours of affliction and agony which Thou didst suffer when dying upon the cross, give me the grace to suffer with resignation, for love of Thee, the pains of my agony at the hour of death. My Jesus, by that great sorrow which Thou didst feel when Thy most holy soul, when Thou wast expiring, seperated itself from Thy most sacred body, give me the grace to breathe forth my soul in the hour of my death, offering up my sorrow then to Thee, together with an act of perfect love, that so I may go to love Thee in heaven, face to face, with all my strength, and for all eternity. And thee, most holy Virgin, and my Mother Mary, by that sword which pierced thine heart when Thou didst behold Thy Son bow down His head and expire, do I pray to assist me in the hour of my death, that so I may come to praise thee and to thank thee in paradise for all the gra- ces that thou hast obtained for me from God.
THE CHAPLET OF DIVINE MERCY Our Father - Hail Mary - Apostle's Creed On the Large beads say: Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Thy Beloved Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins and the sins of the whole world. On the small beads say: Through the most sorrowful Passion of Jesus, have mercy on us and on the whole world. At the end say (3 times): Holy God, Holy Omnipotent, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us and on the whole world. DIVINE MERCY NOVENA FIRST DAY Let us pray for God's Mercy to all mankind, especially to sinners. Most Merciful Jesus for whom it is proper to be merciful to us and to forgive us, look not upon our sins, but upon the trust which we place in Thy infinite goodness. Receive us all into the abode of Thy Most Merciful Heart and do not permit anyone to depart therefrom for all eternity. We beseech Thee for this through the love which unites Thee with the Father and the Holy Ghost in the unity of the Most Holy and incomprehensible Trinity. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon all mankind, and especially upon poor sinners, whose only hope is the Most Merciful Heart of Thy Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ. Through His sorrowful Passion show Thy Mercy to us that we may glorify Thy omnipotence for all eternity. Amen SECOND DAY Let us pray for the clergy and all religious through whom the Mercy of God descends upon all mankind. Most Merciful Jesus, from Whom all good proceeds, increase Thy graces in the souls of priests and religious that they may worthily and fruitfully fulfill their tasks in Thy Vineyard, arousing all by word and example to a proper devotion to the Mercy of God for all eternity. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon the multitude of laborers in Thy Vineyard, on the souls of priests, brothers and nuns, who are the object of the special love of Thy Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ. Grace them with the power of Thy blessing and grant them light that they may duly lead the faithful on the way of salvation, drawing down on them Thy Mercy. Amen THIRD DAY Let us pray for all faithful Christians. Most Merciful Jesus, Who abundantly do bestow upon all Thy graces from the treasure of God's Mercy, receive all faithful Christians into the abode of Thy Most Merciful Heart and do not let us depart from It for all eternity. We beseech Thee for this through the love which unites Thee with the Father and the Holy Ghost in the unity of the Most Holy and incomprehensible Trinity. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon the souls of the faithful as upon the beloved heritage of Thy Son, and through His sorrowful Passion grant them Thy blessings and surround them with Thy unceasing care. Grant that they may never lose the love and riches of the holy Faith, but that they may glorify Thy boundless Mercy with the multi- tude of angels and saints for all eternity. Amen FOURTH DAY Let us pray for pagans and infidels who are still ignorant of the Mercy of God. Most Merciful Jesus, light of the world, receive into the abode of Thy Merciful Heart the souls of pagans and infidels who as yet do not know Thee. Let the rays of Thy grace enlighten them, that they to- gether with us may praise the wonders of Thy Mercy for all eternity. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon the souls of pagans and infidels, who still do not know the Most Merciful Heart of Thy Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ. Draw them near to the light of the Gospel, that they may recognize how great a hapiness it is to love Thee and to glorify Thy Mercy for all eternity. Amen FIFTH DAY Let us pray for those erring in Faith. Most Merciful Jesus, Who are Goodness itself, and Who do not refuse light to those who humbly seek, receive into the abode of Thy Most Merciful Heart the souls of those erring in the Faith. Draw them with Thy light into unity with the Church that together with us they may praise the generosity of Thy mercy for all eternity. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal father, look down with Mercy upon the souls of those erring in Faith, and when, abusing Thy grace by stubbornly persisting in their errors, they have squandered this treasure, look not upon their malice, but - mindful of the love and bitter Passion of Thy Son, who before His Passion so ardently begged of Thee: "That they all may be one" - grant that these souls may return to that blessed unity as quickly as possible and together with us may praise Thy Mercy for all eternity. Amen SIXTH DAY Let us pray for little children and childlike souls. Most Merciful Jesus, Who did say: "Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart," receive into the abode of Thy Most merciful Heart the souls of little children and those, who like them, have become meek and humble, thereby enchanting heaven as if by a fragrant crown laid before the throne of Thy Heavenly Father. Grant that thet may constantly dwell within Thy Sacred Heart, therein continually praising the Mercy of God. