THE HOLY HOUR OF GREAT MERCY

On the afternoon of this day, about three o’clock (unless a later hour is chosen for a pastoral
reason), there takes place the Holy Hour of Great Mercy.

RINGING OF CHURCH BELLS

At three in the afternoon, the bells of the church will be peeled for about three minutes. While the
bells are ringing, the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament will take place and the Three O'clock
Prayer will be prayed.

EXPOSITION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT

After the people have assembled, a song may be sung while the minister comes to the altar. If the holy
Eucharist is not reserved at the altar where the exposition is to take place, the minister puts on the
humeral veil and brings the sacrament from the place of reservation; he is accompanied by server or
by the faithful with lighted candles. The following hymns may be sung.

O salutaris Hostia,
Quae caeli pandis ostium:
Bella premunt hostilia,
Da robur, fer auxilium.

Uni trinoque Domino

Sit sempiterna gloria,
Qui vitam sine termino
Nobis donet in patria.
Amen.

The ciborium or monstrance should be placed upon the altar, which is covered with cloth. After the
exposition, if the monstrance is used, the minister incenses the sacrament.

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The salutation of the Blessed Sacrament begins with these words:

Praise to you, our Lord Jesus Christ,

who chose to be with us through this Most Precious Sacrament,
night and day, we shall adore thee.
Glory and praise to you forever!

O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine.

The congregation responds:
All praise and all thanksgiving, be every moment thine.

Presider:

Praise to you, O Eucharistic Heart of Jesus,

who through this Precious Sacrament,
nourishes us with all goodness and love.
Glory and praise to you forever!

O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine.

People:
All praise and all thanksgiving, be every moment thine.

Presider:

Praise to you, Jesus, King of Mercy,

who through this Precious Sacrament
dispenses mercy on those who worship him.
Glory and praise to you forever!

O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine.

People:
All praise and all thanksgiving, be every moment thine.

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THE THREE O'CLOCK PRAYER
Kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament, the presider will now begin the Holy Hour by praying the
Three O’clock Prayer. The Presider begins by saying:

You expired, O Jesus, 

but the source of life gushed forth for souls 
and an ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. 
O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, 
envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. 

O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus
as a fountain of Mercy for us,

People: I trust in You!

Presider:
O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus
as a fountain of Mercy for us,

People:
I trust in You!

Presider:
O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus
as a fountain of Mercy for us,

People:
I trust in You!

BRIEF PAUSE
Silent pause in honor of Christ’s Passion

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RITE OF REPENTANCE
The presider introduces the Holy Hour and asks the congregation to make an act of repentance using
these or similar words:

Dear brothers and sisters,

during this Hour of Great Mercy,
our Lord promised to St. Faustina
that the depths of his tender mercy is opened.
He will pour out a whole ocean of graces
upon us who will approach the fount of His Mercy.
On this special day, as we are struggling with this pandemic,
we take hope that all the divine floodgates
through which graces flow will be opened.
Although we are not worthy on account of our sins,
we take courage in his Divine mercy
and take this time to draw near our Lord.
We now spend some moments of silence
as we recall our sins and ask God’s pardon and mercy.

EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE (SILENCE)

All will observe a moment of silence (about 5 minutes) to recall their sins and to ask God’s
forgiveness.

ACT OF CONTRITION
The Act of Contrition is now prayed. The Presider leads the praying.

O my God,
I am heartily sorry for having offended You
and I detest all my sins,
because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell,
but most of all because they offend you, my God,
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 who are all good and deserving of all my love.
I firmly resolve, with the help of your grace,
to confess my sins, to do penance and to amend my life.
Amen.

LITANY OF HUMILITY
As a sign of contrition, the Litany of Humility is now prayed. The presider introduces by these
words:

As we resolve to sin no more, let us now make the Act of Humility.

Presider:
O Jesus, meek and humble of heart,

People:
Hear me.

The people respond: “Deliver me, O Jesus” in every phrase:

From the desire of being esteemed,

From the desire of being loved,
From the desire of being extolled,
From the desire of being honored,
From the desire of being praised,
From the desire of being preferred to others,
From the desire of being consulted,
From the desire of being approved,
From the fear of being humiliated,
From the fear of being despised,
From the fear of suffering rebukes,
From the fear of being calumniated,
From the fear of being forgotten,
From the fear of being ridiculed,
From the fear of being wronged,
From the fear of being suspected,

We pray together: Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

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 That others may be loved more than I,
That others may be esteemed more than I,
That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase
and I may decrease,
That others may be chosen and I set aside, Jesus,
That others may be praised and I go unnoticed,
That others may be preferred to me in everything,
That others may become holier than I,
provided that I may become as holy as I should,

SILENT ADORATION
All will adore the Lord in silence.

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THE CHAPLET OF THE DIVINE MERCY

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
People: Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass
against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Amen

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you;

blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
People: Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

I believe in God,
the Father almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;

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 he descended into hell;
on the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.

