Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a Marian litany originally approved in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V. It is also known as the Litany of Loreto, after its first-known place of origin, the Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto in Italy, where its usage was recorded as early as 1558.
The litany contains many of the titles used formally and informally for the Virgin Mary, and would often be recited as a call and response chant in a group setting. They are used to recite or sing at the end of the Rosary, and as a separate act of Marian devotion. In the latter case, for example, they can form the main element of a celebration of prayer to the Virgin Mary, be a processional song, or form part of a celebration of the Word of God.
A partial indulgence is granted to those who recite this litany.
Background
According to Directory on Popular Piety:Litanies are to be found among the prayers to the Blessed Virgin recommended by the Magisterium. These consist in a long series of invocations of Our Lady, which follow in a uniform rhythm, thereby creating a stream of prayer characterized by insistent praise and supplication. The invocations, generally very short, have two parts: the first of praise, the other of supplication. The liturgical books contain two Marian litanies: The Litany of Loreto, repeatedly recommended by the Roman Pontiffs; and the Litany for the Coronation of Images of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which can be an appropriate substitute for the other litany on certain occasions....The Litanies are independent acts of worship. They are important acts of homage to the Blessed Virgin Mary, or as processional elements, or form part of a celebration of the Word of God or of other acts of worship.
Form
In form, the Litany of Loreto is based on a fixed plan common to several Marian litanies already in existence during the second half of the 15th century, which in turn are connected to a notable series of Marian litanies that began to appear in the 12th century that multiplied in the 13th and 14th. The Loreto text was adopted in the shrine, and thus become known more than any other, to the many pilgrims who flocked there during the 16th century. The text was spread across Christendom, and eventually received ecclesiastical sanction.Twelve invocations refer to Mary as Mother; six extol her as Virgin. Thirteen titles are derived from the Old Testament, followed by four calling on her as helper and advocate. The last thirteen name Mary as Queen. In June 2020, Pope Francis added three new invocations to the litany: "Mother of Mercy", "Mother of hope", and "Solace of Migrants". This makes fourteen invocations referring to Mary as mother and five as advocate.
A litany is prayed like this: first an invocation is said by the prayer leader followed by the response, "Pray for us".
The Litany
The Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary was translated in the English form as:| Latin text | Literal English translation |
The subsequent oration is: HistoryOriginsThere is a great lack of documentary evidence concerning the origin of the Litany of Loreto, the growth and development of the litany into the forms under which it is known, and as it was for the first time definitely approved by the Catholic Church in 1587. Some writers declare that they know nothing of its origin and history; others trace it back to the translation of the Holy House ; others, to Pope Sergius I ; others, again, to Gregory the Great or to the 5th century; while others go as far back as the Early Church, and even the Apostolic Age. Historical criticism posits it to have been composed during the early 16th century or the end of the 15th. Before that time, there were litanies of Mary - one in Gaelic, probably of the eighth century, and others of later date, in which the invocations were much longer than those in the Litany of Loreto. For others, the first formularies of Marian litanies are documented from the second half of the 12th century and derive from the development of the Marian core of the Litany of the saints, which originated in the early 3rd century.The oldest formulary from which the litanies that took the name Lauretane from the Shrine of the Holy House of Loreto, where they were sung at the beginning of the 16th century, derive is a manuscript codex in the National Library of France that contains 73 invocations, including Flos virginitatis, Forma sanctitatis, Hymnus cælorum, Luctus infernorum, in addition to the invocations currently in use. The 66 Marian invocations in the Parisian text cited above already have the structure of the Loreto litanies, and are arranged similarly. It begins with three invocations taken from the Litany of the Saints, followed by eleven invocations in which Mary is called “Mother”, then four invocations of her as “Teacher” which have since disappeared, eight invocations addressing Mary as “Virgin”, then twenty-six symbolic titles of basically Biblical origin, and finally thirteen invocations to Mary as “Queen”. The various titles under which Mary was invoked derive from liturgical texts, contemporary authors, and homilies from the time of Charlemagne, with