Introductory Prayer

Let us pray.

Lord, hear the prayers we will offer up to you every day of this month for the consolation of our deceased brothers and sisters and grant them a place of refreshing light and peace! Hear also the prayers which those souls will offer up to you for our intention that we might ultimately obtain, through their intercession, the graces for which we pray.

Daily Readings and Meditations

  • First Day

    – Reasons for the sanctification of this month –

    The origins of the Month dedicated to the dead go back to the Old Testament, to the people of Israel. This people in fact, who alone possessed the true Spirit of God, were not content with simply proclaiming in its holy books that it was a holy and salvific deed to pray for the dead. The people of Israel also determined the duration of such prayer. It was agreed that mourning would not cease until each of the deceased had been mourned for one month. Thus, after the death of Jacob, his sons mourned him and said prayers for him for one month.

    Inspired by such an ancient and authorised practice, the piety of the faithful has consecrated a whole month to the relief of the souls in Purgatory. The Church celebrates the commemoration of all the deceased on the 2nd of November.

    That month seems the most suitable for such devotion. The month consecrated to the souls in Purgatory and recommended by the Holy Pontiffs and enriched with spiritual favours is publicly celebrated by a large number of religious communities and Christian parishes. 

    Welcome with great joy the dawning of this month which so admirably responds to the needs of the heart. It will remind you of most tender family memories, most sacred promises, the most touching farewells. It will develop your compassion for family and friends who because of their suffering and wretched state have become dearer to you.

    Yes, the dignity of these unfortunate souls, the severity of their suffering, their inability to save themselves, the Glory of God, your personal interest everything cries out for you to visit them and to come to their aid, each day of the month.

    It is the month of charity and gratitude, the month of the living and the month of the dead, the month of true liberation!

    Full of enthusiasm at the beginning of such a month, a saint once exclaimed, Let us empty Purgatory. Dedicate this month to the souls in Purgatory and pray for their relief. Do not neglect this duty of yours!

    – Means of sanctifying this month –

    In order to fully celebrate this month of the dead, make the following resolutions and be faithful to them. Every morning, offer God the merits of your labour and suffering for the souls in Purgatory and the relic of your deceased relatives. Set aside a specific time during the day to read your “Month with the Souls in Purgatory”. This reading will enlighten your mind and soften your heart. Do not omit these readings. Go to the cemetery from time to time and pray over the graves of those who were dear to you. Your prayers will bring them consolation. It is good to pray! Consecrate a special day every week to the souls in Purgatory and attend Holy Mass for their intention. During the month, go to confession and offer your masses for their intention. Yes, do this and at the end of that month of liberation, you will have sent to the triumphant Church in Heaven a great number of souls who were weeping and suffering in the purifying flames of the “Suffering Church”. What consolation! What a bond of hope! Arise, cried out St. Bernard, Fly to the rescue of the souls in Purgatory. Invoke Divine clemency upon them, especially through the Holy Eucharist. Beg for mercy upon them by your own penance and intercede for them through your prayers.

    – Example –

    The following is an account of an extraordinary healing obtained through the intercession of the souls in Purgatory during the month of November.

    For years, I was the victim of a cruel disease which had reduced my body to a mere skeleton and which caused me to suffer excruciating pain. A long list of medical specialists were unable to do much more than to prescribe medication which rarely brought more than a little relief if any, and which left me weaker and depressed. Unable to obtain any permanent comfort from medical sources, I abandoned all medication and I had recourse to the souls in Purgatory. The month of November, which is consecrated to them, was just beginning. I decided to celebrate that month with as much fervour as possible. My relatives and friends joined their prayers to mine. Every night, gathering in my room before a statue of St. Joseph, we asked with confidence for two graces: deliverance for the souls in Purgatory and my physical healing. Towards the end of the first week, I had already noticed an improvement. The last day of the month found us in church, full of joy, happiness and thanksgiving. My healing was complete. There was no trace of the disease which had tortured me for so long and which according to the doctors was incurable. They were amazed at my healing. May God bless the souls in Purgatory whose intercession had obtained such a grace for me!

    How many graces will we all receive if we pray during one month for the holy souls in Purgatory! Have courage and faith!

