Litanies Prayers
Added : Tue 28 Jul 2020 PM | Updated : Sun 23 Apr 2023 PM
Litanies are prayers characterised by the chanted repetition of intercessory requests. These intercessory requests are generally addressed to the Virgin Mary, the Sacred Heart or the Saints and are intended to solicit their intercession with God.
When to recite the litanies and what are they for?
The litanies are generally recited individually, depending on the difficulty for which help is desired, in groups (in families or in prayer groups) and in certain solemn liturgical ceremonies of the Catholic Church.
The Litanies of the Saints for example, are sung during the Easter Vigil, during baptism ceremonies, priestly or episcopal ordinations and on the feast of the Saints (All Saints).
The prayer of the Litany is foreseen, in particular, during the Easter Vigil, before the blessing of the baptismal water, and also during the celebration of baptism and ordinations to the sacred order of the episcopate, presbyterate and diaconate, as well as in the rite of the consecration of virgins and of religious profession in the rite of dedication of a church and an altar, during rogations, during Masses with stations and during penitential processions, to order the Evil One away in exorcisms, and finally to recommend the dying to the mercy of God.
The Litany of the Saints, which contains elements from both liturgical tradition and popular piety, illustrates the Church's trust in the intercession of the Saints, and highlights her experience of the communion that unites the Church in the heavenly Jerusalem and the Church still on pilgrimage on earth. It is permitted to invoke in the Litany of the Saints the names of those listed in the liturgical calendars of dioceses and religious institutes.
It is evident that it is forbidden to insert in the Litanies the names of persons whose cult is not recognised.