Several times, I’d post free roses for the members of my local “Flash Gives” community. With instructions to, “Take the Roses. Leave the Buckets,” folks would scoop up the flowers so fast, resulting in some happy neighbors, and a few sad ones. Since tired roses have little life left, I don’t feel badly for the people who don’t receive. But I avoid the guilt of tossing roses!

On this occasion, the roses are still quite beautiful, with lots of life left in them. I ask Heaven what to do.

“Make a Decade Rosary and send it to Kelley in Texas.”

There used to be a time when my heart wasn’t quiet enough to hear an answer from heaven. Another blog post, perhaps. This answer is fast and clear.

She’s my very first online customer, from two years ago, and I know she’ll appreciate the gift. (You can read her story here). Plus, I’m thinking about the health and well-being of her family, self-employed in a “non-essential” profession, with two high-school aged daughters sheltering at home.

I get busy, prayerfully create it, box and label it, and drop it off at the local FedEx store 15 minutes before the truck departs. She’ll receive it in the morning, and call me so excited! I know it!

But she doesn’t. Texas time is two hours later than Washington time. It’s afternoon there. I’m going to text her!

I wrote:

“Hi Kelley, I sent you a little something. Did you get it?”

When she calls back, I hear shouts and screaming.

“Julia, you won’t believe this, but our daughters just finished a nine-day Novena to St. Therese! They’ve been asking me, ‘Mom, how will she send us a rose, since we’ve been in quarantine?'”

This Novena is supposed to come with an answer — a sign of roses on the ninth day. This is the package they open on arrival:

Heaven’s timing is perfect. I’m delighted for my dear customer and her family. Their prayers, and faithfulness, are noticed by God, and the dear little saint, Therese, got her chance to deliver.

I imagine her running to her sainted parents, Louis and Zelie Martin, and gleefully boasting, in her good-humored, melodic voice,

“Mama and Papa, look what I have done today! I sent a red rose rosary to some 16 year-old twin sisters in America!”

The family draped the rosary upon an antique crucifix, encircling the image of Jesus in fresh beautiful, red roses. Like this:

Kelley wrote about the experience for this Catholic Women’s Blog, “Mighty is Her Call. I will insert the link when it’s posted, so you can see the story from her eyes.

For anyone who wants to make a Novena to the Little Flower, here is the prayer:

O Little Therese of the Child Jesus
Please pick for me a rose
from the heavenly garden
and send it to me
as a message of love.

O Little Flower of Jesus,
ask God to grant the favors
I now place with confidence
in you hands
( mention your special prayer request here )

St. Therese, help me to always believe
as you did, in God’s great love for me,
so that I may imitate your “Little Way” each day. 
Amen.

Thank you St. Therese, for doing your thing, and being altogether darling in the way you share God’s love with the world.

Learn more about St. Therese at this website.

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The scripture above is from the Canticle of Zechariah, the father of St. John the Baptist. The Angel revealed to Zechariah that his son, John, “will go before him (Jesus) in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.” Luke 1:17.

In this spirit, we are asking the intercession of St. John the Baptist to prepare the fathers of this world for the return of Christ — by turning their hearts toward their children, and by bringing them into obedience of the wisdom of the just. In so doing, may these fathers help make us all a people prepared for the Lord.

We also ask for the intercession of St. Joseph, chaste spouse of the Virgin Mary, and devoted foster father of Jesus, who obediently and quietly cared for and protected the Christ Child and his Holy Mother, so that our Lord Jesus could fulfill his mission on earth.

We’re praying for every kind of father — Married, single, widowed, deceased. Spiritual fathers, Godfathers, Seminarians, Priests and Deacons. Foster fathers and adoptive fathers. Expectant fathers and grieving fathers. Father figures, uncles, coaches, teachers. “City Fathers,” and “Fathers of our Country,” and men in positions of servant-leadership and authority.

You may use the regular daily rotation of the Mysteries of the Rosary (Monday-Joyful, Tuesday and Friday-Sorrowful, Thursday-Luminous, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday-Glorious).

(It is taken for granted that you know the structure of the Rosary. For instructions on how to pray the Rosary, scroll to the bottom of the home page of FreshRosary.com, and download a copy.)

Create a list here of the Fathers you intend to pray for: ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________

Novena Prayer

Begin your Rosary with this prayer, followed by the Apostles’ Creed, Our Father, three Hail Marys and a Glory Be…

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Dear Saint Joseph and Saint John the Baptist, Because of your examples of obedience to God, and the prayerful and holy works by which you announced the earthly mission of Jesus Christ, thereby cooperating in securing salvation for humanity– we ask for your powerful intercession for all fathers, and men who fill the fatherly roles in this earthly realm.

