In His love for mankind, Our Lord has constrained Himself as a Prisoner in the Tabernacle. He eagerly awaits our visits to the Blessed Sacrament, yet so few souls come to offer their presence. In this excerpt, taken from Visits to the Blessed Sacrament, Saint Alphonsus Liguori provides readers with prayers and reflections to use when making a Holy Hour.
Prayer Before Visit
MY LORD Jesus Christ, Who because of Your love for men remain night and day in the Blessed Sacrament, full of pity and of love, awaiting, calling and welcoming all who come to visit You, I believe that You are present here on the altar. I adore You, and I thank You for all the graces You have bestowed on me, especially for having given me Yourself in this Sacrament, for having given me Your most holy Mother Mary to plead for me, and for having called me to visit You in this church. I now salute Your most loving Heart, and that for three ends: 1) in thanksgiving for this great gift; 2) to make amends to You for all the outrages committed against You in this Sacrament by Your enemies; 3) I intend by this visit to adore You in all the places on earth in which You are present in the Blessed Sacrament and in which You are least honored and most abandoned.
My Jesus, I love You with my whole heart. I am very sorry for having so many times offended Your infinite goodness. With the help of Your grace, I purpose never to offend You again. And now, unworthy though I am, I consecrate myself to You without reserve. I renounce and give entirely to You my will, my affection, my desires and all that I possess. For the future, dispose of me and all I have as You please. All I ask of You is Your holy love, final perseverance and that I may carry out Your will perfectly. I recommend to You the souls in Purgatory, especially those who had the greatest devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary. I also recommend to You all poor sinners. Finally, my dear Saviour, I unite all my desires with the desires of Your most loving Heart; and I offer them, thus united, to the Eternal Father, and beseech Him, in Your name and for love of You, to accept and grant them.
Meditation
THE devout Father Nieremberg says that since bread is a food which is consumed by eating and which keeps when preserved, Jesus wished to dwell on earth under its species, not only to be consumed by uniting Himself in Holy Communion to souls that love Him, but also to be preserved in the Tabernacle so as to be present with us and, in this way, remind us of the love He has for us. St. Paul says: “He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant.” (Phil. 2:7). But what must we say when we see Him taking the form of bread? “The greatness of the love which Jesus has for every soul in the state of grace,” says St. Peter of Alcantara, “is something that no tongue could adequately express. When He wished to depart this life, this sweet Spouse of souls, lest His absence might cause them to forget Him, left to them as a memorial the Blessed Sacrament, in which He Himself remained. His own self was the only pledge He wished should remain between these souls and Himself, that they might always remember Him.”
Since, then, my Jesus, You are enclosed in this Tabernacle to receive the petitions of poor creatures who come to visit You, listen today to the petition of the most ungrateful sinner on earth.
I come repentant to Your feet, for I am well aware of the evil I have done in displeasing You. My first prayer is that You will pardon all my sins. Ah, my God, would that I had never offended You! After that, I must tell You my next desire. Now that I have found out how infinitely good You are, I have been drawn to love You. I feel an ardent desire to love You and to please You, but I have not the strength to give effect to that desire unless You help me. O great Lord, show to the whole court of Heaven Your immense goodness and Your supreme power. Change me from the great rebel I have been up to the present into one who loves You very much. You have the power to do so, and I know it is Your wish. Make up for all that is wanting in me, that thus I may be able to love You very much—at least that I may love You as much as I have offended You. I love You, my Jesus, above all things; I love You more than my life, O my God, my Love, my All!
Aspiration: My God and my All!
Spiritual Communion
My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already come, and I unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You.
Visit To Our Lady
“Let us go therefore with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace in seasonable aid.” (Heb. 4:16). St. Antoninus tells us that this throne, from which God distributes all graces, is Our Blessed Lady. O most lovable Queen, since you are so very anxious to help sinners, see here a great sinner who has recourse to you. Help me very much, and help me without delay!
Aspiration: Sole refuge of sinners, have pity on me!
Prayer to Our Lady
Most holy Virgin Immaculate, my Mother Mary, it is to you, who are the Mother of my Lord, the Queen of the world, the advocate, the hope and the refuge of sinners, that I have recourse today, I, who most of all am deserving of pity. Most humbly do I offer you my homage, O great Queen, and I thank you for all the graces you have obtained for me until now, and particularly for having saved me from Hell, which, by my sins, I have so often deserved.
I love you, O most lovable Lady, and because of my love for you, I promise to serve you always and to do all in my power to win others to love you also. In your hands I place all my hopes; I entrust the salvation of my soul to your care. Accept me as your servant, O Mother of Mercy; receive me under your mantle. And since you have such power with God, deliver me from all temptations, or rather, obtain for me the strength to triumph over them until death. Of you I ask the grace of a perfect love for Jesus Christ. Through your help I hope to die a happy death. O my Mother, I beg you, by the love you bear to God, to help me at all times, but especially at the last moment of my life. Do not leave me, I beseech you, until you see me safe in Heaven, blessing you and singing your mercies for all eternity.
Amen, so I hope, so may it be.
ooo
This article is taken from a chapter in Visits to the Blessed Sacrament by St. Alphonsus Liguori which is available from TAN Books.
