The Memorare is a prayer to the Blessed Mother in which the supplicant calls upon the maternal love and protection of Mary’s intercession in an hour of dire need. “I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother,” reads one section of the prayer, which goes on to beseech “the Mother of the Word Incarnate” to receive these petitions with love and mercy.
St. Teresa of Calcutta and St. Francis de Sales were two great devotees of this prayer.
Popularized in the 17th century by a French priest named Fr. Claude Bernard, the text is derived from an older and longer prayer entitled “Ad sanctitatis tuae pedes, dulcissima Virgo Maria” (“at your holy feet, most sweet Virgin Mary”). The title “Memorare” is taken from the Latin word for “remember,” which begins the prayer. The modern version appears in the 1846 Raccolta, a collection of indulgenced prayers.
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