PRAYER TO OUR SUFFERING SAVIOR FOR THE HOLY SOULS IN PURGATORY

✝️Prayer to Our Suffering Savior for the Holy Souls in Purgatory🙏

O most sweet Jesus,

through the bloody sweat

which Thou didst suffer

in the Garden of Gethsemane,

have mercy on these Blessed Souls.

Have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

O most sweet Jesus,

through the pains

which Thou didst suffer

during Thy most cruel scourging,

have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

O most sweet Jesus,

through the pains

which Thou didst suffer

in Thy most painful crowning with thorns,

have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

O most sweet Jesus,

through the pains

which Thou didst suffer

in carrying Thy cross to Calvary,

have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

O most sweet Jesus,

through the pains

which Thou didst suffer

during Thy most cruel Crucifixion,

have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

O most sweet Jesus,

through the pains

which Thou didst suffer

in Thy most bitter agony on the Cross,

have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

O most sweet Jesus,

through the immense pain

which Thou didst suffer

in breathing forth Thy Blessed Soul,

have mercy on them.

R. Have mercy on them, O Lord.

(Recommend yourself to the Souls in Purgatory and mention your intentions here)

Blessed Souls,

I have prayed for thee;

I entreat thee, who are so dear to God,

and who are secure of never losing Him,

to pray for me a miserable sinner,

who is in danger of being damned,

and of losing God forever.

Amen.

ANIMA SOLA PRAYER

 

ANIMA SOLA ("LONE SOUL") PRAYER

Introduction:

Anima Sola, also known as the “LONE SOUL” prayer, is a Catholic prayer that is recited after an individual has died.

However, it can be said for someone who is facing major life changes, depression, abandonment and loneliness.

This is also said for a poor soul in Purgatory who is alone, unloved, unremembered and hopeless to get help from others.

According to tradition, this prayer was recited by a monk named Gregory of Sinai in an isolated monastery in the eleventh century. Animas Solas became a common prayer in many countries during the 15th century:

"Lord, I am so lonely and despaired.

I cry out for your help.

My soul is empty and restless.

Fill it with your glory, O Lord!

Anima Sola

Alone, I am lonely.

Alone, I feel lost and afraid.

Alone, I have no one to talk to.

Alone, people do not understand me. Alone, there is no one to listen to my troubles and worries.

God, please help me find someone who will be my friend and companion for life!

Anima sola, anima Christi,

per quam tibi nos reconciliamur.

O Maria, Mater Dei et hominum,

terribilis ut castrorum acies ordinata,

tu ades cunctis in periculis nostris.

Oh God,

I am alone in this world.

It is you I must rely on, and only you.

Oh Lord, I call to you for help.

Alone I am, and yet not alone.

I am surrounded by a thousand angels,

who wait for me to join them in the Kingdom of Heaven.

I wait for them as well.”

+ Eternal rest grant to the lonely souls in purgatory, Lord. And let Your perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.

PRAYER FOR THE SOULS IN PURGATORY

✝️Prayer for the Souls in Purgatory 🕯️❣️

Eternal Father, turn your merciful graze upon the souls suffering in Purgatory, who are enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus.  I beg you, by the sorrowful Passion of Jesus Your Son, and by all the bitterness with which His most sacred Soul was flooded, manifest Your mercy to the souls who are under Your just scrutiny. 

Look upon them in no other way than through the Wounds of Jesus, Your dearly beloved Son; for we firmly believe that there is no limit to Your goodness and compassion.

Have mercy, O Lord, have mercy on the Poor Souls in Purgatory.

May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.  Amen.

Prayer For The Holy Souls –  Diary of St. Faustina, 1227

HOW LONG DO SOULS REMAIN IN PURGATORY

HOW LONG DO SOULS REMAIN IN PURGATORY?

The length of time souls are detained in Purgatory depends on:

a) the number of their faults;

b) the malice and deliberation with which these have been committed;

c) the penance done, or not done, the satisfaction made, or not made for sins during life; 

d) Much, too, depends on the suffrages offered for them after death

What can safely be said is that the time souls spend in Purgatory is, as a rule, very much longer than people commonly imagine.

