Prayers to the Grace-Filled Loreto Child of Salzburg
1. Brochure
Little Child of God, bless us!
Brief history of the Loreto Child
Since 1650 the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in Salzburg have housed a precious treasure. It is the widely beloved Grace-Filled Loreto Child, to which countless people pilgrimage to entrust their cares and needs.
And those devotees of the Divine Infant who cannot come in person travel on the express train of their longing heart to the little Christ the King, who receives the weary and burdened with open arms.
The history of the ivory statuette made by an unknown artist can be traced back to the year 1620. At that time Countess Oettingen gave the only 11 cm tall statue to Mother Euphrasia Silberrath, who was in the process of founding a new monastery in Ensisheim in Alsace. At the same place Fr. Johannes Chrysostomus Schenk stood at that time at the head of the Capuchins as Guardian and Master of Novices. When this saintly religious, who had had a very lively relationship with the Divine Child since youth, saw the beautiful figurine at Mother Euphrasia, he begged so long until it was finally lent to him until his foundation of a monastery.
Through his tender and heartfelt devotion to the Infant Jesus he was soon generally called the “Christkindl Father”. The Divine Infant rewarded his love with many and extraordinary graces. He died in the odor of sanctity on November 25, 1643 at Delemont.
In the meantime Mother Euphrasia had come to the Sisters in Salzburg, where her Infant Jesus also wanted to make His home. Here He set up His throne of grace, and to this hour the fame of His love and wonder-working power spreads through countless favors and striking answers to prayer.
Prayer for Blessing with the Child of Grace
May God bless you,
the ✝ Father, who created you,
the ✝ Son, who redeemed you,
the ✝ Holy Spirit, who has sanctified you.
May the blessing of the Most Holy Trinity be with you on all your ways and preserve your body and your soul from all harm. Amen.
With your Divine Child, bless us, O most pure Virgin Mother Mary!
Daily at ~2:30 p.m.
the Infant Jesus blessing is especially imparted in all four directions of the compass for all devotees of the Infant Jesus, benefactors, the sick, the suffering and all connected with us who cannot come personally to the monastery gate.
And around the clock the promise holds:
If you only think with longing of the Divine Child,
already He lifts His little hand and blesses you gently!
O Most Beautiful Little Jesus
O most beautiful little Jesus,
I want to be united with You.
I consecrate myself wholly to You,
O take me from myself,
that I may live in You
and You alone in me,
O dear little Jesus!
(Fr. Chrysostomus Schenk)
Short Novena Prayer to the Grace-Filled Child Jesus
O Jesus,
To Your Heart I entrust …
(this soul, this intention, this suffering …)
Look upon it and then do what Your Heart inspires You to do …
Let Your Heart prevail!
O Jesus,
I count on You,
I entrust myself to You,
I abandon myself to You,
I am sure of You!
Amen.
(Prayed in common by the Loreto Sisters, especially for benefactors and devotees of the Child Jesus, daily. Except from the 17th to the 25th of each month.)
Heartfelt Petition to the Dear Child Jesus
O almighty little Jesus,
in whom the whole fullness of the Godhead dwells, who are all love and goodness, rich toward all who call upon You.
You, source of life and holiness, of perfect consolation.
You, our peace, our reconciliation, You, salvation of all who hope in You:
To Your Heart I entrust …
(this soul, this intention, this suffering …)
Look upon it and then do what Your love inspires You to do!
O most loving little Jesus,
who through countless acts of grace have already revealed Your good pleasure in the veneration of Your most holy childhood in this image, have mercy on us.
Glorify Your most holy, sweet Name in us as well!
Be Jesus to us! Be our Savior!
Amen.
(Prayed in common by the Loreto Sisters, especially for benefactors and devotees of the Child Jesus, daily from the 17th to the 25th of each month.)
Child Jesus, See Us Poor Ones
Child Jesus, See Us Poor Ones
implore You, Child of God.
Be pleased to have mercy on us, for we are in need of help.
You are indeed the sun of grace,
You are overrich in goodness.
Whoever comes to You goes away at once in joy and refreshed.
The sick You quickly let recover,
the discouraged You console.
Whoever has been in sin has found peace of soul with You.
Little Child Jesus,
full of trust we too now approach Your throne.
