Jesus carries the cross.

PRAYER to The Faithful Departed

O most afflicted and unrepining souls, may Jesus Christ have mercy upon you, who for you was crucified and died, and may he refresh you in your sufferings by the sprinkling of his precious blood. I commend to you that exceeding love which drew down the Son of God from heaven, and constrained him to a most bitter death on earth, that in that amazing compassion wherewith he entered into and took upon himself all the afflictions of the afflicted, may he have compassion on you. And for your full solace and refreshment I offer you all that filial love which the same Jesus Christ felt towards the Father in his Divinity, and towards Mary in his Humanity.

Amen.

~ Preces Gertrudianae (1861)

Devotion to the Five Wounds
(For the Holy Souls In Purgatory)

Go before our actions, we beseech Thee, O Lord, with thy inspiration, and follow after them with Thy help, that every prayer and work of ours may begin from Thee and through Thee be likewise ended. Through CHRIST our Lord. Amen.

Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.

WE offer unto Thee, O eternal FATHER, Father of mercies, for those souls so dear to Thee in purgatory, the most Precious Blood shed on Calvary from the wound in the left foot of JESUS Thy Son, our Saviour, and the sorrow of Mary His most loving Mother in beholding it. Pater, Ave, Requiem aeternam.

ii. We offer unto Thee, O eternal FATHER, Father of mercies, for those souls so dear to Thee in purgatory, the most Precious Blood shed on Calvary from the wound in the right foot of JESUS Thy Son, our Saviour, and the sorrow of Mary His most loving Mother in beholding it. Pater, Ave, Requiem aeternam.

iii. We offer unto Thee, O eternal FATHER, Father of mercies, for those souls so dear to Thee in purgatory, the most Precious Blood shed on Calvary from the wound in the left hand of JESUS Thy Son, our Saviour, and the sorrow of Mary His most loving Mother in beholding it. Pater, Ave, Requiem aeternam.

iv. We offer unto Thee, O eternal FATHER, Father of mercies, for those souls so dear to Thee in purgatory, the most Precious Blood shed on Calvary from the wound in the right hand of JESUS Thy Son, our Saviour, and the sorrow of Mary His most loving Mother in beholding it. Pater, Ave, Requiem aeternam.

v. We offer unto Thee, O eternal FATHER, Father of mercies, for those souls so dear to Thee in purgatory, the most Precious Blood and water flowing on Calvary from the pierced side of JESUS thy Son, our Saviour, and the sorrow of Mary His most loving Mother in beholding it. Pater, Ave, Requiem aeternam.

Let us pray.

AND now to give greater value to our feeble prayers, turning to Thee, most loving JESUS, we humbly pray Thee thyself to offer to the eternal Father the sacred wounds of thy feet, hands and side, together with thy most precious Blood, and thy agony and death; and do thou also, Mary, Virgin of sorrows, present, together with the most sorrowful Passion of thy well-beloved Son, the sighs, tears and all the sorrows suffered by thee through His sufferings, so that through their merits the souls who suffer in the most ardent flames of purgatory may obtain refreshment, and, freed from this prison of torment, may be clothed with glory in heaven, there to sing the mercies of God for ever. Amen.

Absolve, O Lord, the souls of all the faithful departed from every bond of sin, so that by thy aid they may deserve to escape the judgment of wrath, and come to the enjoyment of beatitude in eternal light.

℣ Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord.
℟ And let perpetual light shine upon them.
℣ From the gate of hell,
℟ Deliver their souls, O Lord.
℣ May they rest in peace.
℟ Amen.
℣ O Lord, hear my prayer.
℟ And let my cry come unto Thee.
℣ The Lord be with you.
℟ And with thy spirit.

Let us pray.

O GOD, the Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the souls of thy servants departed the remission of all their sins, that through pious supplications they may obtain the pardon they have always desired. Who livest and reignest world without end. Amen.

Eternal rest, etc.


200 Days, once a day.
(Leo XIII, September 15, 1888.)

(The Raccolta, 1910)

Efficacious Prayer for the Poor Holy Souls In Purgatory

O Most compassionate Jesus, have mercy on the Souls detained in Purgatory, for whose redemption Thou didst take upon Thyself our nature and endure a bitter death. Mercifully hear their sighs, look with pity upon the tears which they now shed before Thee, and by virtue of Thy Passion, release them from the pains due to their sins. O most merciful Jesus, let Thy Precious Blood reach down into Purgatory and refresh and revive the captive souls who suffer there. Stretch out to them Thy strong right hand, and bring them forth into the place of refreshment, light and peace.

Amen.

