Novena · Lauretana Latvia
Nine days to ask for the intercession of the Mother who always refers us to Christ: "Do what He tells you."
You can pray at any time · Party: April 26
Original nova of rezaelrosario.org.
The meditations and prayers of this page have been expressly prepared to accompany this devotion for nine days. They are not transcription or covert adaptation of other issues.
Mary, Mother of the Good Council
Among the beautiful invocation of the Lauretanas, the Church greets the Virgin Mary as "Mother of the Good Council." We do not call it that because she is the last source of wisdom - that source is God - but because, full of grace and full of docile to the Holy Spirit, Mary perfectly welcomed the Father's plan and became a master of the self for us. When we ask for his advice we do not worship a creature: God is only worshipped; Mary is venerated and asked for his intercession, and that intercession does not entertain us in it, but it always leads us to his Son. She herself points the way when she says, pointing to Jesus: "Do as He tells you" (John 2.5).
This novena one wants to be a simple school of discernment at the feet of the Mother. In a time full of noise, haste and decisions that sometimes overcome us, we call upon Mary to learn from her to listen, to silence and to obey God. We do not want her to save us the effort to think and to pray, but to reach us from the Lord the light we need to choose good. May these nine days prepare our hearts to receive the good advice that comes from above and to live it faithfully.
Essential data of the advocation
- Invocation: "Mother of the Good Council" (Latin, Mater Boni Consilii), one of the Marian advocations of the Lauretana Letanias; Pope Leo XIII officially inserted it into these litany in 1903.
- Origin: According to a pious tradition, the venerated image is associated to 25 April 1467 in Genazzano and to a source of Soctari (Shkodër, in the present Albania); the Church carefully distinguishes this devotional tradition from the documented historical data.
- Image and custody: a delicate fresco of the Virgin with the Child, venerated in the Augustinian church of Saint Mary of the Good Council in Genazzano (Lazio, Italy), under the custody of the Order of Saint Augustine.
- Party: April 26.
- Evangelical foundation: "Do what He tells you" (John 2.5); the Mother does not draw to herself, but always refers to Christ.
- For whom: For those who have to make difficult decisions, they seek to discern the will of God, or they ask for light in the family, in work, in vocation and in Christian life.
How to prepare to pray the novena
To pray a novena is not to accumulate words, but to lay down the heart to listen to God for nine days in a row. It is appropriate to choose a quiet moment, away from the noise, and a place to be picked up: it can help to have close an image of the Virgin, a candle on or simply silence. Before we begin, let us make a brief act of faith: we believe that God listens to us and that the Mother intercedes for us before her Son.
It is good to approach this novena with a concrete intention: an pending decision, a situation that we do not know how to solve, a person for whom we ask for light. Let us present this intention to the Lord without demanding our answer, but asking him for his, which is always better. To ask for good advice is to ask for humility in order to prefer God's will to ours.
Finally, preparing for this novena is preparing to obey. It is of little use to ask for advice if we are not willing to follow it. May these days sharpen our inner ear and soften our will, so that, like Mary in Cana, we may know how to say to others and to ourselves, "Do what He tells you."
Proposed order for each day
- Sign of the cross and brief silence.
- Initial prayer for every day.
- Invocation to the Holy Spirit.
- Reading of the historical memory of the day.
- Meditation of the day.
- A paused reading of the suggested Word of God.
- Formulation of the purpose of the day.
- Prayer of the day.
- Padrenuestro, Avemaría, Gloria and Salve final.
Opening prayer for every day
God and our Father, the source of all wisdom, which you have wanted to give us in the Virgin Mary an attentive mother and a listening teacher: give us, by their intercession, the gift of good counsel. Let us never put our plans before yours, nor rush to prayer. Teach us, as you taught your humble handmaid, to accept your Word and to do it. We ask you for Jesus Christ, your Son, the true Wisdom of the Father, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
Invocation to the Holy Spirit
Come, Holy Spirit, and pour out your gift of counsel upon us. You who rested fully on the Heart of the Virgin Mary, illuminates our understanding to know the good, strengthens our will to choose it and keeps our freedom from all deception. Do not let us walk blind or in our opinion, but condemn us for true paths. Amen.