    Let Us Pray

    Gracious and merciful God hear our fervent prayers during this month of blessings. We consecrate each day and each hour for the relief and the liberation of those captive souls who cry unto You and unto us from their dark prison. Lord, call your children and our brethren to eternal rest and may the light that never dies shine upon them! May they rest in peace

Prayers

Decade of the Rosary for the Deceased

– The Our Father

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

– x10 Hail Marys

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

– Glory Be

Glory Be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Litany for the Faithful Departed

Lord have mercy.
Jesus Christ have mercy.
Lord have mercy.
Jesus Christ, hear us.
Father in Heaven, God Almighty,
have mercy on the faithful departed.
Son of God, Redeemer of the world, Almighty,
have mercy on the faithful departed.
Holy Spirit, Bread of life, Almighty God,
have mercy on the faithful departed.
Holy Trinity, the One True God,
have mercy on the faithful departed.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for the faithful departed.
St. Michael the Archangel,
pray for the faithful departed.
My Holy Angel and Angels of the faithful departed,
pray for the faithful departed.
Community of Blessed Spirits,
pray for the faithful departed.
St. Joseph and St. John the Baptist,
pray for the faithful departed.
Holy Patriarchs and Prophets,
pray for the faithful departed.
Holy Apostles and Evangelists,
pray for the faithful departed.
St. Stephen and St. Lawrence,
pray for the faithful departed.
Holy Martyrs,
pray for the faithful departed.
St. Gregory and St. Augustine,
pray for the faithful departed.
Holy Doctors, Popes, and Confessors,
pray for the faithful departed.
St. Ann and St. Mary Magdalene,
pray for the faithful departed.
St. Catherine, St. Ursula, and her companions,
pray for the faithful departed.
Holy Virgins and Widows,
pray for the faithful departed.
Holy Saints of God,
pray for the faithful departed.
Be their Conciliator
Lord, and forgive them.
Be their Conciliator
Lord, and save us.
By your holy and tender Name Lord,
have mercy on the souls of the faithful departed.
By Your great Mercy Lord,
have mercy on the souls of the faithful departed.
By Your bitter Passion and Your Sacred Wounds Lord,
have mercy on the souls of the faithful departed.
By Your Precious Blood and by Your Death Lord,
have mercy on the souls of the faithful departed.
We are poor sinners Lord,
hear our prayer.
Have mercy on all the faithful departed Lord,
hear our prayer.
Remit the sentence incurred by their sins Lord,
hear our prayer.
Take them to Your peace and eternal rest Lord,
hear our prayer.
Grant them Your paternal inheritance Lord,
hear our prayer.
Invite them to come and contemplate Your Divine Beauty Lord,
hear our prayer.
Fill them with Your unlimited bounty Lord,
hear our prayer.
Fulfill their total desire for salvation Lord,
hear our prayer.
Give eternal rest, especially to the souls of our relatives, friends and benefactors Lord,
hear our prayer.
Have mercy on the soul for whom no one prays Lord,
hear our prayer.
May the offering of the Holy Mass and Holy Communion be beneficial to them Lord,
hear our prayer.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,
forgive them.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, Sweet Jesus, 
hear them.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, 
grant them eternal rest.

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

Salve Regina

Hail holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, hail our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry poor banished children of Eve. To thee we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate thine eyes of mercy towards us, and, after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

The Prayer for the Souls in Purgatory

Lord Jesus, have mercy on the souls detained in Purgatory. It was for their salvation that you took on our human nature and suffered a most painful death. Have mercy on their burning desire to see you, have mercy on their tears of repentance. Through the merits of your Passion remit the sentence they incurred by their sins. Dear, loving Jesus, may your Blood descend on those dear souls! May it shorten their time of atonement and may they soon be called to eternal happiness in your presence! Amen.

De Profundis

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. Lord hear my voice! O Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleading. If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt, Lord who would survive? But with you is found forgiveness: For this I revere you. My soul is waiting for the Lord more than a watchman for daybreak. Let the watchman count on daybreak and Israel on the Lord. Israel indeed will he redeem from all its iniquity. Glory Be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.