We will quote a few of the many instances which are recounted in the lives and revelations of the Saints.

St. Louis Bertrand's father was an exemplary Christian, as we should naturally expect, being the father of so great a Saint. He had even wished to become a Carthusian monk until he learned that it was not God's will for him. When he died, after long years spent in the practice of every Christian virtue, his saintly son, fully aware of the rigors of God's Justice, offered many Masses and poured forth the most fervent supplications for the soul he so dearly loved. 

A vision of his father still in Purgatory forced him to intensify a hundredfold his suffrages. He added most severe penances and long fasts to his Masses and prayers. Yet eight whole years passed before he obtained the release of his father.

St. Malachy's sister was detained in Purgatory for a very long time, despite the Masses, prayers and heroic mortifications the Saint offered for her!

It was related to a holy nun in Pampluna, who had succeeded in releasing many Carmelite nuns from Purgatory, that most of these had spent there terms of from 30 to 60 years!

Carmelite nuns in Purgatory for 40, 50 and 60 years! What will it be for those living amidst the temptations of the World and with all their hundreds of weaknesses?

St. Vincent Ferrer, after the death of his sister, prayed with incredible fervor for her soul and offered many Masses for her release. She appeared to him at length and told him that had it not been for his powerful intercession with God, she should have remained an interminable time in Purgatory.

In the Dominican Order it is the rule to pray for the Master Generals by name on their anniversaries. Many of these have been dead several hundred years! They were men especially eminent for piety and learning. This rule would not be

approved by the Church were it not necessary and prudent.

We do not mean to imply that all souls are detained equally long periods in the expiatory fires. Many have committed lesser faults and have done more penance.  Therefore, their punishment will be much less severe. 

Still, the instances we have quoted are very much to the point, for if these souls who enjoyed the intimacy, who saw the example and who shared in the intercession of great Saints during their lives and were aided by their most efficacious suffrages after death were yet detained for such a length of time in Purgatory, what may happen to us who enjoy none of these wonderful

privileges? 

- Fr. Paul O. Sullivan, O.P.

The Way of the Cross for the Holy Souls

The way of the cross (the way of self-denial), is the way of life, for “If anyone desires to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23.The way of the cross is a way of life itself, and so this call of Jesus to deny ourselves, to take up our crosses, and follow him is his statement to us that in this life there will be suffering. In following him, there will be difficulty and there will be pain, but there is a glory that awaits. It is the cross that can fix your past, your present and your future. The cross of Jesus remains forever the place where the power over sicknesses and diseases can be secured. Everything Jesus died for belongs to you now. The cross of Jesus is more than a sign; it is the proof of your redemption and adoption.

The Way of the Cross, also known as the Stations of the Cross, are a way to pray and meditate on Christ's sacrifice for us. It is divided into fourteen stations from the time He was condemned to his burial. This devotion has been long encouraged by the church, and is especially useful during Lent and Good Friday.

The Stations of the Cross are commonly prayed during the Lenten season. Tradition holds that Christ died on a Friday at 3 p.m. Because of this, many parishes offer Stations of the Cross services at this time on Fridays during Lent. 

In the Station of the Cross, is one way we should be praying for the souls in purgatory out of love for them. But even if we have no dead relatives that we know of, the souls in purgatory are still our spiritual brothers and sisters. We are related by baptism into Christ, and this familial relationship should spur us to act on their behalf. 

“It is a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins.” - 2 Mach. 12:46. 

The Way of the Cross represents the sorrowful journey that Jesus Christ made with the cross to die on Calvary. The church teaches that the Souls in Purgatory undergo a process of purification that must include suffering. By praying and making sacrifices for the Holy Souls, you have the marvelous power and privilege to relieve their pain. In return, their gratitude will bring you countless blessings. May a stream of mercy flow from you to the Holy Souls in Purgatory.


AN ACT OF CONTRITION

 My Jesus! I love you above all things. I hate and detest all my sins, because by them I have offended you. The holy indulgences, the fruits and merits of this devotion I intend to gain for the souls in Purgatory, in particular for those who in life were near and dear to me, and also for those for whom I am, in a special way, obliged to pray. O Mary, my merciful Mother and the Mother of the poor souls in Purgatory accompany me, by your intercession, on this journey. 