Day one - Good advice, God's gift
Historical report
The Church venerates Mary as "Mother of the Good Council" among the invocation of the Lauretana Lethanias. Pope Leo XIII, a great devotee of this advocation, officially inserted it into these litany in 1903. By this he recognized something that the Christian people had intuited since ancient times: that the Mother of Christ is also, by grace, the mother of our discernment, for no one heard and kept the will of God like her.
Meditation
The "advice" we speak of today is not a simple human ability to decide well, but a gift of the Holy Spirit. The prophet Isaiah, in proclaiming the Messiah, writes that he will rest on him "the spirit of counsel and strength" (cf. Isaiah 11.2). That same Spirit, who lived fully in Christ, wants to dwell in us also to guide our decisions according to God and not according to the flesh.
To ask for good advice, therefore, is to ask God for his own light. Mary is not the owner of that light, but the most transparent creature to her. By venerating her as Mother of the Good Council we confess that her intercession helps us to open ourselves to the gift of the Spirit, so that we too will learn to decide with the mind and heart of Christ.
Suggested word of God
"The spirit of the Lord will rest upon him: spirit of wisdom and understanding, spirit of counsel and strength, spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord" (Isaiah 11.2).
Purpose
Today, before every decision, however small, I will stop for a moment to ask for the light of the Holy Spirit in silence.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, you who were the perfect dwelling place of the Spirit, give me the gift of counsel from your Son. May he not trust only in my reason or in my strength, but learn to seek in all the will of God. Intercede for me, Mother, and always give me Jesus. Amen.
Second Day - "Do as He tells you."
Historical report
The Gospel foundation of this advocation is found at the wedding of Cana, when the Mother, warning that the wine was missing, addresses the servants with words that summarize all her mission: "Do what He tells you" (John 2.5). It is not a fact of the pious tradition, but a account of the Gospel: it is the only instruction that Mary leaves to the Church, and always points to Christ.
Meditation
These five words are perhaps the best advice ever given. The Virgin does not say, "Do what I say to you," but she refers entirely to her Son. There it is clearly seen that devotion to Mary never competes with Christ or displaces anything from him: on the contrary, it pushes us towards him. The Mother does not want to take the lead; she wants us to obey the Lord.
How many times, in our difficulties, we seek solutions everywhere but where we should: in the obedient listening of God's will. The good advice of Mary is always the same, simple and demanding: to do what Jesus tells us, even though we do not fully understand it, even if it costs us, even if the result is not in our hands.
Suggested word of God
"His mother said to the servants," Do as He tells you "(John 2.5).
Purpose
Today I will examine a specific situation by asking myself with sincerity: what is Jesus asking me in this?, and I will be prepared to obey it.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, you who in Cana pointed out your Son and taught us to obey him, teach me to do what He tells me. Take away mistrust and stubbornness from me, and give me a docile heart. May your intercession always bring me closer to Christ, the only Savior. Amen.
Third Day - Mary, Throne of Wisdom
Historical report
The tradition of the Church has invoked Mary as "Throne of Wisdom" (Sedes Sapientiae), for upon his lap was sat the Word made a child, the eternal wisdom of the Father. This contemplation, already present in the piety and Christian art of many centuries, also illuminates the advocation of the Good Council: where Christ rests, there we find true light.
Meditation
To call Mary "Throne of Wisdom" is not to exalt her above her Son, but to confess that she took him, held him and offered him to the world. The wisdom we seek is not a set of formulas, but a Person: Jesus Christ. And the Mother, humble throne, shows us sitting on her lap, close and accessible.
Who asks Mary for advice is actually led at the feet of Christ. That is why true Marian devotion never isolates or encloses in feelings, but opens to the Word and sacraments, where Christ, the Wisdom of the Father, continues to instruct his Church. To come to the Mother is to get carried to the Master.
Suggested word of God
"Christ, the strength of God and the wisdom of God" (1 Corinthians 1: 24).
Purpose
Today I will spend a few minutes reading a passage from the Gospel, seeking in Christ the wisdom I need for my life.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Throne of Wisdom and Mother of the Good Council, you who took the eternal Word on your lap, show us Jesus. Let us not seek light far from him, but in his Gospel and in his Church. Intercede for us, Mother, that we may grow in the true wisdom, which is Christ. Amen.
