DAY 5: THE VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
33 DAYS PREPARATORY PRAYER FOR THE RE-CONSECRATION OF NIGERIA TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY.
DAY 5
(September 12).
THE VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
V. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
V. Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful.
R. And enkindle in them the fire of your love.
V. Send forth your spirit and they shall be created.
R. And you shall renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray: Oh God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever rejoice in his consolation, through Chris our Lord. Amen.
HYMN TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
1. O come to the throne of grace,
O come to the heart most pure!
To Mary, our hope of life,
In whom salvation is sure.
O Lady of Fatima, hail!
Immaculate Mother of grace;
O, pray for us, help us today,
Thou hope of the human race!
2. Immaculate Heart! we kneel
To consecrate all to thee:
The present, its pain and joy—–
The future, all it may be.
O Lady of Fatima, hail!
Immaculate Mother of grace;
O, pray for us, help us today,
Thou hope of the human race!
OPENING PRAYER
Eternal Father, you inspired the Virgin Mary, mother of your Son, to visit Elizabeth and assist her in her need. Keep us open to the working of your Spirit, and with Mary, may we praise you forever. We ask this through Our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen.
ROSARY
SCRIPTURE READING: Luke 1:39-56
Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that there that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on his lowly servant. From this day, all generations will call me blessed; the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, and has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel, for he has remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever.”
Mary remained with her about three months, and then returned to her home.
The Gospel of the Lord
REFLECTION :
Yesterday, we reflected on how Mary conceived the Messiah through her cooperation with the will of God and thus became a source of joy to all who encountered her. Today, we reflect on her visit to Elizabeth (cf. Luke 1:39-56) and we see her bringing this joy into the household of Zechariah that even the child in Elizabeth’s womb slept for joy. Mary is indeed blessed. Note the similarities between Mary in that Gospel and the Ark of the Covenant of the ancient Israel. The way the child in the womb of Elizabeth leapt for joy was the way David leapt for joy as the Ark was being brought into the citadel of David (cf. 2 Sam 6:14-15). In addition to that, just as the Ark was used as a weapon of liberation for the people of Israel, Mary would stand to see that those in trouble find help in Christ. That was the situation at the wedding feast at Cana (cf. John 2:1-11). In all these still, she teaches us two important lessons by her visit: Humility and Hospitality. Even after the knowledge that she would be the Mother of God, she still went ahead to attend to Elizabeth’s needs. How well do we use our position to bring joy to the hearts and homes of those in need? May God give us the grace to emulate Mary in this great teaching she offers us, to be real agents of joy, love and mercy. Amen.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER:
a. For our families.
b. For the Church.
c. For Nigeria.
PRE-CONSECRATION PRAYER OF NIGERIA TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY
Lord God, we thank you for the gift of our country Nigeria. You made it a fertile ground for the work of missionaries, guided by the power of the Holy Spirit. Your Word is now firmly established in our land such that we have not only become missionaries to ourselves but also to other nations.
As your Son Jesus Christ reposed in the arms of the Blessed Virgin Mary, so have we reposed Nigeria in her arms by making her our Patron Saint. As a nation, we are going through turbulent moments, with hunger, pain, killing, kidnapping and many other atrocities being committed against each other. We believe that never was it known that anyone who fled to her protection, implored her help or sought her intercession was left unaided. And so we come before her again, sinful and sorrowful, and desiring to re-consecrate Nigeria to her Immaculate Heart. May she intercede on our behalf to stabilize our ship of state.
We present ourselves as a nation, renouncing our past faults and offences. We resolve to imitate the exemplary life of our Mother Mary. Help us to renew and rectify the vows of our Baptism; rejecting Satan and all his works and empty promises. Obtain for us the grace for a perfect consecration of our nation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. We seek her continual intercession and maternal protection.
May this this re-consecration bring forth peace, unity and tranquility to the nation and foster communion and service so as to radiate the joy of the Gospel for the common good of our country.
We make our prayer through your son, our Lord Jesus Christ who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen
Our Lady Queen of Nigeria, Pray for us.
Our Lady of Fatima, Pray for us.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Almighty ever-living God, who, while the Blessed Virgin Mary was carrying your Son in her womb, inspired her to visit Elizabeth, grant us, we pray, that faithful to the promptings of the Spirit, we may magnify your greatness with the Virgin Mary at all times. Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen.