Help, Lord, the souls which Thou hast made,
The souls to Thee so dear,
In prison for the debt unpaid
Of sin committed here.
These holy souls, they suffer on,
Resigned in heart and will,
Until Thy high behest is done,
And justice has its fill.
For daily falls, for pardoned crime,
Their joy to undergo
The shadow of Thy Cross sublime,
The remnant of Thy woe.
Oh! by their patience of delay,
Their hope amid their pain,
Their sacred zeal to burn away
Disfigurement and stain;
Oh! by their fire of love, not less
In keenness than the flame;
Oh! by their very helplessness,
Oh! by Thy own great Name:
Help, Lord, the souls which Thou hast made,
The souls to Thee so dear,
In prison for the debt unpaid
Of sin committed here.

~ Cardinal Newman


~ Forget-Me-Nots from Many Gardens, or Thirty Days Devotion to the Holy Souls (1904)

A Prayer Addressed to the Poor Souls in Purgatory

O HOLY SOULS in Purgatory, thou art the certain heirs of Heaven. Thou art most dear to Jesus, as the trophies of His Precious Blood, and to Mary, Mother of Mercy. Obtain for me, through thine intercession, the grace to lead a holy life, to die a happy death, and to attain to the blessedness of eternity in Heaven.

Dear suffering souls, who long to be delivered in order to praise and glorify God in Heaven, by thine unfailing pity, help me in the needs which distress me at this time, particularly (here mention your request), so that I may obtain relief and assistance from God.

In gratitude for this intercession, I offer to God on thy behalf the satisfactory merits of my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day (week, month, or whatever space of time you wish to designate). Amen.


~ As found in Stories about Purgatory And What They Reveal: 30 Days For The Holy Souls.

November 21st ~ FEAST of the PRESENTATION of the BLESSED VIRGIN MARY


O GOD, Who wast pleased that on this day the Blessed Virgin, the dwelling-place of the Holy Spirit, should be preserved in the temple, grant, we beseech Thee, that by her intercession, we may deserve to be presented in the temple of Thy glory.

Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the same Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.


Collect, November 21, The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

~ The New Roman Missal, 1937

A Short Offering
which may be made each morning for the souls in Purgatory

O my God, deign to accept my every thought, word, and action as a loving petition to Thy mercy on behalf of the suffering souls in Purgatory, particularly _____________. I unite to Thy Sacred Passion the trials and contradictions of this day, which I purpose to bear with patience, in expiation for the sins and infidelities which retain Thy children in the purifying flames of Purgatory.

Amen.


~ Forget-Me-Nots from Many Gardens, or Thirty Days Devotion to the Holy Souls (1904)

PRAYER to the HOLY SOULS in PURGATORY

O Holy Souls, tormented in most cruel pains, as one truly devoted to you, I promise never to forget you, and continually to pray to the Most High for your release. I beseech you to respond to this offering which I make to you, and obtain for me from God, with whom you are so powerful on behalf of the living, that I may be freed from all dangers of soul and body; I beg both for myself and for my relations and benefactors, friends and enemies, pardon for our sins, and the grace of perseverance in good, whereby we may save our souls.

Set us free from all misfortunes, miseries, sicknesses, trials and labors. Obtain for us peace of heart; assist us in all our actions; succor us promptly in all our spiritual and temporal needs; console and defend us in our dangers. Pray for the supreme Pontiff, for the exaltation of holy Church, for peace between nations, for Christian princes, and for tranquillity among peoples; and obtain that we may one day all rejoice together in Paradise.

Amen.

November 22nd ~ FEAST of ST. CECILIA,
Virgin, Martyr
3rd Century

O GOD, Who dost gladden us with the annual feast of blessed Cecilia, Thy virgin and martyr, grant that, as we venerate her in our liturgy, we may also follow her example in godly living.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.


Collect, November 22, St. Cecilia

~ The New Roman Missal, 1937

Prayer for Priests and Religious
in Purgatory

My Jesus
By the sorrows Thou didst suffer
In Thine Agony in the Garden,
In Thy Scourging
and Crowning with thorns,
In the Way to Calvary,
In Thy crucifixion and Death,
have mercy on the souls of priests
and religious In Purgatory,
especially those most forgotten
and who have no one else to pray for them.
I wish to remember all those priests
who ministered to me,
the priests and religious
my heart has never forgotten,
and those I no longer recall
due to my frailty of memory.
Do Thou deliver them
from the dire torments they endure;
call them and admit them
to Thy most sweet embrace in Paradise.

Amen.

