The Litany Project: Litany of the Holy Ghost, Part 1

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.

Nearly all litanies begin with a plea for mercy. We remember that we are sinners. We admit that we need God’s mercy and forgiveness. The triple repetition recalls the Trinity, but it also emphasizes the divinity of Christ, Who is our God and our Messiah, our Savior, our Anointed One. He died for us, taking our sins upon Himself, and He longs to shower us in the mercy of the Blessed Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As we pray these first verses (and many of the subsequent responses), we stretch ourselves, opening ourselves up to God’s mercy, and we beg Him to pour it out on us.

Father, all powerful, have mercy on us.

We have an all-powerful Father. God loves us, protects us, guides us, and disciplines us as the very best Father, and since He is all-powerful, He can and does do this perfectly. Nothing can prevent Him from caring for His children...except, of course, one thing: His children. Our Father loves us so much that He will not take back HIs gift of free will. He holds out His all-powerful love and mercy, but we have to accept it freely. Even though God is all-powerful, He does not force Himself on us, for that is not true love.

Jesus, Eternal Son of the Father, Redeemer of the world, save us.

This verse focuses on Who Jesus is and what He does for us. He is the Eternal Son of the Father, the only-begotten Son, existing with the Father from all eternity. He is the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, equal to the Father and the Holy Spirit. But that Eternal Son, the Eternal Word of God, became Man, and Jesus Christ, the God-Man died on the cross for us. The Redeemer of the world died to atone for our sins, to save us from eternal separation from God, to fill us with sanctifying grace, with the divine Presence, and to bring us into Heaven. When we pray “save us,” we are longing to enter into the salvation Jesus has gained for us and holds out to us. We know that we need His help even to reach out for this great gift that He longs to give us.

Spirit of the Father and the Son, boundless life of both, sanctify us.

The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. The Father and the Son pour out Their Love for each other continually, giving fully of Themselves, and this Love is the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. Their Love is Their Life, eternal, perfect, beyond the grasp of our human imaginations. It is this divine Life, this divine Love that enters into us and makes us holy. The Holy Spirit sanctifies us, drawing us closer and closer to God in love. He fills us with Himself, and He lifts us up into divinity, allowing us to share ever more intimately in the love of the Trinity.

The Litany Project: Litany of the Holy Ghost

Lord, have mercy on us.

Christ, have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us.

Father, all powerful, have mercy on us.

Jesus, Eternal Son of the Father, Redeemer of the world, save us.

Spirit of the Father and the Son, boundless life of both, sanctify us.

Holy Ghost, Who proceedest from the Father and the Son, enter our hearts. 

Holy Ghost, Who are equal to the Father and the Son, enter our hearts.

Promise of God the Father, have mercy on us.

Ray of heavenly light, have mercy on us.

Author of all good, have mercy on us.

Source of heavenly water, have mercy on us.

Consuming fire, have mercy on us.

Ardent Charity, have mercy on us.

Spiritual unction, have mercy on us.

Spirit of love and truth, have mercy on us.

Spirit of wisdom and understanding, have mercy on us.

Spirit of counsel and fortitude, have mercy on us.

Spirit of knowledge and piety, have mercy on us.

Spirit of the fear of the Lord, have mercy on us.

Spirit of grace and prayer, have mercy on us.

Spirit of peace and meekness, have mercy on us.

Spirit of modesty and innocence, have mercy on us.

Holy Ghost, the Comforter, have mercy on us.

Holy Ghost, the Sanctifier, have mercy on us.

Holy Ghost, Who governest the Church, have mercy on us.

Gift of God, the Most High, have mercy on us.

Spirit Who fillest the universe, have mercy on us.

Spirit of the adoption of the children of God, have mercy on us.

Holy Ghost, inspire us with horror of sin.

Holy Ghost, come and renew the face of the earth.

Holy Ghost, shed Thy light in our souls.

Holy Ghost, engrave Thy law in our hearts.

Holy Ghost, inflame us with the fire of Thy Love.

