St. Anne, along with her husband St. Joachim, prayed fervently for many years to have a child. When an angel told her of her conception, Anne immediately replied that she would offer the child as a gift to God. And so, they consecrated to God their daughter Mary, conceived without stain of Original Sin, at the tender age of three.
By openness to God’s Will, Joachim and Anne’s family became a holy family. As Catholics, to follow God’s Will through the teachings and traditions of the Church, might be conceived of as radical to the eyes of the world. Our daily Rosary and frequent reception of the Sacraments will help us practice the Catholic lifestyle that God wills for us, no matter our state in life.
“St. Anne being herself a vessel of grace, not by name only, but by the possession of that rich treasure, was chosen by God to form his most beloved spouse to perfect virtue; and her pious care of this illustrious daughter was the greatest means of her own sanctification and her glory in the church of God to the end of ages.”
-Lives of the Saints, by Fr. Alban Butler
Novena Prayer:
Glorious St. Anne, filled with compassion for those who invoke you and with love for those who suffer, heavily laden with the weight of my troubles, I kneel at your feet and humbly beg you to take my present need under your special protection.
(State your intention here)
Please recommend it to your daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and lay it before the throne of Jesus. Cease not to intercede for me until my request is granted. Above all, obtain for me the grace to one day meet God face to face, and with you and Mary, and all the angels and saints, to praise Him through all eternity.
Great Saint Anne, engrave indelibly on my heart and in my mind the words that have reclaimed and sanctified so many sinners: “What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world if he lose his own soul?”
May this be the principal fruit of these prayers by which I will strive to honor you during this novena.
At your feet, renew my resolution to invoke you daily, not only for the success of my temporal affairs and to be preserved from sickness and suffering, but above all, that I may be preserved from all sin, that I may gain eternal salvation and that I will receive the special grace of… (state your intention here)
O most powerful Saint Anne, do not let me lose my soul, but obtain for me the grace of heaven, there with you, your blessed spouse, and your glorious daughter, to sing the praise of the Most Holy and Adorable Trinity forever and ever. Amen.
Pray for us, Saint Anne!
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
