The Litany of Loreto, Latin “Litaniae Lauretanae”, also called the “Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary”, is a prayer to Our Lady with invocations of “pray for us”. The word litany means a sequence of entreaties or glorifications, followed by short responses, such as “pray for us”. Mary is invoked in the Litany of Loreto with all her official titles.
On 6 September 1601, the Litany of Loreto was established by Clement VIII, Pope from 1592 to 1605, born Ippolito Aldobrandini (1536-1605), in Quoniam Multi (so that many). The Litany of Loreto was then permitted for official use in the church of Loreto, the great Italian pilgrimage site of Mary.
The litany is often recited by Catholics after the Angelus or the Rosary.
Since the original text from 1601, the litany has been supplemented several times by Popes at the time.
An overview of the extensions:
-1675: Queen of the Holy Rosary, Pope Clement X
-1883: Queen without hereditary taint received, Pope Leo XIII
-1903: Mother of Good Counsel, Pope Leo XIII
-1917: Queen of Peace, Pope Benedict XV
1951: Queen taken up into heaven, Pope Pius XII
-1980: Mother of the Church, Pope John Paul II
1995: Queen of the family, Pope John Paul II
-2020: Mother of Mercy (Mater Misericordiae), Pope Francis
2020: Mother of Hope ((Mater spei), Pope Francis
-2020: The Migrants' Trough (Solarium migrantin), Pope Francis
The beginning of the Litany of Loreto reads:
Lord, have mercy on us (2x)
Christ, have mercy on us (2x)
Lord, have mercy on us (2x)
Christ, hear us (2x)
Christ, have mercy on us (2x)
God, heavenly Father, have mercy on us
God, Zoon, Verlosser van de wereld, ontferm U over ons
God, Holy Spirit, have mercy on us
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us
Holy Mary, pray for us
Holy Mother of God, pray for us
Holy Virgin of virgins, pray for us
and so on
~~~
