A Litany of Litanies

By far my absolute favorite litanies are the Litany of the Saints and the Litany of Humility.

The Litany of the Saints is one of the six litanies approved for public prayer in the Catholic Church. Most of us are familiar with the abbreviated version sung before the Blessing of Water at the Easter Vigil Liturgy. When I hear it each Easter I get chills up my spine because hearing the names of those holy men and women arouses feelings of wonder (the whole Communion of Saints thing really gets to me.) I also love the Latin version (Litaniae sanctorum) that was chanted at the funeral of Pope John Paul II in April 2005.

I was handed a copy of the Litany of Humility at a day retreat about four years ago. The Litany of Humility is for private devotion only. Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930), Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X, wrote the litany, and was accustomed to reciting it daily after the celebration of Holy Mass. I try to pray the litany often because I need to be reminded about biting my tongue, softening my heart, and leaving my pride at the door.

Ok, now that I've revealed my favorite litanies...let's get down to discovering what these prayers are all about. New Advent's Catholic Encyclopedia defines Litany as "a well-known and much appreciated form of responsive petition, used in public liturgical services, and in private devotions, for common necessities of the Church, or in calamities to implore God's aid or to appease His just wrath."

I came across an internet resource from the folks at Catholic Youth Networking called The Litany Collection. A number of litianies to God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Angels and Saints can be accessed through drop-down boxes. This site is a good starting point for information on: How a Litany is Constructed, How to Use Litanies in Prayer, and a Short History of Litanies.

If you're looking for a specific litany, check out The Catholic Doors Ministry's A Treasure of 198 Litanies. Another terrific place to find these prayers is the litany pages at CatholicTraditions.Org (I just love the graphics on this site!)

One last note on litanies...I found a great Pro-Life litany at the USCCB website called Old Testament Litany for Life.

At a later time I'm hoping to provide information on print sources. Until then, God Bless Your Day!