Devotions to the Child Jesus

1.

CHRISTMAS DAY.

To excite the faithful to a greater devotion for the solemnity of the nativity of our divine Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and in order that they may celebrate it with fruit for their souls, the Sovereign Pontiff, Sixtus V., by the brief, Ut Fidelium devotio, Oct. 22, 1586, granted the following indulgences to all those who, being truly penitent, after confession and communion on this day, shall say the divine office, or be present at it in any church:

AN INDULGENCE OF ONE HUNDRED YEARS for Matins and for Lauds.

AN INDULGENCE OF ONE HUNDRED YEARS, as well for the mass, as for the first and for the second vespers.

AN INDULGENCE OF FORTY YEARS for each of the hours of Prime, Tierce, Sext, None, and Compline.

2.

NOVENA PREPARATORY TO CHRISTMAS DAY.

In order to prepare ourselves devoutly for the celebration of the glorious nativity of our most loving Redeemer, Jesus Christ, which holy Church recalls to our memory every year, on the 25th of December, and, at the same time, to render him thanks for this great benefit, the Sovereign Pontiff, Pius VII., by a rescript from the Office of the Secretary of Memorials, Aug. 12, 1815, granted:

AN INDULGENCE OF THREE HUNDRED DAYS, every day, to all those who, with at least contrite heart and devotion, shall prepare themselves for this solemnity by a novena, with pious exercises, prayers, acts of virtue, etc.

A PLENARY INDULGENCE on Christmas-day, or on any day in its octave, to those who shall have made this novena, provided that, being truly penitent, after confession and communion, they shall pray devoutly for the welfare of holy Mother Church, and for the intention of his Holiness.

He further granted that these indulgences may be gained once more within the year, by making the novena in honor of the child Jesus, as directed above.

The Sovereign Pontiff, Pius VIII., by a rescript of the S. Congr. of Indulgences, July 9, 1830, granted that this plenary indulgence may be gained on any day of the novena, provided the novena be completed, and the works enjoined above be performed.

3.

MYSTERIES OF THE HOLY CHILDHOOD.

Our Father.

I. Jesus, sweetest child, who, coming down from the bosom of the Father for our salvation, didst not disdain the womb of the Virgin, where, conceived by the Holy Ghost, thou, the Word incarnate, didst take upon thee the form of a servant: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy on us, child Jesus, have mercy on us.

Hail Mary.

II. Jesus, sweetest child, who, in thy virgin mother's womb, didst visit S. Elizabeth, and fill thy Precursor, John the Baptist, with the Holy Ghost, sanctifying him from his mother's womb: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

III. Jesus, sweetest child, who, for nine months hidden in thy mother's womb, and awaited with eager expectation by the Virgin Mary and by S. Joseph, wast by them offered to God the Father for the salvation of the world: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

IV. Jesus, sweetest child, born in Bethlehem of the Virgin Mary, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laid in the manger, heralded by angels, visited by shepherds: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

O Jesus, born of virgin bright,
Infinite glory be to thee;
Praise to the Father infinite,
And Holy Ghost eternally.

V. Christ is at hand.

R. Come, let us adore him.

Our Father.

V. Jesus, sweetest child, wounded in the circumcision on the eighth day, called by the glorious name of Jesus, and, by thy name and by thy blood, foreshown as the Saviour of the world: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

VI. Jesus, sweetest child, made known to the three Magi by a star, adored on Mary's bosom, honored with the mystical gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

VII. Jesus, sweetest child, presented in the temple by thy virgin mother: Jesus, whom Simeon took into his arms and embraced, and Anna the prophetess made known to Israel; have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

VIII. Jesus, sweetest child, whom Herod sought to slay, whom S. Joseph carried with Mary into Egypt, who wast saved by flight from a cruel death, and glorified by the praises of the holy Innocents: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy etc.

Hail Mary.

O Jesus, born, etc.

V. Christ, etc.

R. Come, etc.

Our Father.

IX. Jesus, sweetest child, who, with Mary most holy, and the patriarch S. Joseph, didst dwell in Egypt until the death of Herod: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

X. Jesus, sweetest child, who didst return with thy parents from Egypt into the land of Israel, who didst suffer many toils by the way, and enter the city of Nazareth: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

XI. Jesus, sweetest child, who didst live most holily in the blessed house of Nazareth, subject to thy parents, spending thy life in poverty and toil, and growing in wisdom, in age, and in grace: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

XII. Jesus, sweetest child, brought to Jerusalem when twelve years old, sought by thy parents with much sorrow, and, after three days, found, to their great joy, among the doctors: have mercy on us.

R. Have mercy, etc.

Hail Mary.

O Jesus, born, etc.

For the Nativity and its octave.

For the Epiphany and its octave.

During the year.