Fourth day - The fresco of Genazzano: tradition and faith
Historical report
In Genazzano, in the Italian Lazio, a delicate fresco of the Virgin with the Child is venerated, guarded by the Order of St. Augustine in the church of St. Mary of the Good Council. It should be said precisely: according to a pious tradition, this image is associated with 25 April 1467 and with an origin in Soctari (Albania), from where it would have been carried providentially to the Ottoman advance. The Church welcomes these devotional accounts with respect, but she draws them from the documented historical data with care.
Meditation
Honesty is part of faith. We do not need to exaggerate the wonders or take into history what is tradition: Christian devotion is held on the truth, not on the ornament. The truly admirable is not so much the account of the origin of an image, as the love with which generations of believers have come to it to ask for light from the Mother and, through her, from her Son.
A sacred image is not a magical object or an end in itself; it is a window that helps us raise our heart. Before the fresco of Genazzano, as before any image of Mary, we do not worship the painting or the wall: we worship the Mother and worship God. The image reminds us that faith also enters through the eyes, but always to lead us beyond the visible.
Suggested word of God
"Blessed are you who have believed, for what the Lord has said to you will be fulfilled" (Luke 1: 45).
Purpose
Today I will look after the truth in what I say about faith, without exaggerating or confusing tradition with history, and I will venerate an image of the Virgin by raising my heart to God.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council venerated in Genazzano, you who have been invoked with love for so many believers, teach us to love you in the truth. May our devotion be sober and sincere, and may every image of you lead us to worship the one God and to follow your Son. Amen.
Fifth Day - Lion XIII and the Church who trusts Mary
Historical report
Pope Leo XIII was a great devotee of the Mother of the Good Council and, in 1903, he officially inserted this invocation into the Lauretanas. With that gesture, the successor of Peter wanted the whole Church to address Mary by asking her for light for discernment, thus linking the piety of a people to the common prayer of the faithful.
Meditation
The Church, mother and teacher, does not walk alone or trust only in her strength: it is known accompanied by the intercession of the Virgin. When a Pope introduces an invocation into the litany, he does not invent a new devotion or change the faith, but offers the faithful a safe way to ask God through Mary. We, too, members of that Church, learn to pray by being guided by their prayer.
To trust in Mary's intercession does not weaken our trust in God; it strengthens her. She is the first believer, who walked in faith and persevered by the cross. In asking for his advice we put ourselves in good company: that of a mother who never stayed with anything for herself, but who gave everything to the will of the Father.
Suggested word of God
"All generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty has done great works in me" (Luke 1: 48-49).
Purpose
Today I will pray with and for the Church, joining my personal intention to the prayer of so many brothers who also ask Mary for light to discern.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, to whom the Church calls with confidence, intercede for the Pope, for the pastors and for all the people of God. Teach us to walk together in faith and to seek in all the Father's will. May your intercession keep us faithful to Christ and his Church. Amen.
Sixth Day - Discerning God's Will
Historical report
Devotion to the Good Council has especially flourished among those who seek to discern their path: people before important decisions, those who discern a vocation, or those who have to choose between difficult options. The Order of Saint Augustine, the custody of the sanctuary of Genazzano, has for centuries fed this piety, joining it in the sincere search for the truth that so marked Saint Augustine.
Meditation
Discerning is to distinguish, among many voices, the voice of God. It is not always easy: our desires, our fears and the haste of the world tend to confuse judgment. That is why Christian discernment is not made at once or alone, but in prayer, with humility, leaving room for silence and seeking the advice of wise and good people.
The Mother of the Good Council teaches us a simple method: to listen to the Word, to contemplate Christ and always ask what God likes, not just what it suits me. A good discernment does not seek comfort, but good; it does not flee from the cross, but opens to it with confidence. And when we still don't see clearly, waiting and praying is also part of the way.
Suggested word of God
"Do not love this world, but be transformed by the renewal of the mind, that you may know how to discern the will of God, the good, the pleasing, the perfect" (Romans 12: 2).
Purpose
Today, in the face of a decision that worries me, I will not be carried away in a hurry: I will pray, seek prudent advice and wait for the light of God with peace.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, raise the art of discernment to me from your Son. May he be able to be silent to listen, wait without anguish and always prefer what pleases God. Intercede for me, Mother, so that I do not confuse my desires with your will. Amen.
