Wounds of Christ -- 5,480 [The Fifteen Prayers of St. Bridget of Sweden}

Monks of Adoration.org ^ | March 29, 1992 | Brother John Raymond

[Salvation]

The Fifteen Prayers of St. Bridget of Sweden

March 29, 1992
Brother John Raymond

St. Bridget as a child lived in a castle in Sweden. The castle had a chapel where Holy Mass was said daily. At the age of 10 she heard a sermon preached on the sufferings of Christ. When she went to bed that night she lay awake crying over the sufferings of Jesus. Before dawn she had a vision of Christ Crucified, His Wounds bleeding as if freshly inflicted. He said to her, "See how I have been wounded." She asked, "Who has done this to You?" Jesus answered, "Those who despise Me and forget My Love." She remembered this lesson for the rest of her life. And it was a very special life. St. Bridget, a dedicated wife and mother, advised the Pope, founded an Order of Nuns and one of Monks. She was a great mystic whose revelations are inspiring reading. The following fifteen prayers were taught by Jesus to St. Bridget. He said to her, "I received 5,480 wounds on My Body during My Passion. If you wish to honor each of them in some way pray the following prayers each day for a whole year. When the year is over, you will have honored each one of My Wounds." Our Lord gave many promises to those who recite these prayers. Many people have done this and benefited greatly - including myself.

Prayers

Recite one Our Father and Hail Mary before each of the following:

1. O Jesus! You have proved that You have no greater desire than to be among men, even assuming human nature at the fullness of time for the love of men. I recall all the sufferings of Your life especially Your Passion. I remember, O Lord, that during the Last Supper with Your disciples, having washed their feet, You gave them Your Most Precious Body and Blood, and, while consoling them, You foretold Your coming Passion. I remember the sadness and bitterness which You experienced in Your Soul as You said, "My Soul is sorrowful even unto death." I remember all the fear, anguish and pain that You did suffer in Your delicate Body before the torment of the Crucifixion, when, after having prayed three times, bathed in a sweat of blood, You were betrayed by Judas, arrested by the people of a nation You had chosen and elevated, accused by false witnesses and unjustly judged by three judges. I remember that You were despoiled of Your garments and clothed in those of derision, that Your Face and Eyes were covered, that You were beaten, crowned with thorns, a reed placed in Your Hands, that You were crushed with blows and overwhelmed with insults and outrages. In memory of all these pains and sufferings which You endured before Your Passion on the Cross, grant me before my death a true contrition, a sincere and entire confession, worthy satisfaction and the remission of all my sins. Amen.

2. O Jesus! I remember the horror and sadness which You endured when Your enemies surrounded You, and by thousands of insults, spits, blows, lacerations and other unheard-of cruelties tormented You. In consideration of these torments and insulting words, I beg You to deliver me from all my enemies, visible and invisible, and to bring me, under Your protection, to the perfection of eternal salvation. Amen.

3. O Jesus! I remember the very bitter pain You did suffer when the executioners nailed Your Sacred Hands and Feet to the Cross by blow after blow with big blunt nails, and, not finding You in a sad enough state, to satisfy their cruelty they enlarged Your Wounds, and added pain to pain, stretching Your Body on the Cross and dislocated Your Bones by pulling Them on all sides. I beg of You by the memory of this most loving suffering of the Cross to grant me the grace to love You. Amen.

4. O Jesus! I Remember the bruises You suffered and the weakness of Your Body, which was distended to such a degree that never was there pain like Yours. From the crown of Your Head to the soles of Your Feet there was not one spot on Your Body which was not in torment. Yet, for getting all Your sufferings, You did not cease to pray to Your Heavenly Father for Your enemies, saying: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Through this great mercy and in memory of this suffering, grant that the remembrance of Your most bitter Passion may effect in us a perfect contrition and the remission of all our sins. Amen.

5. O Jesus! I remember the sadness which You experienced when, foreseeing those who would be damned for their sins, You suffered bitterly over these hopeless, lost and unfortunate sinners. Through this abyss of compassion and pity and especially through the goodness which You displayed to the good thief when You said to him, "This day you will be with Me in Paradise," I beg of You that at the hour of my death to show me mercy. Amen.

