Servite Rosary or Chaplet of Seven Dolors was instituted in the 13th century in honor of the Seven Sorrows our Lady endured with her Divine Son.
The Lord has given us all many gifts. One of the greatest of those gifts is the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. She is there to help us. If you are in trouble, she is there to intercede for you. First, you must get things right with the Lord. Think how you have failed in your actions, in your words, in your thoughts, and in your inaction. You need to ask with a sincere heart for the Lord's forgiveness for all your sins. You must be sincerely sorry that you have offended the Lord.
If you are Catholic, you must go to confession if you have any mortal sins. Have you not been going to church regularly? Keep the Day of the Lord and go to church every Sunday. Go and spend time in adoration. Turn your troubles over to the Lord. Trust in Jesus. Ask him for guidance. Ask him what to do next. Listen.
Our Lady of Sorrows understands sadness and pain. Ask her for help. She wants to help us. She wants us to grow closer to her son, her Lord and our Lord. Say the chaplet of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows everyday. Ask her to intercede for you. She is there to help. Pray all the time. Pray for your enemies, and pray they are no longer your enemies. Pray that they become closer to our Lord Jesus Christ.
How to pray the Chaplet of Seven Sorrow:
We start with an Act of contrition :
O my Lord, Thou who alone art most worthy of my love, behold me standing before Thy Divine Presence all in confusion at the thought of the many grievous injuries I have done Thee. I ask Thy pardon for them with my whole heart, repenting of them purely for love of Thee, and hating and loathing them above every other evil of this life, when I think of Thy infinite goodness. As I would rather have died a thousand times than have offended Thee, so now I am most firmly resolved to lose my life rather than offend Thee again. My crucified Jesus, I firmly purpose to cleanse my soul as soon as possible by Thy most Precious Blood in the Sacrament of Penance. And thou, most tender Virgin, Mother of Mercy and Refuge of sinners, do thou obtain for me the pardon of sin by virtue of thy bitter pains; whilst praying according to the mind of so many holy Pontiffs in order to obtain the indulgences granted to this thy holy Rosary, I hope thereby to obtain remission of all pains due to my sins. Amen
This Act of Contrition is also a good way to ask Mary for help regarding what is troubling you. Also remember to pray for other people (especially any who have suffered because of something you may have done.) There are also some other optional prayers that some people say; however, the following is the basic chaplet.
Make the sign of the cross. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
1. The first sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was the Prophecy of Holy Simeon when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the temple.
I compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the affliction of thy tender heart when the holy old man Simeon prophesied to thee. Dear Mother, by thy heart then so afflicted, obtain for me the virtue of humility and the gift of holy fear of God.
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the first sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
2. The second sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was the Flight into Egypt. An angel of the Lord told Joseph to take the Holy Family to Egypt to flee from Herod
I compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the anxiety which thy sensitive heart underwent in the flight to and sojourn in Egypt. Dear Mother, by thy heart which was then made so anxious, obtain for me the virtue of gentilness , specially towards the poor, and the gift of piety.
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the second sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
3. The third sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was Three-day Separation from Jesus in Jerusalem .
I compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the trouble of thy careful heart when thou didst lose thy dear Son Jesus. Dear Mother, by thy heart then so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of holy chastity and the gift of knowledge
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the third sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
4. The fourth sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was Meeting Christ on the Road to Calvary .
I compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the shock thy maternal heart underwent when Jesus met thee as He carried His cross. Dear Mother, by thy loving heart then so overwhelmed, obtain for me the virtue of patience and the gift of fortitude.
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the fourth sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
5. The fifth sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus Christ .
I compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the martyrdom thy generous heart bore so nobly whilst thou didst stand by Jesus in His agony. Dear Mother, by thy heart then so martyred, obtain for me the virtue of temperance and the gift of counsel.
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the fifth sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
6. The sixth sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was Our Lord is Taken Down from the Cross (Pieta) Mary could see all his wounds up close.
I Compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the wound of thy tender heart when the sacred Side of Jesus was pierced with the lance. Dear Mother, by thy heart then so transfixed, obtain for me the virtue of fraternal charity and the gift of understanding
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the sixth sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
7. The seventh sword of sorrow to pierce Mary's heart was Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is Buried in the Tomb contemplate her following His sacred body, as it was borne by Joseph of Arimathea, and Nicodemus, to the sepulcher, enclosed there, and hidden from her sight. .