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon little children and upon all meek and humble souls, who have become most like unto Thy Most Beloved Son, and who by the fragrance of their virtues ascend to the foot of Thy throne. Father of Mercy, we beseech Thee through Thy love for these souls and the delight which Thou find in them, bless us and the entire world that we all may render unceasing praise to Thy Mercy. Amen SEVENTH DAY Let us pray for all who honor the Mercy of God and foster trust in it, thereby becoming as it were a living image of the Most Merciful Heart of Jesus. Most Merciful Jesus, Whose Most Merciful heart is Love itself, receive into the abode of this Heart those souls especially dedicated to honoring the Mercy of God. Praising His greatness, these souls, whose true and mighty strength comes from God Himself, desire to share and on their shoulders carry with Thee, through torments and advers- ities, the burden of suffering for all mankind. Deign to enfold them with Thy ever increasing Mercy and strengthen them always with the grace of fortitude, patience and perseverance. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon those souls who with a special tenderness praise and venerate Thy Mercy, whose lips are filled with hymns of praise and hands with merciful deeds. We beseech Thee, deign to show them Thy ever increasing Mercy according to the hope which they place in Thee and according to the promise that Thou will protect them as Thy own glory always and especially in the hour of death. Amen EIGHTH DAY Let us pray for the souls in Purgatory, who are satisfying the Just- ice of God that the Merciful stream of Christ's Blood may diminish and shorten their suffering. Most Merciful Jesus, Who has said: :Be merciful, as Thy Heavenly Father is merciful," receive, we beseech Thee, into the abode of thy Most Merciful Heart, the souls suffering in Purgatory, satisfying their debt to God's Justice. May the streams of Blood and water, which gushed from Thy Divine Heart, quench the flames of Purgatory that there too the infinite power of Thy Mercy may be glorified. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon the suffering souls in Purgatory, and through the sorrowful Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the bitterness which overflowed His Most Sacred Heart in that hour, show pity on those who already now are subject to Thy Justice. We beseech Thee that Thou deign look at them only through the Wounds of Thy Most Beloved Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ, whose Mercy sur- passes His Justice. Amen NINTH DAY Let us pray for the lukewarm souls, who were the cause of Our Lord's terrible sufferings in Gethsemani. Most Merciful Jesus, Who are Goodness itself, lead into the abode of Thy Most Merciful Heart, all lukewarm souls, who like decaying corpses filled Thee with aversion and loathing in the Garden of Olives. Plunge them into the fire of Thy most pure love and melt their icy coldness, that they henceforth may become fired with ever increasing flames of zeal and may ever praise Thy boundless Mercy. Our Father - Hail Mary - Glory be Eternal Father, look down with Mercy upon lukewarm souls, who once in the Garden of Olives wrested from Thy Most Merciful Son the sorrowful complaint: "Let this cup pass away from me," We beseech Thee through the bitter Passion of the same Most Beloved Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ, and through His three-hour agony on the Cross, inflame these souls with a new zeal for Thy glory and pour a true love into their hearts, that thus quickened, they may perform here on earth merciful deeds and glorify the Mercy of God for all eternity. Amen
O Eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Creator of all things, visible and invisible, source of all our good; infinitely good in Thy- self, and infinitely gracious, bountiful and good to us; behold, we, Thy poor servants, the work of thy hands, redeemed by the Blood of Thy only Son, come in answer to His summons by His vice regent, to present ourselves as humble petitioners before the throne of Thy mercy. We come in communion with all Thy Church in Heaven, hoping to be assisted by their prayers and merits; and with Jesus Christ as our Head, our High Priest and Mediator, in whose Precious Blood we put all our trust. We prostrate ourselves here before Thee, and most humbly beseech Thee to sanctify Thy own most Holy Name, by sanctifying and exalting Thy Holy catholic church throughout the whole world. O Eternal King, who hast sent Thy only Son down from Thy throne above into this earth of ours, to establish a kingdom here amongst us, from whence we might hereafter be translated to Thy eternal kingdom; look down, we beseech Thee, upon this kingdom of Thy Son, and propogate it through all nat- ions, and through all hearts. Sanctify it in all truth; maintain it in peace, unity and holiness. Give to it saints for its rulers, its chief pastor and all its other prelates; enlighten them with all heav- enly wisdom; make them all men according to Thy own Heart. Give Thy grace and blessing to all the clergy; and send amongst them that heav- enly fire, which Thy Son came to cast on the earth, and which He so earnestly desired should be enkindled. Assist and protect all aposto- lic missionaries, that they may zealously and effectually promote Thy glory, and the salvation of souls redeemed by the Blood of