A Prayer of Intercession to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

This long and very beautiful prayer of intercession to the Immaculate Heart of Mary reminds us of the Blessed Virgin's complete submission to the will of God. As we ask Mary to intercede for us, the prayer draws us back to the point of such intercession: In uniting ourselves with Mary, we draw closer to Christ, because no other human has been closer to Christ than His mother.

This prayer is appropriate for use as a novena, especially in August, the month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Prayer of Intercession to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

V. O God, come unto my assistance;
R. O Lord, make haste to help me.
V. Glory be to the Father, etc.
R. As it was, etc.
I. Immaculate Virgin, who being conceived without sin, didst direct every movement of thy most pure heart toward God, and wast always submissive to His divine will; obtain for me the grace to hate sin with all my heart and to learn from thee to live in perfect resignation to the will of God.
Our Father once and Hail Mary seven times.
II. O Mary, I wonder at that profound humility, which troubled thy blessed heart at the message of the Angel Gabriel, that thou hadst been chosen to be the Mother of the Son of the most high God, the while thou didst profess thyself His lowly handmaiden; ashamed at the sight of my own pride, I beg of thee the grace of a contrite and humble heart, so that, acknowledging my misery, I may come to attain the glory promised to those who are truly humble of heart.
Our Father once and Hail Mary seven times.
III. Blessed Virgin, who didst keep in thy heart the precious treasure of the words of Jesus thy Son and, pondering over the sublime mysteries therein contained, couldst live only for God, how am I confounded by the coldness of my heart! Ah, dear Mother, obtain for me the grace of meditating always on the holy law of God, and of seeking to follow thine example in the fervent practice of all the Christian virtues.
Our Father once and Hail Mary seven times.
IV. O glorious Queen of Martyrs, whose sacred heart, in the Passion of thy Son, was cruelly pierced by the sword foretold by the holy and aged Simeon; obtain for my heart true courage and holy patience to bear well the tribulations and trials of this wretched life; may I show myself to be thy true child by crucifying my flesh and all its desires in following the mortification of the Cross.
Our Father once and Hail Mary seven times.
V. O Mary, mystic rose, whose lovable heart, burning with the living fire of love, adopted us as thy children at the foot of the Cross, becoming thus our most tender Mother, make me experience the sweetness of thy motherly heart and the power of thine intercession with Jesus, in all the dangers that beset me during life, and especially at the dread hour of my death; in such wise may my heart be ever united to thine, and love Jesus both now and through endless ages. Amen.
Our Father once and Hail Mary seven times.