Day 7 - Mary, advisor in difficult decisions
Historical report
The faithful have come to the Mother of the Good Council in the difficult hours of old: diseases, family crossroads, life changes, decisions that do not allow back. The same tradition surrounding the shrine of Genazzano was born among people who sought comfort and light in Mary in the face of an uncertain future, marked by wars and threats.
Meditation
There are decisions that go beyond us. We feel the weight of choosing without certainty, afraid to be wrong, knowing that others depend on us. In those moments, faith does not promise us that the difficulty will disappear, but it does assure us that we are not alone: we have a Father who loves us and a Mother who intercede for us.
Mary knew the uncertainty inside. He said his yes without knowing all that he would bring with him, he kept and meditated in his heart when he did not understand, and remained faithful to the foot of the cross. That is why he is a teacher in difficult decisions: not because he avoids us the test, but because he teaches us to go through it with faith, putting trust in God more than in our calculations.
Suggested word of God
"Mary kept all these things, meditating them in her heart" (Luke 2: 19).
Purpose
Today I will put in the hands of God, through Mary's intercession, the difficult decision that weighs most on me, renouncing to resolve it only with my own strength.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, comfort in the dark hours, hold my trust when I do not see the way. Teach me to keep and meditate in the heart, like you, and to remain faithful even without understanding everything. Intercede for me before your Son, in whom I put my hope. Amen.
Eighth day - The family and work council
Historical report
The advocation of the Mother of the Good Council has been invoked by families, marriages and workers who sought to live their daily duties Christian. Next to the shrine of Genazzano, the Augustans have for centuries accompanied pilgrims who carried before the Virgin not great gestures, but the ordinary concerns of home and trade.
Meditation
Good advice is not only for big decisions; it is also needed in the small and daily. In the family, to speak with patience, to correct with love and to forgive without getting tired. At work, to be honest, to perform diligently and treat others with justice. Holiness is woven above all in the small plot of days.
Mary lived a simple life in Nazareth, between the tasks of home and the work of a humble family. There, in the ordinary, he fully pleased God. His example teaches us that the divine will is not far, in some extraordinary event, but here and now, in the concrete duties of our state of life, lived with love.
Suggested word of God
"Whatever you do, by word or by work, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus" (Colossians 3: 17).
Purpose
Today I will ask Our Lady for advice on a specific matter of my family or my work, and I will seek to do with love a duty that I sometimes neglect.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, you who sanctified the home of Nazareth, guide our families and bless our work. Teach us to serve with patience, to speak with charity and to perform our duties in the name of the Lord. Intercede for us, Mother, that we may do the will of God in the daily. Amen.
9th Day - Persevering in good advice to heaven
Historical report
The Church celebrates the Feast of the Mother of the Good Council on April 26. At the end of this novena, the look rises to the goal: it is not enough to receive good advice, we must persevere in it. The devotion to Mary, faithfully guarded in Genazzano and spread by the whole Church, wants to accompany the Christian to the end, when discernment gives way to vision and faith becomes a meeting.
Meditation
Good advice reaches its fullness in perseverance. It is of little use to hear God's will if we then abandon it at the first setback. Christian life is a long way, and fidelity is tested in time: in daily prayer, in sacraments, in love that is not tired. To persevere is to let today's good advice continue to guide us tomorrow.
Mary, who was faithful from beginning to end, precedes us as a star and as a mother. She does not leave us in the middle of the way: she intercede for us now and at the time of our death, that we may reach the Father's house. There, together with her and with all the saints, we will finally see the One to whom she always referred us: Christ, eternal Wisdom, in whom every counsel finds his rest.
Suggested word of God
"He who persevers to the end will be saved" (Matthew 24: 13).
Purpose
Today I will take a simple and lasting resolution - a daily prayer, a gesture of constant charity - to persevere in the good advice received in this novena.
Prayer of the day
Mary, Mother of the Good Council, who you have walked with me in this novena, give me from your Son the grace of perseverance. May he faithfully keep the light received and walk to the end by doing God's will. Pray for me now and in the hour of my death, that one day I may praise you in heaven with Christ, your Son and our Savior. Amen.
Novena prepared by the rezaelrosario.org team as original devotional material. The historical data are offered in accordance with the tradition and the Magisterium of the Church; devotion is addressed to God, and Mary is asked to intercession.