I compassionate thee, sorrowing Mary, in the pang felt by thy loving heart when the Body of Jesus was buried in the grave. Dear Mother, by all the bitterness of desolation thou didst then experience, obtain for me the virtue of diligence and the gift of wisdom.
Pray the Our Father. Reflect on the seventh sorrow while saying seven Hail Marys.
In the end of the chaplet we pray three Hail Marys in honor the tears Mary shed, and ask her to help in achieving true contrition for your sins.
Then we pray the following prayer, "Pray for us, O most Sorrowful Virgin.- That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Amen."
Say the closing prayer, "Lord Jesus, we now implore, both for the present and for the hour of our death, the intercession of the most Blessed Virgin Mary, your Mother, whose holy soul was pierced at the time of your Passion by a sword of grief. Grant us this favor, O Savior of the world, Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen."
End with the sign of the cross.
About this awesome Chaplet of 7 Dolors ( called also the Servite Rosary or the Chaplet of Seven Sorrows )
It was about the year 1233 that seven holy men of noble birth, by name Bonfiglio, Monaldio, Bonagiunta, Manetto, Amadeo, Uguccio, and Alessio Falconieri, withdrew from the city of Florence into the solitude of Mount Senario, receiving afterwards from the Church the appellation of the "Seven Blessed Founders." For it was in that solitude that, passing their days in the constant exercise of prayer, penitence, and other virtues, they, by a special revelation from the Blessed Virgin, instituted the Order called "Servants of Mary," taking for the object of their institution, meditation on the bitter pains she suffered in the Life, Passion, and Death of her Son Jesus, and, undertaking to promulgate this devotion amongst Christian people. One of the devout practices which they made use of for their purpose was a Chaplet or Rosary of Seven Divisions, in remembrance of the seven principal Dolours of the Blessed Virgin, which were to form the subject of the reciter's meditation according to his ability; the prayers to be said during such meditation being one Pater noster and seven Ave Maria's for each division, with three more Ave Maria's at the end of all, in honour of the tears shed by the same most holy Virgin in her Dolours.
Pope Benedict XIII, September 26th, 1724, granted an indulgence of 200 days for every Our Father and every Hail Mary. to those who, with sincere contrition, and having confessed, or firmly purposing to confess their sins, shall recite this Chaplet on any Friday, or on any day of Lent, on the Festival of the Seven Dolours, or within the Octave; and 100 days on any other day of the year. Pope Clement XII, December 12, 1734, confirmed these indulgences, and moreover granted:
1) A Plenary Indulgence to those who shall have recited this Chaplet for a month every day ~ confession, Communion and Prayers for the Church, required as usual.
2) An indulgence of 100 years to all who should recite it on any day, having confessed their sins, with sincere sorrow, or at least firmly purposing to do so.
3) 150 years to those who should recite it on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and Holidays of Obligation, with Confession and Communion.
4) A Plenary indulgence once a year, on any day, to those who are accustomed to recite it four times a week, on condition of Confession, Communion, and the Recital of the Chaplet on the day of Communion.
5) 200 years indulgence to all who recite it devoutly after Confession; and to all who carry it about them, and frequently recite it, 10 years' indulgence every time they shall hear Mass, hear a sermon, or reciting Our Father, and seven Hail Marys shall perform any spiritual or corporal work of mercy, in honor of our Blessed Savior, the Blessed Virgin Mary, or any Saint, their advocate.
(All these indulgences were confirmed by a decree of January 17th, 1747, and rendered applicable to the souls in Purgatory.)
Other 7 dolors Chaplet Promises - "This devotion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of My Mother will restore faith and hope to broken hearts and to ruined families; it will help to repair the destruction; it will sweeten sorrow. It will be a new strength for My Church, bringing souls, not only to confidence in My Heart, but also to abandonment to the Sorrowful Heart of My Mother." (Our Lord to Berthe Petit)
4 Special Graces are granted and -promised to those devoted to the 7 Sorrows of Mary: Revealed by Our Lord to St. Elizabeth of Hungary:
1) The grace of True Repentance for all their sins should they invoke The Blessed Virgin Mother in the name of her Sorrows before their death.
2) Jesus would protect them in their tribulations all who remember this devotion; they would have His special protection especially at the hour of death.
3) Jesus would impress upon their minds the remembrance of His Passion, and that they should have their reward for it in Heaven.
4) That He would commit such devout clients to the hands of Mary, so that she might obtain for these souls all the graces she wanted to lavish upon them.
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