The “three Novenas of Pompeii” consist of praying the Novena of Petition three times, that is for 27 days, and immediately after, the Novena of Thanksgiving three times, that is for another 27 days, whether or not the request has been granted. This is a 54 days novena, accompanied by the recitation of the 20 decades of the Rosary each day.
ORIGIN OF THE NOVENA OF PETITION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN OF THE ROSARY OF POMPEII
Having been struck down, in July of 1879, with typhoid fever, Bartolo Longo composed the “Novena of Petition” to ask for graces in the most desperate cases. Every day he went before the Picture of the Virgin of the Rosary to be inspired and make some amendments. But one day, owing to a serious worsening of his illness, he thought that the only remedy was to bring the Picture of the Virgin from the Chapel to his bedroom. Turning to Saint Catherine of Siena to intercede in his favor with Our Lady, he suddenly recovered. Since then, the Heavenly Mother has been granting graces to anyone who prays to Her with the Novena written by Her faithful devotee. Many other miraculous recoveries took place all over the world thanks to the recitation of this Novena. Most of those cases were approved by the Diocesan Bishops with regular Canonical Processes, and published in the magazine “Il Rosario e la Nuova Pompei”. In 1894, in Arpino (Frosinone), Saint Catherine of Siena, represented at the feet of the Virgin in the Pompeian Icon, appeared to a dying young girl and invited her to recite the Novena and pray it together with her. At the end of the prayer, the young girl was completely cured. The Novena of Petition, approved by Pope Leo XIII on November 29, 1887, was translated in several foreign languages.
NOVENA OF PETITION
Put the miraculous image of the Virgin of Pompeii on display and, if possible, light two candles as a symbol of the faith which burns in your heart. Then take the rosary beads in your hands. Before beginning the Novena, pray to St. Catherine of Siena that she may graciously deign to join you in prayer.
O Saint Catherine of Siena, my Protectress and Teacher, who from Heaven assists your devotees when they recite the Rosary of Mary, come to my aid in this moment and deign to recite with me the Novena to the Queen of the Rosary, who has established the throne of Her graces in the Valley of Pompeii, that through your intercession, I may obtain the grace I desire. Amen.
O God, come to my assistance.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father
I. – O Immaculate Virgin and Queen of the Holy Rosary, in these times of dead faith and triumphant impiety You wished to establish your throne as Queen and Mother in the ancient land of Pompeii, the resting place of dead pagans. From that place, in which idols and demons were worshipped, You today, as the Mother of divine grace, shower everywhere the treasures of the heavenly mercies. Now then, from the throne on which You graciously reign, turn also on me your benign eyes, and have mercy on me who am so greatly in need of your help. Show Yourself also to me, just like You have shown yourself to so many others, as the true Mother of mercy: while I, with all my heart, salute You and invoke You as my Sovereign and Queen of the Holy Rosary.
Hail, Holy Queen
II. – Prostrate at the foot of your throne, O great and glorious Lady, my soul venerates You amidst the groans and worries which afflict it beyond measure. In this state of anguish and affliction in which I find myself, I confidently raise my eyes to You, who have deigned to choose the land of poor and abandoned peasants as your dwelling-place. And there, before the city and the amphitheatre where silence and ruin reign, You, as the Queen of Victories, raised your powerful voice to call from every part of Italy and the Catholic world your devoted children to build a Temple to you. Now then, take pity on this soul of mine that lies disheartened in the mud. Have mercy on me, O Lady, have mercy on me who am overwhelmingly full of miseries and humiliations. You, who are the Extermination of demons, defend me from these enemies who besiege me. You, who are the Help of Christians, deliver me from these tribulations that wretchedly oppress me. You, who are our Life, triumph over death that threatens my soul in these dangers to which it is exposed; give me again peace, serenity, love and health. Amen.
Hail, Holy Queen
III. – Knowing that so many have been helped by You, solely because they turned to You with faith, gives me new strength and courage to invoke You in my needs. You once promised St. Dominic that those who wish to receive graces, through your Rosary could obtain them. And I, with your Rosary in my hands, dare to remind you, O Mother, of your holy promises. Indeed, You yourself still perform miracles in our times to call your children to honour You in the Temple of Pompeii. You, therefore, long to wipe our tears away and relieve our worries! Then I, with my heart on my lips and with burning faith, call upon You and invoke You: My Mother!... Dear Mother!... Beautiful Mother!... Most Sweet Mother, help me! Mother and Queen of the Holy Rosary of Pompeii, delay no longer in stretching your powerful hand out to me to save me: for the delay, as you see, would lead me to ruin.
