Day 8 — Mother of the Church

By the sign of the Holy Cross, from our enemies deliver us, Lord our God. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening Prayer for All Days

O God, who by the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin prepared a worthy dwelling for your Son, we beseech you that, as you preserved her from every stain in foresight of the death of your Son, you would also grant us, through her intercession, to attain the purity that leads us into your presence. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer of the Day

Hail, Mary, Mother of the Church: you who were constituted Mother of all the disciples of your Son, obtain for us by your intercession the unity of Christians and the fidelity of the Church to her mission.

Biblical Reading

"Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother... When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, 'Woman, behold, your son!' Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother!'" (John 19:25-27).

Meditation

On the cross, Jesus gave Mary as Mother to all his disciples. She is the Mother of the Church, the model of the Church that is immaculate and holy. Her intercession sustains us on the way of faith.

Petition

Here the particular petition desired is made.

Final Prayer for All Days

O Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God and our Mother, by the singular grace of your Immaculate Conception, obtain for us the grace to imitate your purity and your fidelity to God. May we, like you, always know how to say "yes" to the will of the Father. Amen.

(Our Father, Hail Mary, and Gloria, three times each).

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.