# Novena to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Caravaggio: Day One
*2015-05-16*

> Bill Young introduces the novena to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Caravaggio, observed from May 17th through May 25th.

## Introduction to the Novena

Good afternoon. This is Bill Young, and welcome to the Prayer N Lunch podcast. Today we are starting a new novena, which runs from May 17th through May 25th. This is the novena to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Caravaggio. Caravaggio was an Italian painter of the 19th century who depicted the Blessed Virgin Mary in many works of his art.

## Opening Prayers

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. O God, come to my assistance; 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.

## The Apostles' Creed

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 born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell, and on the third day, He rose again. He ascended into heaven, and 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.

## Prayer to Our Lady of Caravaggio

O most holy Virgin of Caravaggio, an inexhaustible source of graces, honored from ancestral times, in these special days of the novena, we pray to you so that the expectations of all those who approach you may not be disappointed, and no one's plea may be made in vain. Our Lady of Caravaggio, pray for us. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

*We turn to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Caravaggio as an inexhaustible source of grace, trusting that no plea made to her is in vain.*