Novena in Honor of the Immaculate Conception
with St. Maximilian Kolbe

This Novena includes: Daily Opening Prayer, Readings from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe (KW), Prayer Intention, “Grace for Today” and Daily Closing Prayer.
 

Daily Opening Prayer (repeat each day)

You are all beautiful, Mary,
and the original stain is not in you.
You are the glory of Jerusalem,
you are the joy of Israel,
you give honor to our people.
You are the advocate of sinners.
O Mary,
Virgin most prudent,
Mother most merciful,
pray for us, intercede for us,
with the Lord Jesus Christ.
 
O God, who by the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin prepared a worthy dwelling for your Son, grant, we pray, that, as you preserved her from every stain by virtue of the death of your Son, which you foresaw, so, through her intercession, we, too, may be cleansed and admitted to your presence. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Day One: The Immaculata

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

Human words cannot describe who the one is, who became the true Mother of God. Of course taken by herself, she is merely a creature. Yet, she was raised up so high by God that one would need to understand who God is to comprehend who the Mother of God is.
Also, she is the true Mother of God. It is a dogma of faith. Although the dignity of divine motherhood accounts for most of her priv­ileges, the first grace she received from God was her Immaculate Conception, her exemption from any blemish, even from original sin, since the first moment of her existence. Such privilege, moreover, must be very dear to her, for in Lourdes she named herself: “I am the Immaculate Conception.”  On that occasion, she did not say, “I was conceived without sin,” but “I am the Immaculate Conception;” it follows of necessity that she is immaculateness itself. In fact, she is a conception, since she came into existence in time. However, she is the Immaculate Conception.
 God said to Moses: “I am Who I am” [Ex 3:14]: I am existence itself, so I am without beginning. Instead, the Immaculata says of herself, “I am Conception,” but, unlike all other human beings, the “Immaculate Conception.” ( KW 1292)

Prayer Intention

For the Catholic Church throughout the world and in our country.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Gratitude for the gift of Our Lady’s Immaculate Conception, given to her for the sake of all.

Daily Closing Prayer (repeat each day)

Immaculate Virgin!
Your spotless spiritual beauty
is for us a living source of
confidence and hope.
To have you as Mother, Holy Virgin,
reassures us on the path of life
as a pledge of eternal salvation.
Because of this, O Mary,
we have recourse to you
with confidence.
Help us to build a world
where human life is always
cherished and defended,
every form of violence banished,
the peace of all tenaciously sought.
Immaculate Virgin!
grant that we may celebrate and adore
with renewed faith and ardent love
the holy mystery of the
Body and Blood of Christ.
At your school,
O Woman of the Eucharist,
teach us to remember the marvels
that God never ceases to work in
human hearts.
With motherly tenderness, Virgin Mary,
guide our steps always on the
path of good. Amen!
–Pope St. John Paul II
 

Day Two: Who Are You, O Immaculata?

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

Who is she? She is nothing in herself, like all other creatures, but thanks to God’s work she is the most perfect among creatures. The most perfect semblance of the Divine Being in a purely human creature.
She derives, therefore, from the Father through the Son and the Spirit, as the Creator who from nothing, in the image of Himself, in the image of the Most Holy Trinity, calls finite beings into existence, out of love for His own finite likenesses, which they reproduce.
Beings endowed with free will and reason know and acknowledge their prov­enance and are aware of having received from God all they are, all they can do, and all they possess at every instant.
They reciprocate with love, both for what they have received, and for the fact that He, as infinite perfection, is worthy of infinite love. Consequently, as limited be­ings, unable to render unto Him infinite love, at least they overcome the constraints and efforts of such love.
The Immaculata never had any stain of sin, which means that her love was always full, without flaws. She loved God with all her being, and love united Her with God in this perfect fashion from the first instant of her life, such that on the day of the Annunciation, the Angel could address her saying: “Full of grace, the Lord is with thee” [Lk 1:28]. ( KW 1320)

Prayer Intention

For world peace and for all government leaders.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Appreciation for the gift of Divine life received at Baptism and nourished by the Sacraments.

Daily Closing Prayer

Day Three: Daughter and Instrument of God

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

She is therefore a creature of God, the property of God, the semblance of God, the image of God, the daughter of God, in the most perfect way possible for a mere human being.
She is God’s instrument. In full awareness, she lets herself be guided by God. She conforms to His will. She desires only what He wants; operates in accordance with His will and in the most perfect way possible, without the slightest blemish, without any deviation of her will from His.
[She is God’s instrument] in the perfect use of her faculties and privileges she was granted, in order to carry out always and in all things, solely and exclusively God’s Will, out of love toward God One and Triune.
Such love toward God reaches such heights that it produces divine fruits of love.
Her union of love with God reaches such point that she becomes the Mother of God.
The Father entrusts his own Son to her, the Son descends into her womb, while the Holy Spirit, from the body of her, shapes the most holy body of Jesus. ( KW 1320)

Prayer Intention

For all persecuted Christians throughout the world and for the victims of war, hatred and violence.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Willingness to embrace my call to be a child of God and an instrument of his love as Our Lady was.

