Novena for the Feast of the Stigmata
September 17th
FIRST DAY
O sweet Jesus, who hast Thyself taught us to be meek and humble of heart, I offer Thee Thy own deep humility, and in union with it, the humility of St. Francis, in reparation for all my sins of pride, and to obtain grace from henceforth to practise the most profound humility in my every thought, word, and action.
Five Gloria Patris in honour of the wounds of Jesus, and the sacred Stigmata of St. Francis.
SECOND DAY
O sweet Jesus, who for our love wast born poor, of a poor mother, in a poor stable, and who hast so singularly loved and honoured poverty; I offer Thee Thy own most blessed poverty, and in union with it the holy poverty of St. Francis, praying, that like him I too may become truly poor, and henceforth desire nothing but to be poor with Thee on earth, that I may be rich with Thee in heaven.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
THIRD DAY
O sweet Jesus, who for our sake didst so often fast and watch in prayer, I offer Thee all Thy blessed fastings and watchings; and in union with them the constant fasts and great austerities of the blessed Francis, praying that through his merits I may obtain grace henceforth so to mortify my body on earth, and to conquer my miserable self-love, that I may daily become more fervent and devoted in Thy divine service.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
FOURTH DAY
O sweet Jesus, who didst bear with such exceeding patience all the trials and distresses of our mortal life, I humbly offer Thee Thine own adorable patience; and in union with it the great patience with which St. Francis supported so many sicknesses and trials, praying that through his merits I may obtain the grace of patience, and glorify Thee by bearing meekly all the little trials and annoyances of my daily life.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
FIFTH DAY
O sweetest Jesus, who hast loved us so much, and who art loved so little by us, I rejoice in the great love which the blessed Francis had for Thee, and I humbly pray Thee by his merits, for the sake of Thine own inconceivable love, to kindle in my heart such an ardent fire of charity, that henceforth I may be entirely consumed with love, and have no other thought or desire but to please Thee.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
SIXTH DAY
O sweetest Jesus, who didst so tenderly love Thy own Immaculate Mother, and dying didst give her to us that we might honour and cherish her, and us to her that she might be our very own Mother; I offer Thee the tender love which St. Francis entertained for her, and the ardent desire he had that all men should honour her, particularly in the mystery of her Immaculate Conception, and I pray, sweet Jesus, by Thy love for Mary, and the merits of Francis, that I may ever increase in fervent devotion to Thy blessed mother, and may never say, or do, anything that would be in the least displeasing to her dear and adorable Heart.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
SEVENTH DAY
O sweet Lord Jesus, who wast obedient at Nazareth to Mary and Joseph, and on the cross to Thy cruel executioners, I offer Thee the deep obedience of the blessed Francis to Thy holy will, to his ecclesiastical superiors, and to all creatures for Thy sake; and I pray that through his merits I may obtain the grace of a prompt, cheerful, and loving obedience to those whom Thou hast placed over me, and that Thou wouldst grant to them the special graces and consolations they need for their holy office.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
EIGHTH DAY
Oh sweet Jesus, Good Samaritan, who wert so full of the tenderest charity for all Thy creatures, I offer Thee the devotion with which St. Francis nursed the lepers and consoled the sick, the great love which he had for his spiritual children, and his unwearied zeal for the welfare of all mankind; by Thy own ineffable charity towards poor sinners, and through the merits of Francis I humbly pray for the grace of a most tender and self-sacrificing charity towards all men, and that I may exercise it specially towards those with whom I live.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
NINTH DAY
O sweet Jesus, whose most bitter Passion is so little thought of, and so little loved, I rejoice in the great tenderness that the blessed Francis felt for it, and the tears he shed over Thy sufferings; O sweet Jesus, for the sake of Thy most bitter and cruel Passion, and for the great merits of Francis, which obtained for him the favour of the impression of Thy most sacred wounds, grant me grace so to love and compassionate Thy sufferings that I may be incited to a continual reparation for them, and to an ever increased devotion to the adorable Sacrament of the altar; and may so weep with Thee here, that I may be made worthy to rejoice with Thee eternally in heaven.
Five Gloria Patris, &c.
Prayer to St. Francis of Assisi
O seraphic Francis! who art now in possession of that seat among the seraphim, which from all eternity was prepared for thee, vouchsafe we beseech thee to join us, while we thank thy Divine Benefactor for having chosen thee to be the companion of His cross. and the peculiar object of His love. We most confidently present to thee all our present petitions, convinced that thy influence in heaven must be great, since thy likeness to Jesus Christ secured the success of thy prayers even on earth. Thou didst early burst every human tie, and disdain any father but God. Penetrated with the great truths of faith, thou didst trample on all that the world calls delightful and valuable, and didst embrace such destitute poverty, and austere penance as soon likened thee to that Man of Sorrows, who had not whereon to lay His Sacred Head. The cross of Jesus became Thy delight, thy only treasure; and intimate union with its adorable Victim was the only joy thy pure soul could value.
At length, the sword of mortification opened for thee a passage to the Heart of Jesus, the most profound humility introduced thee into the inmost recesses of that sacred sanctuary, the gift of sublime prayer disclosed to thee such transporting beauties in Jesus, that every human object disappeared from thine eyes. Jesus became truly "thy God and thy All." The ardour of thy love rendered thy whole being a burning h0Ɩ0cαųst; and thy body itself, purified and subdued, was honoured with the most precious of all favours, the sacred marks of thy Redeemer’s wounds. From that happy moment the remainder of thy banishment was a martyrdom of love, until love itself put an end to thy mortal life. O seraph of the earth! have compassion on our tepidity. Heavenly contemplative enlighten our darkness, remember that the blindness of sinners often drew tears from thy eyes. Thou didst unceasingly lament that Jesus should have endured such torments, and yet that no one thought of His sufferings. Thou canst now satisfy thy ardent desire of seeing Jesus loved by obtaining for us the most generous and perfect love of God, the most profound and practical humility, a sincere love of poverty, lively zeal for our own perfection, and that of others, the spirit of prayer founded on, and nourished by universal mortification, and the particuar intentions of this novena.