SÁNCTISSIMUM SACRÁTISSIMUM | THE GOLDEN ARROW
HONOR HIS MOST HOLY COUNTENANCE THROUGH THIS WORK OF REPARATION TO THE HOLY FACE
About This Prayer
The Golden Arrow is a prayer of reparation revealed to Sister Marie of Saint Peter, a Carmelite nun in Tours, France, in A.D. 1843. Jesus told her this prayer would be like a golden arrow wounding His Heart with love and making reparation for blasphemy. It is prayed in devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus.
SÁNCTISSIMUM SACRÁTISSIMUM
Sánctissimum, sacrátissimum, adorabilissimum,
incomprehensibile et ineffábile nómen Déi sit in ætérnum laudatum, benedíctum, amatum, adoratum
et glorificátum in cǽlo, in terra, et sub terra,
ab ómnibus creaturis Déi,
et a sacrátissimo Corde Dómini nóstri Iésu Chrísti,
in sánctissimo Sacrámento altaris.
Amen.
THE GOLDEN ARROW
May the most holy, most sacred, most adorable, most incomprehensible and ineffable Name of God be forever praised, blessed, loved, adored and glorified in Heaven, on earth, and under the earth, by all the creatures of God, and by the Sacred Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Amen.
ASPIRATIO AD SÁNCTAM FACIETEM
Pater Ætérne, offero tibi adorabilem faciem dilecti Fílii tui Iésu ad honorem et gloriam nominis tui, ad conversiónem peccatórum et salutem morientium. O Iésu, per merita Sánctæ Faciei tuæ, miserére nóbis et totius mundi (Ter). Illumina, Dómine, vultum túum super nos. Mane nobiscum, Dómine.
ASPIRATION TO THE HOLY FACE
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the adorable Face of Thy Beloved Son Jesus for the honor and glory of Thy Name, for the conversion of sinners and the salvation of the dying. Oh Jesus, through the merits of your Holy Face, have pity on us and on the whole world (Three times). May, O Lord, the light of Thy countenance shine upon us. Stay with us, O Lord.
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Common Questions
When and how is the Golden Arrow prayed?
The Golden Arrow is a short act of reparation directed to the Holy Face of Jesus. It may be prayed at any time, and is especially associated with Tuesdays (a day traditionally devoted to the Holy Face) and with the Fridays of Lent, when the Passion of Christ is most directly contemplated. Many of the faithful pray it daily as part of their devotion to the Holy Face, often together with the Litany of the Holy Face.
Who was Sister Marie of Saint Peter?
Sister Marie of Saint Peter (A.D. 1816-1848) was a French Discalced Carmelite nun of the monastery in Tours, who entered religious life at twenty-three and spent the brief remainder of her life in prayer of reparation for blasphemy and the desecration of Sundays. Beginning in A.D. 1843, she reported a series of inner locutions in which Jesus revealed to her the Golden Arrow prayer and asked for the spread of devotion to his Holy Face. She died at age thirty-two, leaving a spiritual diary that has continued to inspire the faithful.
What is the Golden Arrow, and what does it mean to make 'reparation'?
The Golden Arrow is a short, lyrical prayer praising the most holy Name of God and offering it as a balm against blasphemy, the dishonoring of God's name and the desecration of the Lord's Day. To make reparation is to offer prayers and sacrifices in atonement for the sins of others as well as one's own, in union with the Heart of Christ. Jesus is reported to have told Sister Marie that this prayer would be 'like a golden arrow wounding my Heart with love' and would also help heal the wounds caused by sin.
How has devotion to the Holy Face grown over the years?
The devotion was carried beyond the Carmel of Tours by Leo Dupont (A.D. 1797-1876), known as the 'Holy Man of Tours,' who promoted both the prayer and the venerated image of the Holy Face. Pope Leo XIII formally raised the devotion to the status of an Archconfraternity in A.D. 1885. Saint Thérèse of Lisieux took 'of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face' as part of her religious name and wove this devotion deeply into her life of love and trust, and in A.D. 1958 Pope Pius XII established the feast of the Holy Face on Shrove Tuesday for the Catholic Church.