By your merits and heavenly prayers, we ask you with all confidence to obtain for these men the virtues, and gifts, and fruits from the Holy Spirit, which they need in order to lead and serve their families, and lead and serve the Church -May you encourage them by their holy example, and purity of body, mind and soul, to also participate in preparing a people ready for the Lord at His second-coming.

We make this prayer in the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.

Daily Intentions for the Virtues of Fatherhood

These are the daily intentions:

The Cardinal Virtues- Prudence, Justice, Fortitude and Temperance

The Theological Virtues- Faith, Hope and Charity

For good measure-

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit (wisdom, understanding, counsel, courage, piety, fear of the Lord)

The Fruits of the Holy Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity)

We’ll follow this Novena Calendar, with everyone praying the Rosary and the Intentions on the same day. Don’t be discouraged if you miss a day. Just hop right back into the schedule with a happy heart and firm resolve to carry on.

Our calendar leading up to Father’s Day:

Friday, June 7: The Cardinal Virtue of Prudence

Saturday, June 8: The Cardinal Virtue of Justice

Sunday, June 9: The Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude

Monday, June 10: The Cardinal Virtue of Temperance

Tuesday, June 11: The Theological Virtue of Faith

Wednesday, June 12: The Theological Virtue of Hope

Thursday, June 13: The Theological Virtue of Charity

Friday, June 14: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Saturday, June 15: The Fruits of the Holy Spirit

Father’s Day, June 16: Prayer of Thanksgiving

“For an outpouring of ______________________________ in the lives of all fathers, especially (say the names here).”

How to add the Daily Intentions:

As you pray the Mysteries of the Rosary, announce each mystery and pray the Daily Intention, and then pray the Our Father and ten Hail Mary prayers, in the usual fashion.

Pray all nine days in the same manner, substituting the boldface text into each daily intention, according to the calendar on page 3.

For Example:

On Day one, begin your rosary in the usual way, starting with the Novena Prayer.

“The First Sorrowful Mystery: The Agony in the Garden.

“For an outpouring of the Cardinal Virtue of Prudence in the lives of all fathers, especially _____________________.

“Our Father…

“Hail Mary… (10 times)

“Glory be…

“Oh my Jesus…”

Pray all nine days in the same manner, substituting the boldface text into each daily intention, according to the calendar above.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Almighty and ever-living God,

We praise your for your goodness and extol you for your great glory.

Father’s Day reminds us of your own fatherly love.

Thank you for your Fatherhood as our Creator and Provider,

Thank you for your love in sending your only Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who in obedience to You, gave himself for us on the cross,

so that we may have eternal life with You and the saints in heaven.

We ask your blessing on all fathers –

Married, single, widowed, deceased.

Spiritual fathers, Godfathers, Seminarians, Priests and Deacons.

Foster fathers and adoptive fathers.

Expectant fathers and grieving fathers.

Father figures, uncles, coaches, teachers.

“City Fathers,” and “Fathers of our Country,” and men in positions of servant-leadership and authority.

Bless, protect and strengthen them.

Fill them with every virtue and grace, in order that they may be effective workers in the vineyard,

for the coming of Jesus Christ as King of All Nations.

We make this prayer in His Holy Name.

Amen.

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About the Novena for the Holy Military Souls in Purgatory

We honor the dead. We honor their memory and sacrifice. We honor them for the love they showed for their fellow Americans. What can we do to thank these souls for their service?

Together let’s pray a Rosary Novena for their heavenly homecoming. God alone knows who among these brave men and women are still waiting for complete union with Him in eternity. Our Lord is giving us a great opportunity this year to storm Heaven on their behalf, as they stormed beaches, deserts, and all manner of terrain on our behalf.

This year, Memorial Day is the Monday before the Feast of the Ascension, so we’ll be finished with our novena before the great Pentecost Novena begins, to pray once more for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Earth.

The Structure of this Rosary Novena

This Novena begins with a special prayer asking God to release the holy souls of our military into Heaven. Following that prayer, every day we will ask one of the nine choirs of angels, in ascending order, to assist our beloved dead on their journey, so that by the ninth day, the Seraphim are ushering the souls into God’s throne room. (God-willing, that’s the plan!)

With each decade of the rosary we will pray for a particular branch of service. Five branches, 5 decades. It works!!

The rest of the rosary will be prayed in the usual fashion. On Memorial Day, there will be a prayer of thanksgiving to God for hearing our prayers, and for His sovereignty and love for these dear souls.