links to older texts: John Geometres, Venantius Fortunatus, the hymn Akathist, Ephrem the Syrian. The oldest printed copy hitherto discovered is that of Dillingen in Germany, dating to 1558, entitled Letania Loretana. Ordnung der Letaney von unser lieben Frawen wie sie zu Loreto alle Samstag gehalten. It is fairly certain to be a copy of an earlier document, but thus far, the oldest known Italian copy dates from 1576. This version of the Litany was probably published and circulated in Germany by Saint Petrus Canisius. The text is just the same as the present one, except for having Mater piissima and Mater mirabilis, where now are Mater purissima and Mater admirabilis. The invocations Mater creatoris and Mater salvatoris are wanting, though this must be due to some editorial oversight since they are found in every manuscript of this group; on the other hand, the Auxilium christianorum is introduced though it does not occur in the other texts. Pope Pius V could not have introduced the invocation Auxilium christianorum in 1571 after the Battle of Lepanto, as stated in the sixth lesson of the Roman Breviary for the Feast of Mary, Help of Christians, and to this conclusion the Dillingen text adds indisputable evidence. DevelopmentPope Pius V by Motu Proprio of 20 March 1571, published 5 April, had suppressed all existing offices of the Virgin Mary, disapproving in general all the prayers therein, and substituting a new Officium B. Virginis without those prayers and consequently without any litany. It would seem that this action on the part of the pope led the clergy of Loreto to fear that the text of their litany was likewise prohibited. At all events, in order to keep the old custom of singing the litany every Saturday in honor of the Virgin, a new text was written containing praises drawn directly from Scriptures and usually applied to the Virgin in liturgies. This new litany was set to music by the choirmaster of the Basilica of Loreto, Costanzo Porta, and printed at Venice in 1575. It is the earliest setting to music of a Marian litany that we know of. In the following year these Scriptural litanies were printed for the use of pilgrims.On 5 February 1578, the archdeacon of Loreto, Giulio Candiotti, sent to Pope Gregory XIII the "New praises or litanies of the most holy Virgin, drawn from Sacred Scripture", with Porta's music, expressing the wish that the pope would cause it to be sung in Saint Peter's Basilica and in other churches as was the custom at Loreto. The pope's reply is unknown, but we have the opinion of the theologian to whom the matter was referred, in which the composition of the new litany is praised, but which does not judge it opportune to introduce it into Rome or into church use on the authority of the pope, all the more because Pius V "in reforming the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin completely abolished, among other things, some similar litanies of the Blessed Virgin which existed in the old office. The judgment concluded that the litany might be sung at Loreto as a devotion proper to this shrine, and if others wanted to adopt it they might do so by way of private devotion. This attempt having failed, the Scriptural litany straightway began to lose favor, and the Loreto text was revived. In another manual for pilgrims, published in 1578, the Scriptural litany is omitted, and the old Loreto text appears. The Loreto text was introduced elsewhere, and even reached Rome, when Pope Sixtus V, who had entertained a singular devotion for Loreto, by the Bull Reddituri of 11 July 1587, gave formal approval to it, as to the Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus, and recommended preachers everywhere to propagate its use among the faithful. On the strength of this impulse given to the Litany of Loreto, certain ascetical writers began to publish a great number of litanies in honour of the Saviour, the Virgin, and the saints, often ill-advised and containing expressions theologically heterodox, so Pope Clement VIII had promulgated a severe decree of the Holy Office, which, while upholding the litanies contained in the liturgical books as well as the Litany of Loreto, banned the publication of new litanies, or use of those already published in public worship, without the approbation of the Congregation of Rites. In Rome, the Litany of Loreto was introduced into the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore by Cardinal Francesco Toledo in 1597; and in 1613, Pope Paul V ordered it to be sung in that church, morning and evening, on Saturdays and on vigils and feasts of the Madonna. As a result of this example, the Loreto Litany began to be used, and is still largely used, in all the churches of Rome. The Dominicans, in their general chapter held at Bologna in 1615, ordered its recitation in all the convents of their Order after the Office on Saturdays at the end of the customary "Salve Regina". The Litany of Loreto was first included in the Rituale Romanum in 1874, as an appendix. Additions
IndulgenceThe 2004 Enchiridion Indulgentiarum grants a partial indulgence to the faithful who piously pray the litanies.Musical settings
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