For each of the five decades  (On each “Our Father” bead of the rosary, pray)

Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood,

Soul and Divinity of Your Dearly Beloved Son,
Our Lord, Jesus Christ,
in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.

(On each of the 10 “Hail Mary” beads, pray)

For the sake of His sorrowful Passion,

have mercy on us and on the whole world.

Concluding prayer  (Repeat 3 times)

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One,

have mercy on us and on the whole world.

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Concluding Prayer

The presider now prays the concluding prayer:

Eternal God,
in whom mercy is endless
and the treasury of compassion is inexhaustible,
look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us,
that in difficult moments we might not despair
nor become despondent,
but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will,
which is Love and Mercy itself.

SILENCE OF PETITION
Silence is observed as the congregation is led to remember their intentions and prayers. The Minister
begins with these or similar words of invitation:

Immersed in the mercy of God,

let us knock at the door of his heart
as we express to him silently our personal prayers and intentions.

Keep Silence for about five minutes. Then the presider begins with the Litany of intentions.

LITANY OF INTENTIONS
The Litany of Intentions begins with this or similar words:

Before our Lord,

we now present to him our needs
and the needs of our brothers and sisters.
We say: “Be with them Lord.”

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The people responds: “Be with them Lord” in every intention:

For those who serve in your name

For those who care for the needy
For those who look after the dying
For those who are carers in the home
For those who visit the sick
For those who listen in your name
For Missionaries throughout the world
For those who work for justice and peace
For those who feed the hungry
For those who take care for the victims of COVID-19 Pandemic.
For those who work in the hospitals and care clinics
For military personnel and those who keep our peace.
For our government and civil leaders
For parents and families
For our children and the youth
For our elderly and aged
For all who bear witness to your love
For all who have lost hope
For all who suffer because of the present pandemic
For all who are sick and in pain
For all who are struggling
For all who lost their jobs because of this pandemic
For all who have been badly hurt in life
For all who are grieving
For all who are depressed
For all who feel rejected
For all who feel unloved
For all who are oppressed
For all who are anxious

The presider continues the intentions with these words:

The Divine Mercy of our Lord

assures us that He will never abandon us
especially in this time of need.
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 We seek his presence as we say: Jesus, I trust in you.

The people responds: “Jesus, I trust in you” in every intention:

When peace is fragile

When tempers are raised
When tragedies occur

When pandemic disturbs and frightens us

When forgiveness is rejected
When talks break down
When agreements are broken
When darkness weighs us
When we cannot see you
When burdens feel too heavy
When hope seems faint
When we are weak
When faith seems difficult

The presider concludes the Litany of Intentions with these or similar words:

Most Merciful Jesus,

from the treasury of Your mercy,
You impart Your graces
in the great abundance to each and all.
Receive us into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart
and never let us escape from It.
We beg this of You
by that most wondrous love for the heavenly Father
with which Your Heart burns so fiercely.

Eternal Father,
turn Your Merciful gaze upon faithful souls,
upon the inheritance of Your Son.
For the sake of His Sorrowful Passion,
grant them Your blessing
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 and surround them with Your constant protection.
Thus may they never fail in love
or lose the treasure of the holy faith,
but rather, with all the hosts of Angels and Saints,
may they glorify Your boundless mercy for endless ages.
Amen.

BENEDICTION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT

The Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament now concludes this hour.

Tantum ergo Sacramentum

Veneremur cernui:
Et antiquum documentum
Novo cedat ritui:
Praestet fides supplementum
Sensuum defectui.

Genitori Genitoque
Laus et jubilatio,
Salus, honor, virtus quoque
Sit et benedictio:
Procedenti ab utroque
Compar sit laudatio. Amen.

Presider:
Panem de caelo praestitisti eis. Alleluia.
All:
Omne delectamentum in se habentem. Alleluia.

Presider:
Oremus.

Deus, qui nobis sub sacramento mirabili,

passionis tuae memoriam reliquisti:
tribue, quaesumus, ita nos corporis et sanguinis
tui sacra mysteria venerari,
ut redemptionis tuae fructum in nobis iugiter sentiamus.

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 Qui vivis et regnas in saecula saeculorum.
All:
Amen.

The priest takes the monstrance and then makes the sign of the cross with it over the people in silence.

THE DIVINE PRAISES

Blessed be God.
Blessed be his Holy Name.
Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true Man.
Blessed be the Name of Jesus.
Blessed be his most Sacred Heart.
Blessed be his most Precious Blood.
Blessed be Jesus in the most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.
Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most holy.
Blessed be her holy and Immaculate Conception.
Blessed be her glorious Assumption.
Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.
Blessed be Saint Joseph, her most chaste spouse.
Blessed be God in his angels and in his saints.

May the heart of Jesus, in the Most Blessed Sacrament, be praised,

adored, and loved with grateful affection, at every moment, in all
the tabernacles of the world, even to the end of time. Amen.

CLOSING HYMN
O sacrament most holy
O sacrament divine
All praise and all thanksgiving
Be every moment thine
Be every moment thine.

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