# Novena prayer to saints Joachim and Anne
*2008-07-24*

> Bill Young leads the eighth day of a novena to the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary and offers a special prayer for a friend facing a grave illness.

## A Prayer for the Sick

Before continuing with the novena, I want to share a 'Prayer in Illness.' I am dedicating this prayer to my friend John, whom I have known since December. I've had the privilege of giving Communion to him and his wife, Roseanne. Although John's illness is very grave, his spirit remains very high. This prayer is for him and his wife.

O Jesus, you said, 'Come to me, all of you who are weary and overburdened, and I will give you rest.' I come to you broken-hearted by suffering because I feel the need of your comfort. O Lord, be close to me at all times, especially when pain torments my body and soul, when depression threatens to take possession of me, when I consider myself to be useless and a burden to others, and when everything becomes dark all around me. When I am at the limits of my strength, do not abandon me, O Lord, but come to my aid with your grace. You who suffered so much, prophesied to become a man of sorrows, take your merciful hand and offer my sacrifice together with your immolation which is repeated continuously on the altar. Bless those who assist me in my illness, and give acceptance and courage to all those who suffer in this world. Our Lady of Sorrows, who participated with heroic strength in the passion of our Savior, stay by my side as a mother. Do not permit my faith and hope to fail in the hour of trial. I turn also to you, St. Anthony, my heavenly friend and protector. Accompany me on this difficult road to Calvary. Fill me with sentiments of filial abandonment to the will of God so that I may never lose my inner serenity. I have always trusted in you; do not let the offerings of my pain be given in vain. Amen.

## Beginning the Novena

We now continue with our novena to the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. O God, come to my aid; O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and was born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. On the third day He rose again. He ascended into heaven. He is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

## Intercessions to Saint Anne

Blessed are you, St. Anne, for having among all mothers had the Immaculate Virgin Mary as your daughter. The delight of God the Father, I admire the greatness of your vocation and the graces for which the Lord, the God of our fathers, adorned you. I unite myself to your most holy protection and consecrate all my life to Jesus and to the Immaculate Virgin Mary. Grant that I may live as you did, actively awaiting the Lord Jesus in an attitude of humble openness and gratitude, so that by allowing myself to be loved by Him and by loving my brothers and sisters, I may come one day to praise and bless Him in eternity. Amen.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the unfailing patience for which you bore the sorrow of your sterility, obtain also for us the grace of continuous acceptance in the face of the trials of this life. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the fervent and ceaseless prayer for which you asked God to console the gift of your fertility, obtain for us a true spirit of prayer in order to allow holy virtues to grow in our hearts. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the life of rigorous sacrifice which you united to your prayer in order to be heard more readily by God, grant that the fervor of our prayers may be accompanied by the spirit of sacrifice, so that we may be made worthy of heavenly graces. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

## Trust and Devotion

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the gentle ways for which you moved the heart of God, through almsgiving and works of charity, grant us a charity similar to yours so that He may have mercy on us. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the holy confidence with which you hoped for the fulfillment of your desires, obtain for us a steadfast trust, so that we may be sure to obtain favors from heaven. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the marvelous gratitude you showed God upon perceiving that you had become a mother through His grace, grant that we may always be grateful to God for the favors we have continuously received from Him, in order that we may be worthy to receive further graces. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

## Offering and Holiness

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through the pure and holy love that you nurtured for Mary when you received the great grace to become her mother, grant that we may always love this daughter of yours, who is our mother, so dear to us and so holy, in order to merit her protection. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, for the great sacrifice of offering your daughter from such a young age to divine service in the temple, grant that we, in holy courage, may offer as a sacrifice to God anything He wishes to ask of us in order to obtain His holy will and continue His blessings. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us.

St. Anne, glorious mother of Mary, through that fervent holiness with which you served God all the days of your life, intercede to pray to the Lord that we may live as righteous and holy people until the end of our days. St. Anne, Mother of the Mother of God, pray for us. Amen.