Let us one day behold You Yourself, Savior of men, Son of God!
To the Divine Infant Jesus
Dear little Jesus,
You are full of the Holy Spirit! Pour out the Holy Spirit with His seven gifts and twelve fruits upon us and the whole world, so that the evil enemy must depart from us!
In the name of the ✝ Father and of the ✝ Son and of the ✝ Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Prayer to the dear Infant Jesus
O my dear little Jesus,
You wonder-working Child of God, let all be commended to You who are suffering and infirm!
You are overrich in graces, before You even the richest is poor.
Your little hand blesses all alike, full of miraculous power is Your arm.
O heal, if the Father wills it,
whatever is sick: eyes, head and heart.
Command the suffering: “Be still,” and soothe every burning pain!
Even where the evil lies deeper,
where it weighs on the soul heavy as lead, help there, O wise physician of souls, who were Yourself so sorely afflicted!
Where a soul is anxiously discouraged,
teach it to be patient in suffering; where dark doubt torments, shine brightly upon it with the truth!
Let none go away unconsoled,
dear Child, who bows before You, graciously hear the devout plea that rises imploringly upward!
Take away from us our sinfulness
and give us firm trust in God, so that one day in eternity we may behold You Yourself in Your glory.
Amen.
Morning Greeting to the Child Jesus
Good morning, Child of Heaven,
little Jesus, I greet You!
O, I love You with all my heart, little Child of God, bless me!
Divine little Brother,
I thank You for the night now past;
through You may thanks be brought to the Heavenly Father for us all.
Through You we are children of God,
we are so infinitely rich.
To the Father’s joy, make our hearts like Yours.
Child of Heaven,
enclose us all in Your divine little Heart;
wrap us so in Your love that we may remain Yours forever!
Whatever we think, say, do and suffer today, little Jesus,
let it all be for love of You, in thanks to You, to give You joy!
Bless us and those we love,
all who stand near us.
Help the poor, the sorrowful, draw to Yourself those who go astray!
And when my last little hour comes,
lead me then to heaven.
Rejoicing, I will say to You forever: little Jesus, I love You!
Evening Greeting to the Child Jesus
Sweet, dear little Jesus,
before we go to rest, it shall be our joy, gracious Child, to see You once more.
Love has brought us here, to wish You good night!
We also want to thank You,
for the day that has slipped away; little Jesus, to You we consecrate all the hours of our life.
Good night, dear little Jesus, let us be commended to You.
One more thing, dear Child of Heaven,
O forgive us our sins! Make us devout and well-disposed, let us find grace with You.
Good night, dear little Jesus, let us be commended to You.
Protect us this night,
may it, too, pass gently away in You. Tomorrow, as soon as we awake, we shall greet You again.
Good night, dear little Jesus, You are ours, we are Yours!
Thanksgiving to the Child of Grace for a Prayer Answered
O most loving Child Jesus,
in humility and filled with the deepest gratitude I kneel before Your image. I want to praise and extol Your infinite goodness, for You have had mercy on me and have so graciously heard my plea.
You shall always be my confidence and my hope.
If only all people would recognize how pleasing it is to You to be venerated in Your most holy childhood, and how wonderfully You reward the trust of all!
O Divine Child Jesus,
grant me the grace to become ever more pleasing to You through a childlike spirit, so that one day I may enter into Your kingdom of glory. Amen.
Information
Reproductions of the Loreto Child, blessed Infant Jesus oil, medals, rosaries, holy pictures, candles and fabric strips touched to the Grace-Filled Child are available at the monastery gate.
2. Brochure
Little Child of God, we trust in You!
Prayer to the Dear Child of Grace
O little Child of Loreto,
mighty and wonderful,
be my small,
great helper always!
Be my light on all dark days,
be my counsel in all anxious questions!
Little Child,
bless the hard toil of my daily work,
bless the quiet glow
of my love!
And the people You have given me
to accompany me through this earthly life!
Heal the wounds that life has dealt,
strengthen my soul that has borne much suffering!
Let me recognize Your love even then
when affliction burns deep in my heart!
Grant me health and my daily bread,
keep far from me worry, misfortune, fear and distress!
Be merciful to me one day at the judgment,
call me to rest in the eternal light!
Greeting of the Sick to the Child Jesus
O dear, sweet little Jesus,
I greet You with all my heart!
