Mary, Mother of Good Counsel
The Story of Our Lady of Good Counsel
On April 25, 1467, during the feast of St. Mark, townspeople in Genazzano in Italy heard music, saw a mysterious cloud, and found a small, delicate fresco, a painting done rapidly in watercolour on wet plaster, (about 18 inches square) depicting the Mother and Child. The image is believed to have "flown" from a church in Scutari (Shkodër), Albania, to avoid destruction by invading Ottomans. The image is painted on a thin sheet of plaster, no thicker than a visiting card, and appeared suspended in the air without support.
Following the apparition, over 160 miracles were recorded within four months. The church, served by the Augustinians, became a major pilgrimage site, visited by many saints and popes. The title "Good Counsel" refers to Mary as a source of heavenly wisdom, especially pertinent to her request at the Wedding at Cana: "Do whatever he tells you". The feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel is celebrated annually on April 26th.
The image remains in the Chapel of Genazzano, and in 1903, Pope Leo XIII added "Mother of Good Counsel" to the Litany of Loreto.
Novena prayer To Our Lady of Good Counsel
God of heavenly wisdom, You have given us Mary, Mother of Jesus, to be our guide and counsellor. Grant that we may always seek her Motherly help in this life and so enjoy Her blessed presence in the life to come.
O Mother of Good Counsel, Mother of the Incarnate Wisdom, intercede for us, that we may be wise, courageous, and loving members of the Body of Christ, the Church. Help us, dear mother, to obey the will of Jesus, your son. May the Holy Spirit fill our hearts with pure reverence for God, and compassion for all God’s children. May our labours of love on earth enhance the reign of God and may God’s gifts of faith and living hope prepare us for the fullness of the world to come. Amen.
Prayer To Our Lady of Good Counsel
Pope Pius XII (Pont. 1939-1958)
O Holy Virgin, to whose feet we are led by our anxious uncertainty in our search for and attainment of what is true and good, invoking you by the sweet title of Mother of Good Counsel, we beseech you to come to our assistance, when, along the road of this life, the darkness of error and of evil conspires towards our ruin by leading our minds and our hearts astray.
O Seat of Wisdom and Star of the Sea, enlighten the doubtful and the erring, that they be not seduced by the false appearances of good; render them steadfast in the face of the hostile and corrupting influences of passion and of sin.
O Mother of Good Counsel, obtain for us from your Divine Son a great love of virtue, and, in the hour of uncertainty and trial, the strength to embrace the way that leads to our salvation. If your hand sustains us, we shall walk unmolested along the path indicated to us by the life and words of Jesus, our Redeemer; and having followed freely and securely, even in the midst of this world's strife, the Sun of Truth and Justice under your maternal Star, we shall come to the enjoyment of full and eternal peace with you in the haven of salvation. Amen.