Daily Closing Prayer

 

Day Four: Our Mother and Queen

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

Jesus Christ, Man-God, the true God, the second Person of the Most Holy Trinity, is the true Son of her. She is His true Mother. Keeping the fourth command­ment, He honors His Mother: He is her devotee.
A son never ceases to be the son of his mother, and so Jesus will be eternally the Son of her, and she will be forever the Mother of Him. He will forever be her devotee.
Jesus venerated her from eternity and He shall venerate her for eternity. No one will draw near to Him, will be like Him, will be saved, will be made holy, unless he venerates her: no one, neither angel, nor man, nor other being.
She is the Queen of the Universe, Queen of Heaven and earth.
In Heaven they all recognize her as their Queen.
Hell detests her and trembles before her, while here on earth, how many souls do not yet know her, or know her too little, or even, making common cause with the demons, do not venerate her but hate her. At all times, in different locations around the globe are born souls, who, all ablaze with love of her, have kindled such love around them. They came together in order to win hearts over to her more effectively and have consecrated their entire lives to her. ( KW 1321)

Prayer Intention

For the sick and suffering in body and spirit, for the lonely and despairing, for the terminally ill and their caregivers.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Readiness to give witness to my Catholic faith and devotion to Mary, my Mother.

Daily Closing Prayer

 

Day Five: Among Her Children

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

The Immaculata descends on earth as a good Mother among her children, to help them save their souls. Thus, she desires the conversion and sanctification of all souls, without exception. In order to carry out that work, though, she uses the tools taken from among men, as we see in the apparitions [to Bernadette]. At any rate, those are extraordinary events.
Most often, she urges the children who love her to cooperate with her in situa­tions of normal everyday life. These same souls consecrated to her, live by her, often think of her, love her wholeheartedly, and endeavor to discern her desires—either voiced from her own lips, or offered to them in silent inner inspirations. They prop­agate thus her will, attracting an ever larger number of souls to ever more perfect knowledge and ever more ardent love toward her, and in her and through her, to ever deeper love toward the Divine Heart of Jesus.
At all times, the Immaculata inspires thousands of such souls devoted to her­self. Many of them also come together more or less closely with one another to serve their Lady even better, in concerted effort. For this reason, the associations that work exclusively for her are many and varied.  One of the youngest groups that aim to win souls over to the Immaculata and, through her, to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, is the Militia of the Immaculata. ( KW 1323)

Prayer Intention

For all unborn (preborn) children and their parents; for the protection of the sacredness of human life from conception to natural death.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Eagerness to be attentive to inner inspirations and to work with others so as to radiate Our Lady’s presence in the world.

Daily Closing Prayer

 

Day Six: Why Consecration to the Immaculata

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

The aim of each man is to belong to God through Jesus, who is the Mediator with the Father, and to belong to Jesus through the Mediatrix of all graces, the Im­maculata. At different times, both in public and in private, the souls who love the Immaculata have used several formulas to characterize their oblation to the Mother of God. All wish to emphasize the most perfect form of self-oblation, the greatest possible, even though in the wording and in its immediate sense there are differenc­es.
The fact of being completely, in all respects of the Immaculata also belongs to the essence of the Militia of the Immaculata. Consequently, in the act of consecra­tion, MI members invoke the Immaculata: “[I implore you] to take me with all that I am and have, wholly to yourself as your possession and property. Please make of me, of all my powers of soul and body, of my whole life, death and eternity, whatever most pleases you.”
The soul who is a member of the Militia of the Immaculata, therefore, ceases to be excessively concerned even with its own eternity. It acknowledges that whatever does not depend on its own will, comes from the hand of God through the Immacu­lata and, insofar as it is up to itself, it endeavors to do all it can in order to know the Will of the Immaculata ever more perfectly and to carry it out ever more faithfully, even if that were to entail many sufferings and sacrifices. ( KW 1329)

Prayer Intention

For the preservation and restoration of the sacredness of marriage and family life according to God’s plan for mankind.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Confidence and trust in Divine Providence in all plans and endeavors.