BEFORE EVERY STATION: 

V. We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. 

R. Because by your holy cross, you have redeemed the world.

THE FIRST STATION

Jesus is Condemned to Death 

O my innocent Jesus, to free me from eternal death, you allowed yourself to be condemned by a pagan judge to the death of the cross. Give me a hatred for sin and the grace to live that I may one day obtain from you a merciful sentence. The poor souls in Purgatory have already been judged. Through your mercy they have escaped hell, yet on account of their sins your justice has condemned them to the fire of Purgatory. O most merciful Jesus have pity on them. Revoke the sentence of their exile and open to them the gates of heaven. 

My Jesus, mercy!

AT THE END OF EVERY STATION: 

Our Father. Hail Mary. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord – and let perpetual light shine upon them. 

THE SECOND STATION 

Jesus is Made to Bear His Cross

O holy cross, You are the tree of life, the gate of heaven, our salvation, and our only hope. Be my salvation at the hour of death. O Jesus, be mindful of Your servants who have departed this life with this sign of faith. Free them by the victorious power of Your cross, by which You have conquered death. Lead them into eternal life and happiness.

THE THIRD STATION 

Jesus Falls for the First Time Under His Cross 

Through your weakness under the cross and the merits of this first fall, grant me perseverance in my good resolutions that I may always walk faithfully in your holy ways. The souls in Purgatory now suffer because they neglected and abused your graces in this life. They now realize that no sin-stained soul can see God. Have mercy, therefore, on them and cleanse them from all sin. Through the intercession of your sorrowful Mother, deliver them from Purgatory. 

THE FOURTH STATION 

Jesus Meets His Afflicted Mother

O Heart of Mary! O Heart of Jesus! I offer my life for my sins. May the sweet names of Jesus and Mary be on my lips and in my heart at the hour of my death. O sweetest Heart of Jesus, I implore that I may love You more and more. Sweet Heart of Mary, be our salvation. Mother most sorrowful, merciful Queen of the Holy Souls, into your hands I place my few merits and implore you to unite them with the infinite merits of your Son. Offer them to the eternal Father for those souls who are bound to me by ties of relationship

THE FIFTH STATION 

The Cyrenian Helps Jesus to Carry His Cross

O my Jesus, I accept the cross. I embrace it. Let me help You to carry Your cross, by being patient in all trials that may assail me. How many souls in Purgatory now regret their past impatience! But You, O Lord, be generous with them and remit all that still remains to be expiated.

 

THE SIXTH STATION 

Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus 

O Lord, Jesus Christ, You who have left on Veronica’s veil the image of your bloodstained countenance, grant that the memory of Your bitter passion and death may ever remain impressed on my soul. Have pity on the poor souls, made to your image and likeness and redeemed by Your Most Precious Blood. Free them from all sin that they may enter heaven, to see You face-to-face forever and ever.

THE SEVENTH STATION 

Jesus Falls the Second Time 

My sins have made Your cross heavy, O Jesus. I detest them and firmly propose to amend my life. Never permit me to separate myself from You again. Have mercy, O Jesus, on those souls who now suffer the pains of Purgatory for mortal sins committed in this life. O clement Heart of Jesus, have compassion on them.

THE EIGHTH STATION 

Jesus Comforts the Women of Jerusalem

Most compassionate Heart of Jesus! My Jesus, who said to the holy women: “Do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children,” make me weep for the ingratitude that I have returned for Your love. I wish to make amends in this life for my sins, that I may obtain pardon for them in the next. Grant me a tender love for the souls in Purgatory, especially for the souls of my relatives. For the future, I promise to do what I have neglected through my forgetfulness and hardness of heart.

 

THE NINTH STATION 

Jesus Falls the Third Time 

Through this most painful fall, O Jesus, I ask You to deliver me from an unhappy death, which would plunge me into hell. From the power of the enemy deliver my immortal soul, and make me live and die in Your grace. Look with mercy upon the poor souls doing penance in Purgatory. With tears and prayers they seek Your help and mercy. Hear their prayers and lead them out of that place of purification into the blessed peace of heaven, there to enjoy forever the splendor of Your glory.