Prayer for the Faithful Departed

O GOD of the Spirits of all flesh, O Jesu, Lover of souls, we recommend unto Thee the souls of all those Thy servants, who have departed with the sign of faith and sleep the sleep of peace. We beseech Thee, O Lord and Saviour, that, as in Thy mercy to them Thou becamest man, so now Thou wouldest hasten the time, and admit them to Thy presence above. Remember, O Lord, that they are Thy creatures, not made by strange gods, but by Thee, the only Living and True God; for there is no other God but Thou, and none that can equal Thy works. Let their souls rejoice in Thy light, and impute not to them their former iniquities, which they committed through the violence of passion, or the corrupt habits of their fallen nature. For, although they have sinned, yet they always firmly believed in the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; and before they died, they reconciled themselves to Thee by true contrition and the Sacraments of Thy Church.

O Gracious Lord, we beseech Thee, remember not against them the sins of their youth and their ignorances; but according to Thy great mercy, be mindful of them in Thy heavenly glory. May the heavens be opened to them, and the Angels rejoice with them. May the Archangel St. Michael conduct them to Thee. May Thy holy Angels come forth to meet them, and carry them to the city of the heavenly Jerusalem. May St. Peter, to whom Thou gavest the keys of the kingdom of heaven, receive them. May St. Paul, the vessel of election, stand by them. May St. John, the beloved disciple, who had the revelation of the secrets of heaven, intercede for them. May all the Holy Apostles, who received from Thee the power of binding and loosing, pray for them. May all the Saints and elect of God, who in this world suffered torments for Thy Name, befriend them; that, being freed from the prison beneath, they may be admitted into the glories of that kingdom, where with the Father and the Holy Ghost Thou livest and reignest one God, world without end.

Come to their assistance, all ye Saints of God; gain for them deliverance from their place of punishment; meet them, all ye Angels; receive these holy souls, and present them before the Lord. Eternal rest give to them, O Lord. And may perpetual light shine on them.

Amen.


~ John Henry Newman
Meditations and Devotions

THANKSGIVING

O GOD, Whose mercies are without number, and of Whose goodness there is an infinite treasure, we give thanks to Thy sovereign Majesty for the gifts Thou hast bestowed on us, and beg for Thy continued clemency, that, as Thou grantest the petitions of those who ask Thee, Thou wilt never forsake them, but wilt prepare them for the reward to come.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.


Collect, Votive Mass of Thanksgiving

~ Saint Joseph Daily Missal, 1950

Aspiration

O Mary, Mother of God and Mother of mercy, pray for us, and for all who have died in the embrace of the Lord.


An Indulgence of 300 days (Leo XIII, Audience, Dec. 15, 1883; S. P. Ap., June 4, 1934).


(The Raccolta, 1943)

A Short and Efficacious Prayer for the Faithful Departed

O MOST compassionate Jesus, have mercy on the souls detained in purgatory, for whose redemption thou didst take upon thee our nature and endure a bitter death. Mercifully hear their groans, look with pity on the tears which they now shed before thee, and by the virtue of thy Passion release them from the pains due unto their sins. O most pitiful Jesus, let thy precious Blood reach down into purgatory, and refresh and revive the captive souls which suffer there. Stretch forth unto them thy strong right hand, and bring them forth into the place of refreshment, light, and peace.

Amen.

~ Preces Gertrudianae (1861)

A Prayer for Deceased Parents

O God, Who hast commanded us to honor our father and our mother; in Thy mercy have pity on the souls of my father and my mother (or, the soul of my father, or, the soul of my mother), and forgive them their trespasses (or, forgive him his trespasses, or, forgive her her trespasses); and make me to see them (or, him, or, her) again in the joy of everlasting brightness. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen (The Roman Missal).

An indulgence of 3 years.
A plenary indulgence under the usual conditions, if the devout recitation of this prayer be continued every day for a month (S. P. Ap., Sept. 12, 1935).

(The Raccolta, 1943)

A Prayer for Deceased Parents

Deus, qui nos patrem et matrem honoráre præcepísti; miserére cleménter animábus patris et matris meæ (1) eorúmque peccáta dimmíte: meque eos in ætérne claritátis gáudio fac vidére. Per Christum Dóminum nostrum. Amen (ex Missali Romano).

(1) Si pro patre tantum recitetur oration, dicatur: ánime patris mei eiusque peccáta dimmíte; meque eum . . . — Si pro matre tantum, dicatur: ánime matris mei eiusque peccáta dimmíte; meque eum . . .

An indulgence of 3 years.
A plenary indulgence under the usual conditions, if the devout recitation of this prayer be continued every day for a month (S. P. Ap., Sept. 12, 1935).

(The Raccolta, 1943)