The Seven Words Upon the Cross
INCLINE unto my aid, O God.
R. O Lord, make haste to help
me.
Glory be to the
Father, etc.
The First Word
FATHER, forgive them for they know not what they do.
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross
Thou hast redeemed the world.
O MY beloved Jesus, Who for the love of me didst agonize on the Cross
that Thou mightest pay by Thy sufferings the debt my sins, and didst
open Thy
Divine mouth to obtain my pardon from eternal justice, have mercy on
all the faithful
in their agony, and on myself when I shall be in that extremity, and,
by the merits
of Thy Most Precious Blood shed for our salvation, give us so lively a
sorrow for our sins that we may breathe out our souls into the bosom of
Thine
infinite mercy. Glory be to the
Father, etc. (three
times).
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
The Second Word
THIS day Thou shalt be with Me in Paradise.
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
O BELOVED Jesus, Who for the love of me didst agonize on the
Cross, and
with such readiness and bounty didst respond to the faith of the Good
Thief, who
in the midst of Thy humiliation acknowledged Thee to be the Son of God:
O Thou Who didst assure him of Paradise, have mercy on all the
faithful in their agony, and on me also when I shall be in that
extremity, and through the merits of Thy Most Precious Blood, revive
in our souls a faith so firm and constant that it may not waver at any
suggestion of the devil, so that we also may obtain the blessed reward
of Heaven. Glory be to
the
Father, etc. (three
times).
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
The Third Word
BEHOLD Thy Son; behold thy Mother.
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
O BELOVED Jesus, Who for the love didst agonize on the
Cross, and, forgetting Thy sufferings, didst leave us as a pledge of
Thy love Thine Own most holy
Mother, that her we might confidently have recourse in our greatest
need: have mercy on all the faithful in their agony, and on me also
when I shall be
in that extremity, and through the interior martyrdom of this Thy dear
Mother,
awaken in our hearts a firm hope in the infinite merits of Thy Most
Precious Blood,
that we may avoid the eternal damnation which our sins have deserved.
Glory be to the
Father, etc. (three
times).
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
The Fourth Word
MY God! My God! why hast Thou forsaken Me?
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
O BELOVED Jesus, Who for the love of me didst agonize on the Cross, and
heaping
suffering on suffering, didst endure with infinite patience
not only Thy many bodily tortures, but the most heavy
affliction of spirit through the dereliction of Thine eternal Father:
have mercy on all the faithful in their agony, and on me also when I
shall be in that extremity, and through the merits of Thy Most
Precious Blood, give us the grace to suffer with true patience all the
pains and afflictions of our agony, that, uniting them with Thine, we
may be partakers of Thy glory in Paradise.
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
The Fifth Word
I THIRST.
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
O BELOVED Jesus, Who didst agonize on the Cross for the love
of me, and
Who, not satisfied with all the ignominy and suffering, wouldst
willingly have
suffered yet more, so that all men might be saved — as was clearly
proved when all the torrents of Thy Passion would not allay the thirst
of Thy tender Heart: have mercy on all the faithful in their agony, and
on me also when I shall be in that extremity, and, through the merits
of Thy Most Precious Blood, enkindle such a fire of charity in our
hearts as may cause them to burn with the desire of uniting themselves
to Thee for all eternity. Glory
be to the
Father, etc. (three
times).
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
The Sixth Word
IT IS consummated.
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
O BELOVED Jesus, Who for the love of me didst agonize on the
Cross, and from that throne of truth didst announce the
completion of the work of our Redemption,
through which, from being the children of wrath and perdition, we are
become the
children of God and the heirs of Heaven: have Mercy on all the faithful
in their
agony, and on me also when I shall be in that extremity, and through
the
merits of Thy Most Precious Blood, detach us entirely from the world
and from
ourselves, and at the moment of our agony give us the grace sincerely
to offer
the sacrifice of our life in expiation of our sins. Glory be to the
Father, etc. (three
times).
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
The Seventh Word
FATHER, into Thy hands I commend My spirit.
V. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
O BELOVED Jesus, Who didst agonize on the Cross for the love
of me, and Who,
in completing this great sacrifice, didst accept the will of
Thine eternal Father, by resigning Thy spirit into His hands,
and then bowing Thy head and dying: have mercy on all the faithful in
their agony, and on me also when I shall be in that extremity, and
through the merits of Thy Most Precious Blood, give us, in our agony,
an entire conformity to the Divine will, that we may be ready either to
live or die according as it shall best please Thee, desiring nothing
but the accomplishment of Thy blessed will in us. Glory be to the
Father, etc. (three
times).
V. Have mercy on us, O Lord.
R. Have mercy on us.
O my God, I believe in Thee, I hope in Thee, I love Thee, and I repent
of having offended Thee by my sins.
Glory be to the
Father, etc. (three
times).
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