THE TENTH STATION 

Jesus is Stripped of His Garments

My most blessed Redeemer, stripped of Your garments for love of me, grant me holy modesty and purity. Deliver me from all dangerous inclinations to created thing. Make me die to everything of this world, that at death separation from all earthly things may be easy. Of what benefit now are wealth and the pleasures of this world to the souls in Purgatory? Their bodies they had to leave to decay and dust of death, and their wealth to heirs. Only their works have followed them: the good to be rewarded, and the evil to be punished. O Lord, put an end to their suffering. Do not keep them any longer from the inheritance of the saints, but pardon them and admit them into the realm of eternal bliss and happiness.

THE ELEVENTH STATION 

Jesus is Nailed to the Cross 

My most innocent Jesus, nailed to the cross for my sins, I beseech You, through the merits of Your horrible suffering, to come to my aid in my last sickness and agony. Grant me the grace to receive in time Your most holy Sacraments. Come to me then, O Most Holy Viaticum, and pour into my soul the patience of Your Most Sacred Heart! And you, O Mary my Mother, console me in that hour and make sweet my sufferings, through the sorrow that pierced your heart at the crucifixion. Lamb of God, have mercy on the souls in Purgatory, whose sufferings are greater than the sick and dying. Spare them this agony, and through the merits of Your passion admit them into eternal dwellings.

THE TWELFTH STATION 

Jesus Dies On the Cross 

Through your three hours’ agony on the cross, grant me, O Jesus, a happy death. Take me when I am best prepared. In that hour fill my soul with holy sentiments of faith, hope and charity. Grant me true and perfect contrition for my sins and the grace to accept with Christian resignation my death with all its pains and sufferings. May I leave this world invoking your most Holy Name. 

Mary Mother of Sorrows, refuge of the dying, be near me in my last agony. Remember, O most loving Jesus, the poor souls with that love with which you did give comfort to the good thief: “This day you shall be with me in Paradise.” Call these souls into the kingdom of your glory, that they may praise you together with all the angels and saints forever and ever. 

THE THIRTEENTH STATION 

Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross 

O Jesus, You whose soul descended to the dead to announce peace to the just of the Old Testament, descend now among the poor souls who yearn for You. Free them from the chains of their slavery, and grant them the liberty of true children of God! O Mary, my Mother, may I, like Jesus, be placed in your arms at my departure from this world. Be with me at the tribunal of the Divine Judge, that through your intercession, I may obtain a favorable judgment. Sweet Heart of Mary be my salvation!

THE FOURTEENTH STATION 

Jesus is Laid in the Tomb 

O Jesus, through the merits of Your bitter passion and death, and through Your glorious Resurrection, I beseech You to have compassion on the poor souls, and grant them a happy and glorious admission into heaven. Let them enter into that peace so long desired. Let them contemplate the splendor of the Beatific Vision. Let them bless eternally Your mercy. Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation, that I may not be condemned to that place of agony, when my body will be in the cold earth. Let my soul flee the fires of Purgatory. Most loving Mother, on that day save your child. Bring me quick relief and through your merits deliver me from the flames, that I may thank you in heaven and, with you and all the saints, adore and love Jesus, your beloved Son, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, true God, forever and ever. Amen.

CLOSING PRAYER 

My crucified Redeemer, I offer you this devout exercise, which by your grace, I have just finished. Grant that the precious fruits of your death on the cross be not lost either for me or for the souls in Purgatory. Mary, Mother of Sorrows, place my petitions in the Heart of your beloved Son, so that I may be admitted into the kingdom of grace, there together with my dear ones, both living and dead, to be blessed eternally. O Gentlest Heart of Jesus, ever present in the Blessed Sacrament, ever consumed with burning love for the poor captive souls in Purgatory, have mercy on them. Be not severe in your judgments, but let some drops of your Precious Blood fall upon the devouring flames, and do you O merciful Savior, send your angels to conduct them to a place of refreshment, light and peace. Amen. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon them. Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on them.