Treats of the great benefit of self-detachment, both interior and
exterior, from all things created.
Treats of the great blessing that shunning their relatives brings
to those who have left the world and shows how by doing so they
will find truer friends.
Teaches that detachment from the things aforementioned is insufficient if we are not detached from our own selves and that this virtue and humility go together.
Continues to treat of mortification and describes how it may be attained in times of sickness.
by Merry Cardinal del Val, secretary of state to Pope Saint Pius X from the prayer book for Jesuits, 1963
O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being loved, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being honored, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being praised, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred to others, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being consulted, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being approved, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being humiliated, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being despised, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being calumniated, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being suspected, Deliver me, Jesus.
That others may be loved more than I,
That others may be esteemed more than I,
That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease,
That others may be chosen and I set aside,
That others may be praised and I go unnoticed,
That others may be preferred to me in everything,
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. Amen.
« Mary said, “ Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word. “Then the Angel departed from her.” » ( Luke 1, 38 )
Brief Reflection:
The Virgin Mary meekly undergoes the designs of God, although with certain reservations. “.. How can this be if I do not know man?…she accepts, with some concerns. How many doubts will we have when we have moved away from God, and in our mistakes, we have knitted a useless cobweb of knots. Let us give our griefs to the council of Mary.
( Brief meditation: meditate with one decade of the Holy Rosary: One Our Father, 10 Hail Mary’s, One Glory be and the Prayer to “The Virgin Mary untier of Knots”)
…« And the Angel said to her in reply, ”The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.
( Luke 1, 35 )
Brief Reflection:
The Holy Spirit, Third Person of God, overshadowed the womb of the Virgin Mary full of grace, and the power of the most High was with her so that she would give birth to our savior made man. That is why the Virgin Mary is blessed and holy. In her, The Son of God inhabited. ¡ Who better than his Mother, to aid us and help us to dismantle our tangled conflicts!
( Brief meditation: meditate with one decade of the Holy Rosary: One Our Father, 10 Hail Mary’s, One Glory be and the Prayer to “The Virgin Mary untier of Knots”)
“Eve, by her disobedience, tied the knot of disgrace for the human race; whereas Mary, by Her obedience, undid it…For what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the Virgin Mary set free through faith.” Saint Irenaeus, in his writings, titled Adversus Haereses (Against Heresies).
I once experienced a situation in which I was totally flummoxed in how to proceed; the result was a tremendous piercing of the heart, all very painful and sad. A large messy misunderstanding arose and the ability to communicate with the other person involved completely disappeared. I wasn’t sure how to pray or even what to pray for, and frankly, it just hurt so much I couldn’t think what to do next. So, like any confused child, I went to my mother for help…our Blessed Mother to be more specific.
As indicated by the great saint above, St. Irenaeus, the role of Our Lady as the one who “unties” the knots in our lives goes way back to the early years of the Church. The “knots” of course can be anything that separates us from God and our fellow man. And in particular, those knots that tie up and strangle loving relationships in families and friendships.
The image most closely associated with this devotion was one in the 1700s by an unknown painter. As you can see in the picture, in her hands is a knotted white ribbon, which, with the aid of the angels, she is peacefully untying. All of this is done under the watchful gaze of the Holy Spirit. All the while she is crushing, under her feet, the head of the serpent whose body is coiled and knotted.
In her booklet, Dr. Suzel Frem Bourgerie’s writes about the knots each of us suffers. “How they suffocate the soul, beat us down, betray the heart’s joy and even the will to continue living.” She goes on to say: “… The Virgin Mary does not want this to continue anymore in your life. She comes to you today for you to give her all these snarls because she will undo them one by one.”
In the personal situation that I cited above, I found great comfort and peace knowing that our Blessed Mother was handling everything. I grew to trust in her loving care for the relationship. She, in turn, has taught me to totally trust her Son in all things That was the first knot she needed to untie for me, now she’s working on the others.
…« and now she will bear a son. You shall call him ‘Jesus’ for he will save his people from their sins.»
( Mathew 1, 21 )
Brief Reflection:
Our Lord Jesus, was born of the flesh and blood of the Holy Virgin Mary, spouse of the Holy Spirit. Jesus, untied the tongues of the mute, the obstacles to the paralytics, he remove the yoke of the oppressed , and he liberated the sinners with his death. Jesus, through his Death and Resurrection is the Great Untier of Knots of our humanity united to sin. His Mother, first disciple and co re-demptrix, will untie our knots.
( Brief meditation: meditate with one decade of the Holy Rosary: One Our Father, 10 Hail Mary’s, One Glory be and the Prayer to “The Virgin Mary untier of Knots”)
How can you not just love the holy angels of God, and in particular the Archangels: Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael?
(I’ll answer that: You just have to love them…they’re too AWESOME!)
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Prayer to St. Michael
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May GOD rebuke him we humbly pray, and do thou o’ prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of GOD cast into hell satan and all the evil spirits who prowl throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen. A St. Michael Website
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Prayer to the Archangel St. Gabriel
O God, who from among all your angels chose the Archangel Gabriel to announce the mystery of the Incarnation, mercifully grant that we who solemnly remember him on earth may feel the benefit of his patronage in heaven, with Jesus who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen. A St. Gabriel Website
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Prayer to the Archangel Raphael
Glorious Archangel St. Raphael, great prince of the heavenly court, your are illustrious for your gifts of wisdom and grace. You are a guide of those who journey by land or sea or air, consoler of the afflicted, and refuge of sinners. I beg you, assist me in all my needs and in all the sufferings of this life, as once you helped the young Tobias on his travels. Because you are the “medicine of God”, I humbly pray you to heal the many infirmities of my soul and the ills that afflict my body. I especially ask of you the favor
(name it) and the great grace of purity to prepare me to be the temple of the Holy Spirit. Amen. A St. Raphael Website
by Merry Cardinal del Val, secretary of state to Pope Saint Pius X
