A Thorn in the Flesh

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

O God, in St. Rita you gave the world a model of patience in suffering and love toward enemies, and you answered her prayers in cases thought impossible. As I begin this novena, look upon my own difficult situation. Through her intercession, give me her peace, her forgiveness, and her unshaken trust in you. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us pause in silence, and bring to mind the intention you are praying for.

In the app, your own saved intention rests here during the silence. The narration stays the same for everyone.

By reason of the exceeding greatness of the revelations, that I should not be exalted excessively, a thorn in the flesh was given to me: a messenger of Satan to torment me, that I should not be exalted excessively.

St. Paul speaks of a thorn in the flesh he begged God to remove, and was not spared. St. Rita too bore a literal wound for years, a thorn from the crown of Christ. Many of us carry some thorn - a sorrow, an illness, a burden that does not lift. Rita teaches us how to carry it without losing peace.

Lord, there is a thorn in my own life that I have begged you to take away, and still it remains. Help me to carry it as Rita carried hers - not in despair, but united to the suffering of Christ. Through her intercession, give meaning to my pain, and let it draw me closer to you rather than away. Amen.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 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 thee, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

St. Rita, advocate of impossible and desperate cases, you bore deep wounds of heart and body and never lost your peace. Take my intention, which seems beyond hope, and lay it before God. Obtain for me the grace to forgive, the patience to endure, and the faith to trust that nothing is impossible for him. Amen.

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