Christ revealed to Saint Bridget of Sweden that He received 5,480 blows throughout His Passion. When St. Bridget asked how she could honor these blows and Wounds, Christ gave her the following 15 Prayers, accompanied by many promises to all who keep this daily devotion.
I
O Jesus Christ, eternal sweetness of them that hope in Thee, joy exceeding all joy and all desire, salvation, and love of sinners, who hast declared it to be Thy delight to be with the children of men, [Thou who wast] made man for man in the end of time; remember all Thy premeditation and interior grief which Thou didst endure in Thy human body at the approach of the time of Thy most saving Passion, preordained in Thy divine heart. Remember the sadness and the bitterness which, as Thou Thyself didst testify, Thou didst feel in Thy soul when at the Last Supper with Thy disciples Thou didst give them Thy Body and Blood, didst wash their feet, and sweetly consoling them, foretell Thy imminent Passion. Remember all the fear, anguish, and grief which Thou didst endure in Thy delicate body before the Passion of the cross when, after Thy thrice-repeated prayer and bloody sweat, Thou wast betrayed by Thy disciple Judas, taken by a chosen people, accused by false witnesses, unjustly judged by three judges, condemned innocent in the chosen city, at Paschal time, in the bloom of youth, stripped of Thy own clothing and clothed in the garments of another, buffeted, Thy face and eyes veiled, smitten with blows, bound to the pillar, scourged, crowned with thorns, struck with a reed on the head, and torn with numberless other acts of violence. Give me, O Lord God, I beseech Thee, before I die, in memory of these Thy passions before the cross, a true contrition, true confession, worthy satisfaction and remission of all my sins. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
II
O Jesus, Maker of the world, whom no measure by just bounds doth compass, who inclosest the earth in Thy palm, remember the most bitter grief which Thou didst endure when the Jews first fastened Thy most sacred hands to the cross with dull nails, and as Thou wast not agreeable to their will, added pain to pain in Thy wounds by perforating Thy most delicate feet, and cruelly wrenched and distended Thee the length and breadth of Thy cross, so that the joints of Thy limbs were loosened. I beseech Thee by the memory of this most sacred and bitter pain on the cross to give me Thy fear and love. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
III
O Jesus, heavenly physician, remember the languor, lividness, and pain which Thou didst suffer on the lofty scaffold of the cross, torn in all Thy limbs, not one of which had remained in its right state, so that no pain was found like to Thy pain; for from the sole of Thy foot to the top of Thy head there was no soundness in Thee. And yet, regardless of all pains, Thou didst piously pray to Thy Father for Thy enemies, saying: “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” By this mercy and in remembrance of that pain, grant that this memory of Thy most bitter Passion be a full remission of all my sins. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
IV
O Jesus, true liberty of angels, paradise of delights, remember the grief and horror which Thou didst endure when all Thy enemies surrounded Thee like fierce lions, and tortured Thee by buffets, by spitting upon Thee, and by tearing and other unheard-of pains. By these pains and all the contumelious words and most severe torments whereby, O Lord Jesus Christ, all Thy enemies afflicted Thee, I beseech Thee to free me from all my enemies, visible and invisible, and grant me to reach the perfection of eternal salvation under the shadow of Thy wings. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
V
O Jesus, mirror of eternal brightness, remember the grief which Thou didst endure when Thou didst behold, in the mirror of Thy most serene Majesty, the predestination of the elect to be saved by the merits of Thy Passion, and the reprobation of the wicked to be damned by their own demerits; and by the abyss of Thy mercy, whereby Thou didst then compassionate us lost and hopeless sinners, and which Thou didst show the thief on the cross, saying, “This day thou shalt be with Me in Paradise,” I beseech Thee, O merciful Jesus, show mercy on me at the hour of my death. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
VI
O Jesus, amiable King, and most desirable Friend, remember the sorrow Thou hadst when Thou didst hang naked and wretched on the cross, and all Thy friends and acquaintances stood over against Thee, and Thou didst find no comforter except alone Thy beloved Mother, most faithfully standing by Thee in bitterness of soul, whom Thou didst commend to Thy disciple, saying, “Woman, behold thy son.” I beseech Thee, merciful Jesus, by the sword of grief which then pierced Thy soul, to have compassion on me in all my tribulations and afflictions, bodily and spiritual, and give me comfort in time of tribulation and at the hour of my death. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
VII
O Jesus, fountain of inexhaustible mercy, who from intense feeling didst exclaim on the cross, “I thirst,” thirsting for the salvation of the human race, inflame, we beseech Thee, the desires of our hearts to every perfect work, and entirely cool and extinguish in us the thirst of carnal concupiscence and the heat of worldly delight. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
VIII
O Jesus, sweetness of hearts and great sweetness of minds, by the bitterness of the vinegar and gall which Thou didst taste for us, grant me at the hour of my death worthily to receive Thy Body and Blood, for the remedy and consolation of my soul. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
IX
O Jesus, royal virtue and mental delight, remember the anguish and pain which Thou didst endure when, from the bitterness of death and the reproaches of the Jews, Thou didst exclaim in a loud voice that Thou wast forsaken by Thy Father, saying, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” By this anguish, I beseech Thee not to forsake me in my anguish, O Lord Our God. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
X
O Jesus, Alpha and Omega, ever virtue and life, remember that for us Thou didst plunge Thyself, from the top of Thy head to the sole of Thy feet, into the water of Thy Passion. By the length and breadth of Thy wounds, teach me, too much immersed in sin, to keep in true charity Thy broad command. Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary.
Continue the 15 Prayers in Revelations of Saint Bridget…
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This article is taken from a chapter in Revelations of Saint Bridget by Saint Bridget which is available from TAN Books.