Holy Ghost, open to us the treasures of Thy graces.

Holy Ghost, teach us to pray well.

Holy Ghost, enlighten us with Thy heavenly inspirations.

Holy Ghost, lead us in the way of salvation.

Holy Ghost, grant us the only necessary knowledge.

Holy Ghost, inspire in us the practice of good.

Holy Ghost, grant us the merits of all virtues.

Holy Ghost, make us persevere in justice.

Holy Ghost, be Thou our everlasting reward. 

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, send us Thy Holy Ghost.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, pour down into our souls the gifts of the Holy Ghost.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, grant us the Spirit of wisdom and piety.

Come, Holy Ghost! Fill the hearts of Thy faithful.

And enkindle in them the fire of Thy Love.

Let us pray.

Grant, O merciful Father, that Thy Divine Spirit enlighten, inflame and purify us, that He may penetrate us with His heavenly dew and make us fruitful in good works; through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who with Thee, in the unity of the Spirit, liveth and reigneth forever and ever. Amen. 

The Litany Project: A Litany Primer

What is a litany?

A litany is a traditional Catholic prayer made up of verses and responses. It is designed as a supplication or entreaty, which is what the original Greek word litaneia means, but it can also be a prime source for meditation on the realities of God. Catholics pray litanies to the Persons of the Blessed Trinity, often responding to each verse with “Have mercy on us” or something similar, and to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints with the response of “Pray for us.” 

How do we pray litanies?

Many people pray litanies on their own as a private devotion, quietly saying each verse and response in turn. Others pray litanies in a group with one person reciting the verses and the others replying with the response. 

Aren’t litanies too repetitive? 

Not at all! The repetition of the litany is intentional, for it calms us and establishes a regular pattern so that our thoughts can turn to the meaning of each verse. 

How can we pray a litany more effectively?

It does sometimes seem like a litany flies right by without us hardly noticing what we are saying. The pattern can get too comfortable. This is the whole point of The Litany Project. Over the next several weeks, I will be exploring three litanies, one to the Father, one to the Son, and one to the Holy Spirit. I will first provide the litany in full. Then I will offer a short explanation and meditation for each verse. 

Praying litanies in this way will deepen these beautiful prayers and allow us to open our hearts and minds to what God wants to teach us as we pray to Him. 

Reflections on the Mass: The Concluding Rites

As we pray to Jesus, Who is now with us Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity after Holy Communion, the priest carefully purifies the sacred vessels. Then he quietly prays, “What has passed our lips as food, O Lord, may we possess in purity of heart, that what has been given to us in time may be our healing for eternity.” We, too, might make this our post-Communion prayer, for it reminds us that the Eucharist is our medicine and our purification, our hope and our greatest gift, given to us through the grace of God Who loves us more than we can imagine.

The priest sits for a short time. Then he invites us to rise, and he says one more prayer, based on the liturgical season, that reminds us of the miracle and grace we have just received in the Eucharist. The priest says once again, “The Lord be with you.” And truly the Lord is with us very intimately at this moment, for His Eucharistic presence is still in our bodies for about fifteen minutes after we receive Him. We respond, “And with your spirit.”

Depending on the liturgical season or solemnity, the priest will sometimes pray an extended blessing over us, to which we answer with a firm “Amen.”  Then he makes the sign of the cross as a final blessing, and we trace the sign of the cross on our own bodies and say, once again, “Amen.” We started the Mass with the sign of the cross, and now we finish with the same prayer, reminding us once again of the Blessed Trinity and of Jesus’ command to take up our crosses and follow Him.

Finally, the priest announces, “Go forth, the Mass is ended,” or a variation on that. We respond, “Thanks be to God.” We must now go forth, out into the world, but we take Jesus with us. We take the graces we have received, the lessons we have learned, and the inspiration we have discovered, and we go out into the world that so desperately needs God. We are sent forth like the apostles to preach the Gospel in our words and actions and to allow Jesus to work through us.