6. O Jesus! I remember the grief which You suffered when, like a common criminal, You were raised and fastened to the Cross, when all Your relatives and friends abandoned You, except Your Beloved Mother who remained close to You during Your agony and Whom You entrusted to Your faithful disciple when You said, "Woman, behold Your son. Son behold your Mother." I beg You by the sword of sorrow which pierced the soul of Your Holy Mother, to have compassion on me in all my afflictions and tribulations, both of body and spirit, and to assist me in all my trials and especially at the hour of my death. Amen.

7. O Jesus! I remember Your profound gesture of love from the Cross when You said,"I thirst," and Your suffering from the thirst for the salvation of the human race. I beg You to inflame in our hearts the desire to tend toward perfection in all our actions and to extinguish in us all wordly desires. Amen.

8. O Jesus! I remember the bitterness of the gall and vinegar which You tasted on the Cross for love of us. Grant us the grace to receive worthily Your Precious Body and Blood during our life and at the hour of our death that It may be a remedy of consolation for our souls. Amen.

9. O Jesus! I remember the pain You endured when, immersed in an ocean of bitterness at the approach of death, insulted, outraged by the people, You cried out in a loud voice that You were abandoned by Your Father, saying: "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Through this anguish I beg You not to abandon me in the terrors and pains of my death. Amen.

10. O Jesus! I remember that for our sakes You were immersed into an abyss of suffering. In consideration of the enormity of Your Wounds, teach me to keep, through pure love, Your Commandments, which are a wide and easy path for those who love You. Amen.

11. O Jesus! I remember Your Wounds which penetrated to the very marrow of Your Bones and to the depth of Your Being. Draw me away from sin and hide me in Your Wounds. Amen.

12. O Jesus! I remember the multitude of Wounds which afflicted You from Head to Foot, torn and reddened by the spilling of Your Precious Blood. O great and universal pain which You suffered in Your Flesh for love of us! What is there You could have done for us which You have not done? May the fruit of Your sufferings be renewed in my soul by the faithful remembrance of Your Passion and may Your love increase in my heart each day until I see You in eternity, You Who are the treasury of every real good and joy, which I beg You to grant me in Heaven. Amen.

13. O Jesus! I remember the pain You endured when all Your strength, both moral and physical, was entirely exhausted; You bowed Your Head, saying: "It is consummated." Through this anguish and grief, I beg You to have mercy on me at the hour of my death, when my mind will be greatly troubled and my soul will be in anguish. Amen.

14. O Jesus! I remember the simple and humble recommendation You made of Your Soul to Your Eternal Father, saying, "Father, into Your Hands I commend My Spirit," and when, Your Body all torn and Your Heart broken, You expired. By this precious death, I beg You to comfort me and give me help to resist the devil, the flesh and the world, so that, being dead to the world, I may live for You alone. I beg of You at the hour of my death to receive me. Amen.

15. O Jesus! I remember the abundant outpouring of Blood which You shed. From Your Side, pierced with a lance by a soldier, Blood and Water poured forth until there was not left in Your Body a single Drop; and finally the very substance of Your Body withered and the marrow of Your Bones dried up. Through this bitter Passion and through the outpouring of Your Precious Blood, I beg You to pierce my heart so that my tears of penance and love may be my bread day and night. May I be entirely converted to You; may my heart be Your perpetual resting place; may my conversation be pleasing to You; and may the end of my life be so praiseworthy that I may merit Heaven and there with Your saints praise You forever. Amen.

[Dajjal]

Bumpus ad summum

[Mr. Thorne]

One more thought:

A talk radio host recently dinged it. He said he didn't like it; he couldn't sympathize with Jesus (one eye, apparently, is not enough window to the soul for some).

I think he's on the same path as the 'it's anti-semitic' crowd (including, most recently, Bill Safire; the NYT's tame conservative).

To put it bluntly: I don't think we're supposed to take the place of Christ, I think we're meant to be the crowd!

We're not supposed to blame the Chief Priests; scripture and the film make it clear - "No man takes my life from me... I give it up freely."

But some do, and I think it's because they want an easy answer. There is none. WE weren't tortured that day, HE was. For us. WE deserved to be, but he did not. The chief priests didn't cause him to be crucified, WE did.

But the critics are looking. They're looking for Christianity-lite, with it's 'oh, yeah, I'm saved,' mentality. They're looking for guilt-free existance. 'It wasn't ME who caused this, it was the mob/the priests/Pilate, had I been there, I would have been on the side of righteousness.'

Horsefeathers. You know who I connected with first? Peter. Because I know, that in the middle of a mob, staring at a Roman prison, or crucifixion, for NO GOOD REASON... yeah, I probably would have chickened out, too.