Thy Son. Sanctify all religious men and women of all orders; give them the grace to serve Thee with all perfection, according to the spirit of their institute, and to shine like lights to the rest of the faithful. Have mercy on all Christian princes; grant them those lights and gra- ces that are necessary for the perfect discharge of their duty to Thee and to their subjects; that they may be true servants to Thee, the King of kings, true fathers to their people, and nursing fathers to Thy Church. Have mercy on all magistrates and men in power; that they may all fear Thee, love Thee, and serve Thee; and ever remember that they are Thy deputies, and ministers of Thy justice. Have mercy on all Thy people throughout the world; and give Thy blessing to Thy inherit- ance; remember Thy congregation which Thou hast possessed from the be- ginning; and give that grace to all Thy children here upon earth, that they may do Thy holy will in all things, even as the blessed do in Heaven. Extend Thy mercy also to all poor infidels, who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death: to all those nations that know not Thee, and that have not yet received the faith and law of Thy Son, their Savior; to all pagans, Mahometans and Jews. Remember, O Lord, that all these poor souls are made after Thy own image and likeness, and redeemed by the Blood of Thy Son. Oh! let not satan any longer exercise his tyran- ny over these Thy creatures, to the great dishonor of Thy Name. Let not the Precious Blood of thy Son be shed for them in vain. Send among them zealos preachers and apostolic laborers, endued with the like graces and gifts as Thy apostles were, and bless them with the like success, for the glory of Thy Name: that all these poor souls may be brought to know Thee, love Thee, and serve Thee, here in Thy Church, and bless Thee hereafter for all eternity. Look down also with an eye of pity and compassion on all those delu- ded souls, who, under the name of Christians, have gone away from the paths of truth and unity, and from the one fold of Thy one Shepherd, Thy only Son Jesus Christ, into the bypaths of error and schism. Oh! bring them back to Thee and to thy Church. Dispel their darkness by Thy heavenly light; take off the veil from before their eyes, with which the common enemy hath blindfolded them; let them see how they have been misled by misapprehensions and misrepresentations. Remove the prejudices of their education; take away from them the spirit of obstinacy, pride and self-conceit. Give them a humble and a docile heart. Give them a strong desire of finding out the truth, and a str- ong grace to enable them to embrace it, in spite of all the opposition of the world, the flesh and the devil. For why should these poor souls perish, for which Christ died? Why should satan any longer possess these souls, which by their baptism, were dedicated to Thee, to be Thy eternal temple? O Father of lights, and God of all truth, purge the whole world from all errors, abuses, corruptions and vices. Beat down the standard of satan, and set up everywhere the standard of Christ. Abolish the reign of sin, and establish the kingdom of grace in all hearts. Let humility triumph over pride and ambition; charity over hatred, envy and malice; purity and temperance over lust and excess; meekness over passion; and disinterestedness and poverty of spirit over covetousness and love of this perishable world. Let the gospel of Jesus Christ, both in its belief and practice, prevail throughout all the universe. Grant us Thy peace, O Lord, in the days of our mortality, even that peace which Thy Son bequeathed as a legacy to His disciples: a perpet- ual peace with Thee, a perpetual peace with one another, and a perpet- ual peace within themselves. Grant that all Christian princes and states may love, cherish and maintain an inviolable peace among them- selves. Give them a right sense of the dreadful evils that attend on wars. Give them an everlasting horror of all that bloodshed, of the devastation and ruin of so many territories, of the innumerable sacri- leges, and eternal loss of so many thousand souls, which are the dis- mal consequences of war. Turn their hearts to another kind of warfare: teach them to fight for a heavenly kingdom. Remove, O Lord, Thy wrath, which have reason to apprehend is actually hanging over our heads for our sins. Deliver all Christian people from the dreadful evil of mortal sin; make all sinners sensible of their misery; give them the grace of a sincere conversion to Thee, and a truly penitential spirit, and discharge them from all their bonds. Preserve all Christendom, and in particular this nation, from all evils that threaten impenitent sinners, such as plagues, famines, earthquakes, fires, inundations, mortality of cattle, sudden and un- provided death, and Thy many other judgments here, and eternal damnat- ion hereafter. Comfort all that are under any affliction, sickness or violence of pain; support all that are under temptation; reconcile all that are at variance; deliver all that are in slavery or captivity; defend all that are in danger; grant a relief to all in their respec- tive necessities; give a happy passage to all that are in their agony. Grant Thy blessing to our friends and benefactors, and to all those for whom we are particularly bound to pray; and have mercy on all our enemies. Give eternal rest to all the faithful departed; and bring us all to everlasting life: through Jesus Christ Thy Son. Amen. This was the Jubilee Prayer for the Jubilee of 1751, and taken from the 1878 prayerbook, "The Garden of the Soul". The above prayer was obtained from the April 2000 issue of Catholic Family News, pp. 21-22.