You are, here in this vale of tears,
my comfort, my all.
You became our little Brother
through the power of Your love,
and still want to remain with us
in the form of holy bread.
I greet You many thousand times
in the Blessed Sacrament!
Would that with the great number of angels
I could praise You without end.
O, if only I could go to church
and behold You in the garb of the Host.
But no, Your will be done,
in You I will joyfully trust.
Here on my bed of pain
I will honor You, faithful and devout;
I will think of You early and late,
until I come to You.
When I am in pain and suffering
alone by day and night,
I think of Your solitude
in the little shrine of grace.
If my blood glows in fever heat
and my hands burn,
I think of the glow of Your love
in the Blessed Sacrament.
If patience would leave me,
when I feel the pain most keenly,
I think of the torments of love
that Your Heart once endured.
O little Jesus, I gladly suffer
for You, for You alone,
for You, who are never far from me,
You will give me strength!
O turn Your gaze so mildly
upon me, poor sick one,
You are the one who stills my longing,
who give peace and rest.
O, when You graciously bless
the devout band of worshippers,
then bless, little Jesus, me too,
who am far from the altar.
Yes, bless me, who trust in You,
who give You everything,
who in faith behold You in spirit
and who love You forever!
Amen.
Your Cross
If all the angels, all the geniuses of the world had studied what would help in this or that situation, e.g. this sacrifice, that temptation, that suffering, they could have found nothing better that would have been more fitting for you. So has God’s eternal wisdom studied from eternity to give you this cross from His Heart as His most precious gift.
He examined this cross with His all-knowing eye before sending it to you, pondered it with His divine intellect, tested it with His wise justice and warmed and weighed it with loving mercy with His both hands, whether it was not a millimeter too big and a milligram too heavy. Then He blessed it with His holy name, anointed it with His grace, perfumed it with His comfort, looked at you and your courage with new life, and so it comes straight from heaven as a greeting from God, as an alms of the merciful love of your God.
The crosses we erect for ourselves, or choose for ourselves, are always somewhat adorned; for there is something of our own self in them and therefore they crucify us less. Perfection, this crowning achievement in the life of virtue, will thus consist in joyfully taking upon oneself those crosses that are laid upon one without one’s own doing.
(St. Francis de Sales)
Prayer to the Grace-Filled Child Jesus
O Divine Child Jesus!
Out of love for us You condescended to take on human nature and to hide the splendor of Your Godhead under the form of a weak child. O how great and lovable You are in Your humiliation!
Full of trust I come to You, O dear Child Jesus. Through countless acts of grace You have revealed Your good pleasure in the veneration of Your holy childhood in this image. I beg You, through Your Mother Mary, who is also mine, have mercy on me, forgive me my sins, let me become ever more like You through purity of heart, humility and obedience. O come to my aid, almighty Child Jesus, especially in this intention...
Protect also the young, whom You love in a special way, yet who are exposed to such great dangers.
O Grace-Filled Child Jesus,
I commend to You also all my loved ones, Your holy Church and our homeland.
Amen.
Wondrous Child of Grace
Wondrous Child of Grace,
tell me how I should live.
To repay You, O little Child,
for Your love through time and worlds.
Wondrous Child of Grace,
tell me how I should give thanks
for the graces, for the gifts
that refresh my body and soul.
Wondrous Child of Grace,
tell me how I should ask
to touch Your Father’s heart,
to discern His will.
Wondrous Child of Grace,
tell me how I should learn
not to break beneath the cross,
to echo Your “Fiat.
Wondrous Child of Grace,
tell me how I should love;
my soul is still so dry,
and so near the threshold of death.
Wondrous Child of Grace,
when I must depart, reach me
Your dear little hands,
and lead me to a blessed end!
Loreto Monastery, we greet you!
We hasten here quickly
because you are the refuge and home
of the little Grace-Filled Child!
He reigns on a golden altar
and looks down with goodness
and hears faithfully year after year
many petitions, thanks and songs.
And when we are sorely in need
and no hope remained,
then the Loreto Child helps us
with God’s power and love!
The prayers are taken from the booklet Das Gnadenreiche Loretokindlein von Salzburg, Imprimatur: Ordinariate of Salzburg, No. 918/92, October 29, 1992.