Chaplet of Divine Mercy



We pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy daily at 3:33pm in the Little Church. We would love for you to join us!

In 1935, St. Faustina Kowalska, a Polish nun, received a vision and inspirations to pray the prayers of this chaplet honoring the Divine Mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Hour of Mercy starts at 3 pm, the same hour that Jesus died on the Cross, and so this chaplet is often prayed during that hour.

The Chaplet of Divine Mercy is recited using ordinary Rosary beads of five decades.

An explanation on how to pray this chaplet is found below and you can pray along with the video below as well.

Using a rosary make the sign of the Cross.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Optional Prayers

You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls, and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.

O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of mercy for us, I trust in You! (Repeat three times)

Introductory Prayers

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth, as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, Amen.

I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; He descended into hell; on the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

Prayed on large bead prior to each decade:

Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your Dearly Beloved Son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.

Prayed on 10 small beads of each decade:

For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

Prayed after all 5 decades of Chaplet are complete:

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world. (Repeat three times)

Optional Concluding Prayer:

Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion—inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself.

Celebrations Honoring Mary and the Other Saints

We honor, but do not worship, Mary and the saints in heaven.

They lived lives of virtue and holiness that are presented to us as examples for us to follow.

They completed their journey and are now with God.

However, we can still ask them for help.

Just as we can ask other people here on earth to pray for us, we can ask people in heaven, the saints, to pray for us. 

Here at Ascension we honor Mary with communal devotions under the title of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and ask her to help us on our journey.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help devotions are on Tuesdays after the 8 am Mass in the Main Church.

There are different prayers associated with this devotion and different parishes use different ones.

At Ascension, we provide prayer cards to use for all those who wish to participate in this devotional practice.

The Stations of the Cross

The Stations of the Cross are selections of particular moments at the end of Jesus Christ's life that help us to meditate on the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, so that we can better understand Jesus and His love for us.

This devotion began as the practice of pious pilgrims to Jerusalem who would retrace the journey of Jesus Christ that won for us salvation.  Over time, journeying with Jesus through His passion, death, and resurrection in Jerusalem became more difficult. Those who wished to make the journey but were unable to do so, would recall particular moments of that journey, while remaining in their church building, so that they could journey with Jesus spiritually rather than physically. The practice developed into the 14 stations (moments) currently found in almost every church, including our two churches. 

All are invited to pray the Stations of the Cross privately in our churches using the numbered stations on the church walls. We pray the Stations of the Cross as a parish every Friday during Lent at 7 pm in the Main Church. Booklets with the Stations of the Cross and their prayers are provided for use when we pray them together. 



There are many different prayers and meditations that are associated with the Stations of the Cross. However, there are two basic sets of stations. The first is the more traditional set of 14 stations, which developed from the middle ages and is attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, these are the stations commonly seen in churches. You can click the image below for a printable pamphlet with the traditional 14 stations. The second set was created by Pope St. John Paul II and is based more directly on scripture. You can also pray the stations of the Cross with our previous Associate Priest, Fr. Lampe, in the video.

The Angelus

This prayer reminds us of the wonderful gift of the Incarnation. Quoting the Gospel of Luke, we recall St. Gabriel the Archangel appearing to Mary to reveal God's plan, Mary's humble acceptance of God's plan, and the Incarnation of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. This devotional prayer is traditionally prayed three times a day (6 am, noon, and 6 pm) and is accompanied by the ringing of the church bells. When the bells rang, all of the people who heard it, would stop whatever they were doing and pray this prayer. Here at Ascension we pray the Angelus at noon before Mass as our bells are ringing for the Angelus. The prayer is provided below, along with a video of the Angelus. When there is more than one person, the verses (V.) are prayed out loud by the leader and the responses (R.) are prayed by the others present. The Hail Mary is prayed by all. 



V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.
    Hail Mary, full of grace,
    The Lord is with Thee;
    Blessed art thou among women,
    And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
    Holy Mary, Mother of God,
    Pray for us sinners,
    Now and at the hour of our death. Amen
V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to thy word.
    Hail Mary, etc.
V. And the Word was made Flesh.
R. And dwelt among us.
    Hail Mary, etc.
V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
LET US PRAY
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts, that we to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.

Chaplet of St. Michael

The Chaplet of St. Michael is a powerful way to call upon St. Michael the Archangel and the Nine Choirs of Angels. St. Michael appeared to a devout Servant of God, Antonia d’Astonac, and told her that he wished to be honored by nine salutations to the nine Choirs of Angels: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominations, Powers, Virtues, Principalities, Archangels and Angels (Isa. 6:2; Gen. 3:24; Col. 1:16; Eph. 1:21; Rom. 8:38). In return, St. Michael promised: "Whoever would practice this devotion in his honor would have, when approaching the Holy Table, an escort of nine angels chosen from each of the nine Choirs. In addition, for the daily recital of these nine salutations, he promised his continual assistance and that of all the holy angels during life, and after death deliverance from Purgatory for themselves and all their relations." The video below can help you pray this chaplet.

Make a Sincere Act of Contrition:

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen.

V. O God, come to my assistance

R. O Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

1. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Seraphim, may the Lord make us worthy to burn with the fire of perfect    charity. Amen.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

2. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Cherubim, may the Lord vouchsafe to grant us grace to leave the ways of wickedness to run in the paths of Christian perfection. Amen.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary 's

3. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Thrones, may the Lord infuse into our hearts a true and sincere spirit of    humility. Amen.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

4. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Dominions, may the Lord give us grace to govern our senses and subdue our unruly passions. Amen

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

5. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Powers, may the Lord vouchsafe to protect our souls against the snares and temptations of the devil. Amen.

 1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

6. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Virtues, may the Lord preserve us from evil and suffer us not to fall into  temptation. Amen.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

7. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Principalities, may God fill our souls with a true spirit of obedience.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

8. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Archangels, may the Lord give us perseverance in faith and in all good works, in order that we gain the glory of Paradise. Amen.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

9. By the intercession of St. Michael and the celestial Choir of Angels, may the Lord grant us to be protected by them in this mortal life and conducted hereafter to eternal glory. Amen.

   1 Our Father, 3 Hail Mary's

1 Our Father In honor of St. Michael.                 

1 Our Father In honor of St. Gabriel.

1 Our Father In honor of St. Raphael.

1 Our Father In honor of our Guardian Angel. 

O glorious Prince St. Michael, chief and commander of the heavenly hosts, guardian of souls, vanquisher of rebel spirits, servant in the house of the Divine King, and our admirable conductor, thou who dost shine with excellence and superhuman virtue, vouchsafe to deliver us from all evil, who turn to thee with confidence, and enable us by thy gracious protection to serve God more and more faithfully every day.

V. Pray for us, O glorious St. Michael, Prince of the Church of Jesus Christ

R. That we may be made worthy of His promises.

Almighty and Everlasting God, who by a prodigy of goodness and a merciful desire for the salvation of all men, hast appointed the most glorious Archangel, St. Michael, Prince of Thy Church, make us worthy, we beseech Thee, to be delivered from all our enemies that none of them may harass us at the hour of death, but that we may be conducted by him into the august presence of Thy Divine Majesty. This we beg through the merits of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.