ROSARIO DELL'ADDORORATA

INITIAL PRAYER:

O dear Madonna, or Mother of sorrows, I want to pause to reflect on all those situations in which You have suffered most. I wish to stay with you for a while and to remember with gratitude how much you have suffered for me. To your sufferings, which have lasted for the entire span of your earthly life, also my sufferings, and also those of all the fathers and mothers, of all the sick young people, children and the elderly, so that their every pain is accepted with love and every cross is carried with hope in the heart. Amen.

FIRST PAIN:

Mary in the temple listens to Simeon's prophecy.

O Mary, while in the temple You presented your Son to God, the old Simeon predicted that your Son would be a sign of contradiction and that your soul would be pierced by a sword of pain. These same words have already been a sword for your soul: you have also kept these words, like the others, in your heart. Thank you, o Maria. I offer this mystery to all those parents who in any way find themselves suffering for their children. 7 Ave Maria.

SECOND PAIN:

Mary flees to Egypt to save Jesus.

O Mary, you had to flee with your Son to Egypt, because the powerful of the earth had risen against him to kill him. it is difficult to imagine all the feelings you felt when, at the invitation of your Bridegroom, you got up in the middle of the night and took your Child to flee, that Child in whom you recognized and adored the Messiah and the Son of God. You are left without the certainties that the homeland and the home hearth can offer. You fled, and so you associated with those who do not have a roof over their head or who live in foreign countries, without a homeland. O Mary, I turn to you, who are Mother, and I beg you for those who are forced to abandon their homes. I pray for the refugees, for the persecuted, for the exiles I pray for the poor, who do not have sufficient means to build a house and a family. Please in particular for those who, following family conflicts, have left their family and are living on the street: for young people who disagree with their parents, for spouses who have separated, for people that are rejected. Guide them, O Mary, through their suffering towards the "new home". 7 Ave Maria.

THIRD PAIN:

Mary gets lost and finds Jesus.

O Mary, for three days, with unspeakable anxiety, you sought your Son, and finally, full of joy, you found him in the temple. The suffering lasted long in your heart. The punishment was great because you were aware of your responsibility. You knew that Heavenly Father had entrusted you with his Son, the Redeemer Messiah. So your pain has been immense, and the joy after the re-discovery has certainly been boundless. O Maria, I pray for the young people who have moved away from their homes and consequently find themselves suffering a lot. Please for those who have had to leave their paternal home for health reasons and are alone in hospitals. I pray especially for those young people who have been deprived of love and peace, and no longer know what the paternal home is. Look for them, O Maria, and let them find themselves, so that the realization of a new world becomes more and more possible. 7 Ave Maria.

FOURTH PAIN:

Mary meets Jesus who carries the cross.

O Mary, you met your Son while carrying the Cross. Who could describe the pain you felt in that moment? I find myself speechless ... O Holy Mother, I pray for those who are left alone in their pain. Visit prisoners and comfort them; visit the sick; goes to those who are lost. Give a caress to those who are affected by incurable diseases, such as when for the last time here on earth you have caressed your Son. Help them to offer their suffering for the salvation of the world, as you yourself - alongside your Son - offered your pain. 7 Ave Maria.

Let's pray:

O Mary, humble handmaid of the Lord, whom you let yourself be grasped by the blessed-promise promised by your Son to those who do the will of the Father, help us to be docile to the will of God on us and to welcome the cross on our way with the same love with which you welcomed and brought it.

FIFTH PAIN:

Mary is present at the crucifixion and death of Jesus.

O Mary, I contemplate you while standing next to your dying Son. You had followed him with pain, and now with inconsolable pain you are under his Cross. O Mary, your fidelity in suffering is truly great. You have a strong soul, pain has not closed your heart in the face of new tasks: by desire of the Son, you become Mother of all of us. Please, Maria, for those who assist the sick. Help them to give loving care. It gives strength and courage to those who can no longer stand beside their sick. In particular, bless mothers who have infirm children; makes it too healthy for them to be in contact with the cross. Join your Mother's grief with the exhausting fatigue of those who for years or perhaps throughout their lives are called to serve their loved ones. 7 Ave Maria.

SIXTH PAIN:

Mary receives Jesus placed on the cross on her arms.

I observe you, O Mary, while, immersed in the deepest pain, welcome the lifeless body of your Son on your knees. Your pain continues even when his has ended. Warm it up once again with your mother's breast, with the goodness and love of your heart. O Mother, I consecrate myself to you right now. I consecrate you my pain, the pain of all men. I consecrate you the people who are alone, abandoned, rejected, who are in quarrel with others. I consecrate the whole world to you. All are welcomed under your maternal protection. Let the world become one family, where everyone feels like brothers and sisters. 7 Ave Maria.

SEVENTH PAIN:

Mary accompanies Jesus to burial.

O Mary, you accompanied him to the sepulcher. You sobbed and cried over him, like you cry for an only child. Many people in the world live in pain because they have lost loved ones. Comfort them, and give them the comfort of faith. Many are without faith and without hope, and they struggle in the problems of this world, losing trust and joie de vivre. O Mary, intercede for them, so that they may have faith and find their way. Evil be destroyed, and a new life arises, that life which was born of your suffering and the sepulcher of your Son. Amen. 7 Ave Maria.

Let's pray:

O God, you wanted your sorrowful Mother to be present next to your Son, raised on the cross: make your holy Church, associated with her to the passion of Christ, participate in the glory of the resurrection. For your Son himself, who is God and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.