O MOST holy Virgin Mary, in union with that most faithful love wherewith thy Son commended thee from His Cross to the blessed John, I commend to thee my soul and my body, my thoughts, my words and my actions, my life and my death, and more especially that one last moment of my life on which eternity hangs. And as thou didst invite thy Son to thine own blessed departure, so I invite thee now to mine; beseeching thee, by that love wherewith thou didst stand beneath the Cross on which thy Son was dying, and by the bitter tears thou didst shed when thou sawest Him bow in death His sacred Head, that thou be not absent from me then, but be there to succour me with a mother’s tenderness; for, without thee I cannot die in peace. Refuse not, O most tender Mother, this my request, which I make to thee with all the earnestness and devotion of my heart; for if I die without thee, I most justly fear lest I perish everlastingly. For how shall I, fearful and frail as I am, stand then amidst the manifold and most grievous assaults of my enemies, unless thou be near to succour me! How shall I appear in the dread day of judgment, unless thou be my companion and my advocate! How give an account of my innumerable, my enormous, my most exceeding sins, unless thou plead my cause with thy Son, and obtain for me forgiveness of them all! Incline now thine ear to my supplication, O my blessed Mother; and by the love of thy Son come unto me in my last moments, that by thy availing succour I may be rescued from that appalling peril, and with thee attain to everlasting gladness. Amen.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the name given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order. Mount Carmel is a mountain range along the northern coast of Israel. It’s here that God publicly answered the prophet Elijah’s prayer, consumed the offering, and confirmed He was a living God. Centuries later, in the 12th century after Christ, a group of hermits gathered on the mountain and committed their lives to prayer and penance, forming the Carmelite Order. The Carmelite Order encouraged devotion to the Blessed Mother as a model of ‘complete fidelity to the Lord.’

O my loving Heart, how I long for You!
Long to hear the beat of Your Heart,
Indwelling within and all around me.

O my loving Heart, how I long for You!
Life-giving Spirit enfold me in Your Loving Embrace,
That I might truly sense and feel Your Holy Presence.

O my loving Heart, how I long for You!
Weak and broken, I cling to You,
For strength and courage, and a happy heart. O my loving Heart, how I long for You!
May I grow more holy and in love,
So our hearts may beat as one – Heart to heart.

By Sr. La Donna Pinkelman O.S.F.