Thanks to the apparitions of Mary to Saint Bernadette, we know that Our Lady of Lourdes listens to our suffering be it physical, emotional or spiritual. Like the million of pilgrims visiting the sanctuary, we also can ask for the healing of our bodies and souls with this novena. It is usually done between the 3rd and the 11th of February as the 11th is the day of the first apparition to Bernadette and has become the feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes as well as World Day of the Sick, initiated by Saint John Paul II.
Every day you will pray for a particular intention to Blessed Mary, as well as saying an Our Father, a Hail Mary, and a Glory Be. You will end with a prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 1 : We pray that our intentions may be pure in all that we do.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, Immaculate Mother, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 2 : We pray to receive a spirit of humility.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, who chose a weak and poor child to guide us, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 3 : We pray for the grace to recite the rosary more often.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, 18 times blessed in the apparitions, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 4 : We pray to always have complete trust in the Mother of Our Saviour.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, who Jesus cannot refuse, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 5 : We pray to have more hope in Mary.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, who no one has ever evoked in vain, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 6 : We pray for the sick
“Our Lady of Lourdes, health for the infirme, you who heal the body to help heal the souls, show us that you are in favour of our pleas. Be the hope for our sick, so that their confidence in You will be crowned with success. Oh Mother of Mercy, show us your hope. Intercede for us and for our loved ones? Pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 7 : We pray that we recognize and regret our sins as well as for all sinners.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, refuge for sinners, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 8 : We pray for the Church.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, the anchor of the Church, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Day 9 : We pray for the Souls of Purgatory.
“Our Lady of Lourdes, defender for the souls of Purgatory, pray for us.”
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be and the prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.
"Mary,
Our Lady of Lourdes,
You appeared in the hollow of the rock of Massabielle
To Bernadette, a small and simple shepherdess from Bigorre.
You brought her the radiant light of your smile,
The gentle, resplendent brightness of your presence.
Day by day, you built a relationship with her
Where you looked at her like one person talking to another.
We, too, come here before you in our poverty, and we humbly pray to you.
May those who doubt discover the joy of trust,
May those who despair sense your discreet presence.
Mary,
Our Lady of Lourdes,
You revealed your name to Bernadette
By simply saying “I am the Immaculate Conception”.
May we discover the joy of a forgiveness that never falters,
Instil in us the desire for a rediscovered innocence and a joyful holiness.
Help the blinded sinner.
You who gave birth to the Saviour of the world,
Look tenderly on our beautiful but tragic world.
Open in us the path of hope,
Guide us to the One who is the Living Source,
Jesus, your Son, who teaches us to say
Our Father…"
Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us! Saint Bernadette, pray for us!
It is also possible to pray to Our Lady of Lourdes by praying the rosary and concentrating on its mysteries. The Rosary is prayed everyday at Lourdes.
For nine consecutive days, you can kneel, like Saint Bernadette, before Our Lady, and present your petitions, trusting in her intercession. Each day you will receive a quote from Saint Bernadette to meditate upon and prayers. You will also say this prayer everyday.
“Ever Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Mercy, we call upon you as Health of the Sick, Refuge of Sinners, and Comfort to the Afflicted.
You know my wants, my troubles, my sufferings. Deign to cast upon me a look of mercy. By appearing in the Grotto of Lourdes, you were pleased to make it a sanctuary whence you dispense your favors, and already many sufferers have obtained the cure of their infirmities, both spiritual and physical.
I come, therefore, with the most unbounded confidence to implore your maternal intercession. Obtain, O loving Mother, the granting of my requests (mention them here).
Through gratitude for favors, I will endeavor to imitate your virtues that I may one day share your glory.
Amen.”
As Catholics we believe in the Communion of Saints, meaning that we can all intercede and ask God for the specific needs of someone. Hozana has a multitude of prayer communities where you can pray for the intercession of Saints. For example, you can pray to St. Peregrine for cancer patients, St. Rita for Impossible Cases, St. Jude for when you are in despair, and St. Jose Maria Escriva for the sick. You also have the possibility to post a prayer intention and have many pray with you.