Daily Closing Prayer

 

Day Seven: Totally Yours

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

A soul who has indeed offered itself up to the Immaculata to this point can­not but exert some influence on the environment around itself, albeit unwittingly. However, it is not content with that, but consciously strives and does all it can in order to win others, too, over to the Immaculata, so that others may become like it. For this reason, in the act of consecration, this soul prays to the Immaculata: “If it pleases you, use all that I am and have without reserve, wholly to accomplish what was said of you: ‘She will crush your head’ [Gn 3:15], and ‘You alone have destroyed all heresies in the whole world’ [Office of the B.V. Mary]. Let me be a fit instrument in your immaculate and merciful hands for introducing and increasing your glory to the maximum in all the many strayed and indifferent souls, and thus help extend as far as possible the blessed kingdom of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. For wher­ever you enter you obtain the grace of conversion and growth in holiness, since it is through your hands that all graces come to us from the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.” And it adds: “Allow me to praise you, O Sacred Virgin. Give me strength against your enemies.”
That soul desires to achieve all this at its own expense, at the cost of its own work, at the cost of sacrificing what is has, of the sacrifice of itself, until the last drop of blood is shed.
Thus, it is ready to use all lawful means which its state in life, its condition, and circumstances afford. ( KW 1329)

Prayer Intention

For all people  seeking proper employment, education and housing.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Zeal for the Gospel and for the salvation and sanctification of all.

Daily Closing Prayer

 

Day Eight: In Communion and Solidarity
with Others

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

One of the means that greatly enhances the results of a soul’s efforts is the union between souls like these, with the purpose of directing themselves toward a common goal in concerted action. That is why the association of the Militia of the Immaculata was born, whose aim, even in its simplest legal form, which requires no rigorous organization, makes it possible for souls not only to gain the indulgences granted by the Apostolic See, but also to deepen the ideal of the Militia of the Immac­ulata and to apply it to the normal circumstances of ordinary life. Besides, through the National Center, members can entertain a mutual exchange of points of view and intentions.
To become ever more the property of the Immaculata, to endeavor to belong to her ever more perfectly and in all respects with no exception; to attempt to deepen ever more one’s belonging to her to the point of being able to enlighten, to warm, and to kindle the souls who live around us, and make them like oneself, win them over to the Immaculata, so that they too may belong to her without restrictions, and all that with the aim to win an ever greater number of souls, to conquer the whole world, but conquer it in the shortest possible time, as soon as possible and then imbue with that ideal ever more all the souls who live and shall live in the future, and never allow anyone, not even for a short time, to tear away from any soul the banner of the Im­maculata: [that is] the task of the Knight of the Immaculata.
By thus becoming ever more of the Immaculata until, as a knight, one wins over ever more numerous legions of souls and by becoming, through the Immacula­ta, a property of Jesus, and through Him, ever more perfectly, property of the Heav­enly Father, the soul becomes ever more a knight of the Immaculata. One plunges ever more deeply into the essence of the Militia of the Immaculata. ( KW 1329)

Prayer Intention

For all young people in their search for truth, beauty and goodness, to be found in Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Generosity in living out my call as a missionary disciple in the footsteps of Our Lady and St. Maximilian.

Daily Closing Prayer

 

Day Nine: For the Coming of the Kingdom
of the Most Sacred Heart

Daily Opening Prayer

A Reading from the Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe

The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is the love of God toward mankind. His King­dom is the domain of this love in the hearts of men, the love that Jesus manifested in the manger, throughout His life, on the Cross, in the Eucharist, and in giving us His own Mother as our Mother; and He wants to kindle this love in the hearts of men. To infuse and to enhance the glory of the Immaculata, to conquer souls over to her, means to win souls over to the Mother of Jesus, who introduces the Kingdom of Jesus into them. ( KW  1331).
We must constantly strengthen the love for the Immaculata in souls, so that they may become one with her – become her herself; so that she herself may live and love (act) in them and through them. Just as she is of Jesus and of God, so each soul will become of Jesus and of God through her and in her.
Then souls will love the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus as they have never loved Him before, because, like her, and in ways they have never experienced before, they will plunge into the mysteries of Love: the Cross and the Eucharist. Through her, God’s Love shall kindle the world, set it on fire. ( KW 991 Q)

Prayer Intention

For Our Lady’s intentions for my life, my dear ones, the Church, my country and the whole world.
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.

Grace for Today

Dedication to the building up of the Kingdom of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus by promoting consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
 

Daily Closing Prayer

 Immaculate Virgin!
Your spotless spiritual beauty
is for us a living source of
confidence and hope.
To have you as Mother, Holy Virgin,
reassures us on the path of life
as a pledge of eternal salvation.
Because of this, O Mary,
we have recourse to you
with confidence.
Help us to build a world
where human life is always
cherished and defended,
every form of violence banished,
the peace of all tenaciously sought.
Immaculate Virgin!
grant that we may celebrate and adore
with renewed faith and ardent love
the holy mystery of the
Body and Blood of Christ.
At your school,
O Woman of the Eucharist,
teach us to remember the marvels
that God never ceases to work in
human hearts.
With motherly tenderness, Virgin Mary,
guide our steps always on the
path of good. Amen!
–Pope St. John Paul II

©Militia Immaculatae, Inc. 2016