I sympathized with the Magdalene. And John. And Mary. WANTING to help, wanting to get closer, but the world (the crowd, and fear of death) prevents it. Until he falls. And Mary, with a mother's love, fears death less than her son's pain, and goes to him.

I sympathized with Simon. What have I done to deserve this cross?

I even sympathized with A roman. The soldier on the Via Dolorosa, who sees the blood of the Son on the face of the Mother, and (it seems), KNOWS. And cannot take his eyes from her face...

So fine. Find blame, critics. Blame Gibson; tell him to pluck that mote from his eye, before he falls again. Blame the Catholic Church, for she is an institution of men, not saints, and not Gods.

Go watch an art film. Maybe you can find something that disparages Catholics, or Evangelicals, since that's still fair game.

The people who ignored the critics, and walked out of that theatre on Saturday night (packed, by the way), were sad, with no screams of 'kill the Jews,' they were talking, not about who was to blame, but about the magnificent imagery, the adherance to scripture, how Christ-like Caviezel looked.

It was amazing. It is amazing.

[Viva Christo Rey]

Thanks for the "heads up"!

Can you post a link to the unedited words?

Found them!

The original and unedited Fifteen Prayers Concerning His Passion Revealed By Our Lord to Saint Bridget of Sweden

[Salvation]

Thanks for that link.

[Salvation]

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

July 23, 2007

St. Bridget

(1303?-1373)

From age seven on, Bridget had visions of Christ crucified. Her visions formed the basis for her activity—always with the emphasis on charity rather than spiritual favors.

She lived her married life in the court of the Swedish king Magnus II. Mother of eight children (the second eldest was St. Catherine of Sweden), she lived the strict life of a penitent after her husband’s death.

Bridget constantly strove to exert her good influence over Magnus; while never fully reforming, he did give her land and buildings to found a monastery for men and women. This group eventually expanded into an Order known as the Bridgetines (still in existence).

In 1350, a year of jubilee, Bridget braved a plague-stricken Europe to make a pilgrimage to Rome. Although she never returned to Sweden, her years in Rome were far from happy, being hounded by debts and by opposition to her work against Church abuses.

A final pilgrimage to the Holy Land, marred by shipwreck and the death of her son, Charles, eventually led to her death in 1373. In 1999, she, Saints Catherine of Siena and Edith Stein were named co-patronesses of Europe.

Comment:

Bridget’s visions, rather than isolating her from the affairs of the world, involved her in many contemporary issues, whether they be royal policy or the Avignon papacy. She saw no contradiction between mystical experience and secular activity, and her life is a testimony to the possibility of a holy life in the market place.

Quote:

Despite the hardships of life and wayward children (not all became saints), Margery Kempe of Lynn says Bridget was “kind and meek to every creature” and “she had a laughing face.”

[Salvation]

St. Bridget of Sweden

Saint Bridget of Sweden, Religious
Optional Memorial
July 23rd

 
St. Bridget of Sweden, Revelationes. Ghotan: Lübeck, 1492

History
St. Bridget of Sweden was born June 14, 1303 to Birger Persson, a governor, judge and wealthy land owner and Ingeborg Bengtsdotter, a deeply pious woman.

She married Prince Ulf Gudmarsson a noble and pious man. They had eight children including St. Catherine of Sweden. When her husband died in 1344 she devoted herself to religious life. In 1346 she founded the Order of the Most Holy Savior.

St. Bridget is known for the revelations she received on the wounds and passion of Jesus, known as the 15 Prayers of St. Bridget.

She died July 23, 1373 and was canonized on October 7, 1391.

Collect:
Lord our God,
you revealed the secrets of heaven to St. Bridget
as she meditated on the suffering and death of your Son.
May your people rejoice in the revelation of your glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Reading: Galatians 2: 19-20
For I through the law died to the law, that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Gospel Reading: John 15:1-8
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.

[Salvation]

 

Prayer of St. Bridget of Sweden

O Lord, make haste and illumine the night.
Say to my soul
that nothing happens without Your permitting it,
and that nothing of what You permit is without comfort.
O Jesus, Son of God,
You Who were silent in the presence of Your accusers,
restrain my tongue
until I find what should say and how to say it.
Show me the way and make me ready to follow it.
It is dangerous to delay, yet perilous to go forward.
Answer my petition and show me the way.
I come to You as the wounded go to the doctor in search of aid.
Give peace, O Lord, to my heart.