Hail, Holy Queen
IV. – And to whom else might I turn, if not to You, who are the Solace of the wretched, the Comfort of the forsaken, the Consolation of the afflicted? I confess it to You, my soul is miserable: weighed down by enormous faults, deserving to burn in hell, unworthy of receiving graces! But are You not the Hope of those who despair, the Mother of Jesus, the only Mediator between God and humanity, our powerful Advocate before the throne of the Almighty, the Refuge of sinners? Now then, if You only say a word on my behalf to your Son, He will hear You. Therefore, ask Him, O Mother, for this grace which I greatly need (Here express the grace you desire). You alone can obtain it for me: You who are my only hope, my consolation, my sweetness, my whole life. So I hope. Amen.
Hail, Holy Queen
V. – O Virgin and Queen of the Holy Rosary, You who are the Daughter of the Heavenly Father, the Mother of the Divine Son, the Spouse of the Holy Spirit; You who can obtain everything from the Blessed Trinity: You must beseech on my behalf this grace so necessary for me, provided that it is not an obstacle to my eternal salvation (Here repeat the grace you desire). I ask it of You through your Immaculate Conception, through your divine Maternity, through your joys, through your sorrows and your triumphs. I ask it of You through the Heart of your loving Jesus, through those nine months when You carried Him in your womb, through His sufferings, through His bitter passion, through His death on the cross, through His most holy Name, through His most precious Blood. Finally, I ask it of You through your own sweetest Heart: in your glorious Name, O Mary, who are the Star of the sea, the Powerful Lady, the Sea of sorrow, the Gate of Heaven and the Mother of all graces. In You I trust, in You I hope for everything; You must save me. Amen.
Hail, Holy Queen
Queen of the Holy Rosary, pray for us, That we may be worthy of the promises of Christ.
PRAYER - O God, whose only Begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of everlasting life; grant, we beseech You, that we, who meditate upon these mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, may imitate what they contain, and obtain what they promise. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
TO ST. DOMINIC AND TO ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA TO OBTAIN THE GRACES FROM
THE BLESSED VIRGIN OF POMPEII
O holy priest of God and glorious Patriarch Saint Dominic, you who were the friend, the beloved son and the confidant of our heavenly Queen, and who worked many miracles through the power of the Holy Rosary; and you, Saint Catherine of Siena, the first daughter of this Order of the Rosary and a powerful mediatrix before the throne of Mary and the Heart of Jesus, with whom you exchanged hearts: You, my dear holy Saints, look on my needs and take pity on the state I find myself in. You had, on earth, the heart open to all miseries of men, and the powerful hand to meet their needs. Now, in Heaven, neither your charity nor your power have lessened. Pray, then, on my behalf, to the Mother of the Rosary and to Her Divine Son, for I have great faith that through you I could obtain the grace I ardently desire. Amen.
Three Glory be to the Father
Prayer to Blessed Bartolo Longo
O Blessed Bartolo Longo, you who loved Mary with the tenderness of a son and who spread devotion by the reciting of the Holy Rosary and through her intercession received superabundant grace to love and serve Christ through service to abandoned children, obtain for us the grace to live in the spirit of prayer united to God, to love him, as you did, through our brothers. You, who at the end of your earthly journey declared never having tired of praying for every pain, for every hardship, for every calamity, trusting in the omnipotence of God and in the intercession of His Divine Mother, continue to intercede for those who are called to continue your work of faith and love at Pompeii and for all the Rosarians of the world. Pray for us that we, after the earthly contemplation of the joyful and sorrowful Mysteries, can with you share the joy of the glorious Mysteries in heaven with Mary, Queen of the angels and of the Saints. Amen.
Prayer for the Canonization of Blessed Bartolo Longo
God, Father of Mercy, we praise you for having sent into the history of humankind Blessed Bartolo Longo, ardent apostle of the Rosary and shining example of a layman deeply involved in the evangelical witnessing of faith and of charity. We thank you for his extraordinary spiritual journey, his prophetic intuitions, his tireless endeavours on behalf of the poorest and the neglected, the devotion with which he served your Church and built the new city of love at Pompeii. We beseech you, grant that Blessed Bartolo Longo soon be numbered among the Saints of the universal Church, so that everyone may follow him as a model of life and benefit by his intercession.
Amen.
Three Glory Be to the Father
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