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Day Four
Act of Repentance
To be said first, each day of the novena
I believe in Thee, O my God.
Strengthen, O Lord, my faith.
I hope in Thee, O my God.
Affirm, O Lord, my hope.
I love Thee, O my God;
increase, O Lord, my love.
I repent of having offended Thee.
O my God, help me
to have contrition,
so that with the help
of Thy grace and the
powerful patronage of
Holy Mary of Good Success,
I may never sin again.
O Lord, have pity and mercy on me.
Amen.
Opening Prayer
To be said each day of the novena
O most Excellent and Immaculate
Queen of Heaven,
Holy Mary of Good Success,
most favored Daughter of
the Eternal Father,
most beloved Mother of
the Divine Son,
most cherished
Spouse of the Holy Spirit,
sublime Throne of
the Divine Majesty,
August Temple of the Holy Trinity,
in whom the Three Divine Persons
have placed the treasures
of Their Power, Wisdom and Love!
Remember, Virgin Mary of Good Success,
whom God hath made so great
so that thou canst give succor
to miserable sinners;
remember that thou hast often
promised to show thyself
a merciful Mother to those
who have recourse to thee.
I come to thee then,
Mother most merciful,
and I beg thee,
for thy love of the Most High,
that thou should obtain for me
from God the Father
a lively Faith that
never loses sight of the eternal truths;
from the Son, a firm Hope that
always aspires to reach
that glory that He won
for me with His Blood;
and from the Holy Ghost,
a charity so inflamed
that I will always live
loving the Supreme Goodness
and thee, Most Holy Virgin,
until through thy intervention
I will love and enjoy
thee eternally in glory.
Amen.
We salute thee Mary,
as the Favored Daughter
of God the Father.
Hail Mary...
We salute thee Mary,
as the Chosen Mother
of the Divine Son.
Hail Mary...
We salute thee Mary,
as the Singular Spouse
of the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary... Glory be to the Father...
Day Four
Consider the indescribable joy
of the good Minorite brothers
on contemplating these prodigies.
The Statue of our beloved Mother
shone before them like a
resplendent star, and they
reverently prostrated themselves
before her to praise and thank her
for a gift so unique and
an event so extraordinary.
Their thoughts and sentiments
were raised to heavenly considerations
and they believed themselves to be
favored by something supernatural.
For everything they saw and
felt within those walls of such
inaccessible rock so far from
any other houses
seemed made by more than human hands.
They repeated their prayers of
thanksgiving with fervor.
Then, asking light and grace from Heaven
to know what they should do,
they decided to try to discover
the origin of that sanctuary
and Statue by seeking the
pious persons or community
who were caring so prodigiously
for this cult.
Even though it seemed impossible
to them that such magnificence
was the work of men
in a place so retired and inaccessible,
prudence and piety cautioned them
to first make a careful investigation
about the matter.
They inquired at the hamlets
nearest the cave, which were
more than three leagues in distance,
but found no one who could
give them even the least
information about the Statue.
Not even the persons they
questioned who were 80 and 100 years old
had ever heard about the statue
or any such devotion in those
outlying woods or
any other place near the region.
Consider, then, the astonishment
and holy joy of the Brothers,
now the owners of the extraordinary finding,
as they humbled themselves again
before the Holy Statue,
offering her their warmest thanks
with embraces and warm emotion,
choosing her as their special patron
and mediatrix under the
very significant title of
Mother of Good Success.
The heart is moved by sentiments
of pious gratitude and admiration
for such a prodigious favor
as this that was granted
to the Holy Brothers.
Let us unite with them
in their tender embraces of Mary,
loving her and lavishing her
with generous resolutions,
because we also have mercifully
found her on the dangerous pathway
of life amidst the horror
of the storm of our passions.
Prayer
O God of infinite love!
Thou hast given us in our Mother
a precious shelter and consolation,
placing her in the pathway
of our hazardous lives
so that she might be
a shield to defend us
in persecutions and dangers
as Our Mother of Good Success.
Thankful for Thy goodness,
may we correspond with the practice
of virtue and a tender
and constant devotion to Mary Most Holy,
so that through her intercession
we might find Heaven.
Amen.
Act of Thanksgiving to the Blessed Virgin
To be said each day of the novena
O Virgin blessed among all women!
We lack the words to give thee thanks
for the innumerable blessings that we
have received from thy hand.
The day of thy birth
can be called the day of thanksgiving,
happiness, and consolation.
Thou art the honor of mankind,
the joy of Paradise,
the beloved gift of God,
and the well-being of our country.
What merit do we have,
Blessed Virgin of Good Success,
to deserve to have thee
as our Mother?
May God be forever blessed
Who hath desired it so!
Blessed also art thou, Virgin Mary,
because despite our ingratitude,
thou dost show us
thy propitious favor.
Thus art thou, most clement Mother,
our consolation on earth,
our refuge, our help,
and our protection in both
our public and private needs.
Safeguard us from war,
pestilence, hunger, storms,
earthquakes, and all the calamities
that we merit by our guilt.
Pray for the Holy Church
and for her visible head.
Hear the supplications of those
who invoke thee.
Be thou our Advocate, our Mother,
for as thus do we place our confidence in thee.
To thee do we have recourse,
and through thy intercession
we hope to achieve from
thy Son pardon for our sins
and perseverance in grace until death.
Amen.
Here, each one raising up
his heart to God, should ask,
through the intercession of
Blessed Mary of Good Success,
that grace or favor which
he desires to receive.
Praises to the Holy Virgin
To be said each day of the novena
O Virgin Mary, our Mother
preeminent above all on earth.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Above all others, thou wert
attentive to the
Word of the Father,
Who doth great things in thy honor.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Thou art the most worthy
temple of the Most Holy Trinity.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
In thee is that same purity the Angels enjoy.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
The Christian world proclaims that
thou dost reign on the
right side of the King of Kings.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
O Mother of Grace, our Hope!
Port of the shipwrecked
and star of the sea,
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Gate of Heaven, health of the sick,
light in the darkness.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Through thee, we will find
ourselves before God
in the court of the Saints,
where He lives and reigns forever.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Guide our steps and help us,
O sweet Mary, in our last hours.
Response: Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Receive this praise
from our tender lips,
which cannot express
thy singular grandeur.
Come to our assistance
and show us mercy,
because thou art our Mother.
Antiphon: Holy Mary, save the miserable,
help the weak, intercede for the afflicted,
plead for the people,
intercede for the clergy,
petition for the faithful.
Permit all those who
celebrate thy holy memory to
experience thy favor and assistance.
V. Pray for us, O Virgin of Good Success!
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Final Prayer
We ask thee, our Lord and God,
that Thou grant us health of
soul and body through the
intercession of the glorious Virgin Mary.
Through her merits and
those of her
sovereign Child Jesus,
we hope to be freed from
the present evils and
to attain eternal happiness.
Amen.
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