The feast of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal is on November 27, and many families and parishes prepare for it with a novena: nine days of prayer, from November 18 to 26. Here is a simple way to pray it at home, with an intention for each day inspired by the Miraculous Medal itself, which so many people wear to keep the Virgin close to their heart.
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How to pray each day
All it takes is a few minutes, alone or with your family. Here is a simple way:
- Make the sign of the cross.
- Read the intention for the day and spend a moment in silence with it.
- Pray an Our Father.
- Repeat the prayer of the medal three times: "O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.".
- End with a Glory Be.
If you wear the Miraculous Medal, take it out for a moment and hold it in your hand while you pray. It is a small gesture that helps you remember that you wear it to keep the Virgin close to your heart. We explain the full prayer and its meaning in the prayer of the Miraculous Medal.
Day 1 (November 18): knowing how to listen
The story began one July evening in 1830, when the young novice Catherine Labouré was called to the chapel on the rue du Bac. Intention: to ask the Virgin for an attentive heart, capable of hearing what God wants from us.
Day 2 (November 19): for the whole world
On the medal, the Virgin stands upon the globe. Intention: for peace, for countries at war, and for those who have had to leave their homes.
Day 3 (November 20): the graces we ask for
Rays of light emanate from her hands, which Saint Catherine understood as the graces the Virgin grants to those who ask for them. Intention: to place in her hands that which we need most today.
Day 4 (November 21): conceived without sin
The prayer surrounding the Virgin recalls her purity, which the Church celebrates on December 8 as the Immaculate Conception. Intention: to ask for a clean heart and the grace to start anew.
Day 5 (November 22): the M and the cross
On the reverse, the cross rests upon the M of Mary: the Mother always united to her Son. Intention: for those who carry a difficult cross, so that they do not carry it alone.
Day 6 (November 23): the two hearts
Below the M are the heart of Jesus, with his crown of thorns, and that of Mary, pierced by a sword. Intention: for those who suffer: the sick, lonely people, and those who are grieving.
Day 7 (November 24): the twelve stars
They surround the medal and are interpreted as the twelve apostles and, with them, the whole Church. Intention: for our family, our parish, and for all those who have passed on the faith to us.
Day 8 (November 25): the saint of silence
Saint Catherine kept it a secret almost her whole life that she had received the medal, and she served by caring for the elderly and working in the garden. Intention: to learn to do the small things of every day well, without seeking to be seen.
Day 9 (November 26): the sick and those who care for them
The first medals were distributed in Paris in 1832, in the midst of a cholera epidemic, and that is why people came to call it "miraculous". Intention: for the sick, doctors, nurses, and all those who care for others.
November 27: the feast
The day after the novena ends, the feast arrives. It is a beautiful day to go to Mass, take your medal to be blessed, or give one to someone you love. We tell you how it is celebrated on November 27: the feast of the Miraculous Medal, and if you are in Madrid, at the Basilica of the Miraculous Medal. And on the 28th, Saint Catherine Labouré is celebrated. If you want to continue, on the 29th begins the novena to the Immaculate Conception, which prepares for her feast on December 8.
Giving the Miraculous Medal at the end of the novena
Many people take advantage of these days to give the medal to a mother, a grandmother, a goddaughter, or someone going through a difficult time. It is a way of telling them that you pray for them and that they carry the Virgin close to their heart. If you do not know what to write, you can find ideas in phrases for giving a Miraculous Medal.
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Marian and Bárbara
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