Novena Calendar

We’ll follow the Novena Calendar below, with everyone praying the Rosary and the specified Angel intentions on the same day. If you find this novena in a future year, simply alter the dates to lead up to Memorial Day.

You may use the regular daily rotation of the Mysteries of the Rosary (Monday-Joyful, Tuesday and Friday-Sorrowful, Thursday-Luminous, Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday-Glorious). If you prefer to pray the Suffering, Death and Resurrection Mysteries, then concentrate on the Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries for this novena. It will be fine.

(It is taken for granted that you know the structure of the Rosary. For instructions on how to pray the Rosary, scroll to the bottom of the home page of FreshRosary.com, and download a copy.)

May 18 – Guardian Angels and Angels

May 19 – Archangels

May 20 – Principalities

May 21 – Powers

May 22 – Virtues

May 23 – Thrones

May 24 – Dominions

May 25 – Cherubim

May 26 – Seraphim

May 27 – Memorial Day

First Mystery: Army

Second Mystery: Navy

Third Mystery: Air Force

Fourth Mystery: Marine Corps

Fifth Mystery: Coast Guard

Create a list here of souls you wish to remember in prayer: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Daily Novena Prayer
Recite this prayer as you begin your Rosary

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Heavenly Father, As Memorial Day approaches, our thoughts turn toward the many brave men and women of the Armed Forces who are now counted among the faithful dead, who gave of themselves to protect and serve the United States of America.

With this Rosary Novena, we ask you to look with mercy upon all Holy Souls in Purgatory, especially those military souls. We ask you to complete the work of their purification, that they may soon enjoy total union with You and with the Saints in Heaven. For there is no greater human love than to lay down one’s life for a friend, and there is no greater Heavenly Love than to be united with You, Triune God, Who are Love, and the Source of all Love, in time and in eternity.

We pray especially for the souls of (mention names here), that you will look kindly on the merits of their service “for God and country,” and that your mercy and justice would triumph, securing their purification and entrance into their Heavenly reward.

In praise and thanksgiving for your goodness and glory, we make this prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with You, in union with the Holy Spirit, reigns as King of the Universe, now and forever.

Amen.

Daily Intentions to the Nine Choirs of Angels

Day 1

Holy Angels and Guardian Angels, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Archangels on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 2

Holy Archangels, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Principalities on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 3

Holy Principalities, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Powers on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 4

Holy Powers, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Virtues on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 5

Holy Virtues, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Dominions on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 6

Holy Dominions, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Thrones, on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 7

Holy Thrones, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Cherubim on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 8

Holy Cherubim, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Seraphim on their journey to God’s throne.

Day 9

Holy Serpahim, you who constantly worship God, we ask you to usher into God’s throne room the purified souls of the military men and women who have completed their journey to God.

How to add the Daily Intentions:

Immediately after the Daily Novena Prayer, and before starting the Apostles’ Creed, pray the above prayers, one each day, according to the list on Page 1, and continue your rosary in the usual manner.

For example, Day 1: Pray the Daily Novena Prayer

Then pray the first Daily Intention: “Holy Angels and Guardian Angels, we ask you to shed your light upon the military souls in purgatory, and to recommend them to the care of the Archangels on their journey to God’s throne.” Days 2 through 9 continue in the same fashion, using the calendar on Page 2.

“I believe in God the Father Almighty… “Our Father, who art in Heaven… “Hail Mary, full of grace…(3 times) “Glory be to the Father…

Begin with the First Mystery, and announce the following: “With this decade, we remember the Holy Souls who served in the United States Army, especially those who have no one to pray for them.”

Begin each remaining mystery as follows:

The Second Mystery: With this decade, we remember the Holy Souls who served in the United States Navy, especially those who have no one to pray for them.

The Third Mystery: With this decade, we remember the Holy Souls who served in the United States Air Force, especially those who have no one to pray for them.

The Fourth Mystery: With this decade, we remember the Holy Souls who served in the United States Marine Corps, especially those who have no one to pray for them.

The Fifth Mystery: With this decade, we remember the Holy Souls who served in the United States Coast Guard, especially those who have no one to pray for them.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Blessed are You, God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave his earthly life for us so that we may may have eternal life with You. We thank You for Jesus’ promise, that, “My Father who has given them to me is greater than all, and no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:29) By this word we have confidence in Your power to save all souls, knowing that those for whom we prayed this novena are securely in your hand. We humbly ask for the grace of a sign that they are now united with you, Saints among the Saints in Heaven, enjoying this Memorial Day as the ultimate celebration, praising you in Heaven for all eternity. In Jesus’ Name, we give you our praise and thanks.

Amen.

If you have any questions about how to pray this novena, please contact me through this website and I’ll get back to you!

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