In order that Christians may meditate frequently on the incarnation, the birth, and all the other mysteries relating to the holy childhood of our divine Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and may render him meet and worthy thanks, and imitate those virtues which he, in his childhood, has taught us by his example, the Sovereign Pontiff, Pius VII., by a decree of the S. Congr. of Indulgences, Nov. 23, 1819, granted:

A PLENARY INDULGENCE to all those who, on the twenty-fifth day of any month, shall be present in any church or public oratory where this pious exercise is performed, and the prayers here prescribed are said; provided that, being truly penitent, after confession and communion, they shall pray, for some time, for the intention of his Holiness.

AN INDULGENCE OF THREE HUNDRED DAYS, once a day, to any one who, with contrite heart and devotion, shall perform it on any other day of the year.

4.

NOVENA FOR THE TWENTY-FIFTH DAY OF EVERY MONTH.

I. Offering.—Eternal Father, I offer to thy honor and glory, and for my own salvation, and for the salvation of the whole world, the mystery of the birth of our divine Saviour.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

II. Offering.—Eternal Father, I offer to thy honor and glory, and for my eternal salvation, the sufferings of the most holy Virgin and of S. Joseph in that long and weary journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. I offer thee the sorrows of their hearts when they found no place wherein to shelter themselves, when the Saviour of the world was to be born.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

III. Offering.—Eternal Father, I offer to thy honor and glory, and for my eternal salvation, the sufferings of Jesus in the stable where he was born, the cold he suffered, the swaddling-clothes which bound him, the tears he shed, and his tender infant cries.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

IV. Offering.—Eternal Father, I offer to thy honor and glory, and for my eternal salvation, the pain which the holy child Jesus felt in his tender body when he submitted to circumcision. I offer thee that precious blood which then, for the first time, he shed for the salvation of the whole human race.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

V. Offering.—Eternal Father, I offer to thy honor and glory, and for my eternal salvation, the humility, mortification, patience, charity, all the virtues of the child Jesus; and I thank thee, and I love thee, and I bless thee without end, for the ineffable mystery of the Incarnation of the divine Word.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

In order to call to mind more frequently the august mystery of the Incarnation and Birth of the divine Word made man, his Holiness, Pope Pius IX., by a decree of the S. Congr. of Indulgences, Sept. 23, 1846, granted:

AN INDULGENCE OF ONE YEAR to all the faithful who, with at least contrite heart and devotion, in public or in private, on any of the nine days preceding the twenty-fifth day of any month, shall recite these five offerings, with the versicles and prayer.

5.

PRAYER.

I adore thee, Incarnate Word, true Son of God from all eternity, and true son of the Virgin Mary in the fulness of time! Adoring thy divine person, and the humanity which is united to it, I feel moved, moreover, to venerate the poor crib which welcomed thee, an infant, and was truly the first throne of thy love. Would that I could prostrate myself before it with the simplicity of the shepherds, with the faith of Joseph, with the love of Mary! Would that I could bend in adoration of so precious a memorial of our salvation, with the spirit of mortification, of poverty, of humility, with which thou, the Lord of heaven and of earth, didst choose a manger to receive and shelter thy trembling limbs! Do thou, O Lord! who, while yet a babe, didst deign to rest in this crib, vouchsafe also to pour into my heart a little of the joy excited in those who beheld thy lovely childhood, and the wonders which accompanied thy birth; through which I beseech thee to give to the whole world peace and good will, and, in the name of all mankind, to render all thanksgiving and glory to the Father, and to the Holy Ghost, who, with thee, liveth and reigneth, one God, world without end. Amen.

To increase, in the hearts of the faithful, reverence and devotion for the crib of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is kept with the utmost veneration in the patriarchal basilica of S. Mary Major, his Holiness, Pope Pius IX., by a brief, Oct. 1, 1861, granted to all the faithful who, with at least contrite heart and devotion, shall say this prayer in the basilica of S. Mary Major:

AN INDULGENCE OF TWO HUNDRED DAYS, once a day.

To those who, with at least contrite heart and devotion, shall say it anywhere, he granted, in like manner:

AN INDULGENCE OF ONE HUNDRED DAYS, once a day.

6.

PRAYER.

O our most lovable Lord Jesus Christ, who, becoming an infant for us, didst vouchsafe to be born in a stable to free us from the darkness of sin, to draw us more closely to thee, and to inflame us with thy holy love, we adore thee as our Creator and Redeemer, we acknowledge and choose thee for our King and Lord, and we offer to thee the tribute of all the affections of our poor heart. Dear Jesus, our Lord and God, deign to accept this offering, and, in order that it may be worthy of thy gracious acceptance, forgive us our sins, enlighten us, inflame us with that holy fire which thou didst come to bring into the world to enkindle in our hearts. May our soul thus become a perpetual sacrifice in thy honor; grant that it may always seek thy greater glory here on earth, in order that it may one day come to enjoy the beauty of thy infinite perfections in heaven. Amen.

His Holiness, Leo XIII., by a rescript of the S. Congr. of Indulgences, January 18, 1894, granted to the faithful who recite the above prayer

AN INDULGENCE OF ONE HUNDRED DAYS, once a day.