| Marian Litanies of the East |
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In the Eastern church litanies are always a part of the official liturgy, and they have at least three different forms: Synaptae (Collect), Ektenie ("intense" prayer of intercession and pardon based in part on Psalm 50)and Aitaesis (intercessory prayer for peace, pardon and protection). Marian litanies are numerous in the East and may cover a multitude of themes, some dogmatic, others of moral and patriotic character. Here are some examples of Marian litanies: the "Epitaphian Threnos" remembering Mary's suffering on Good Friday (Symeon Metaphrastes, PG 114, 29); the dogmatic Canon of John Monachos Zonaras in honor of the "Panhagia Theotokos" (PG 135, 413-422); of more patriotic nature is the "Canon to the Mother of God in time of imminent war" (Euchologion 563-567, Beck 555,3) probably by John Mauropous. Finally, the intercessory "Canon to the Theotokos" by Euthymos Monachos Synkellos (Euchologion 232-237) highlights the confession of a sinner. |
Litany (from the Greek Litaneia)
Litany is a series of short petitions and exhortations sung or said by the deacon or priest, and to which the people respond by the Kyrie eleison: Grant this, Lord: to Thee, Lord. The Litany originated in Antioch in the fourth century and from there was taken to Constantinople and through it to the rest of the East. Litanies by the deacon are common mostly in the Orthodox Liturgies expressing the devotion, petition, and thanksgiving of the congregation through the deacon who by rank stands closer to the people as laity than the other two ranks of priesthood, those of the priest and bishop. From Constantinople the Litany was taken to Rome and the West. Pope Gelasius I (492-96) introduced into the Mass an intercession of litanic character, the nine-fold Kyrie eleison which still survives.[Rev. Nicon Archbishop Iakovos, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in the Americas, (Pleasantville, NY: Hellenic Heritage Publications, 1992), 232]
In the Eastern tradition of the Divine Liturgy services of St. Basil, St. Chrysostom and St. James (most well known), liturgical texts and hymns are interspersed with litanies. In other liturgical hymns, and liturgical rubrics for the Daily Hours, litanies are consistently used also. A paraklesis service (a liturgical service of petitions), combines many prayers of petition and thanksgiving; and Akathistos of the Theotokos (as well as akathistos of other saints) includes numerous litanies also. One can say that the "litany" is an ancient component of Christian prayer, incorporated into the Divine Liturgy, the liturgy of the Daily Hours (collected in a Service Book called the Menaion), and in special liturgical services to the Virgin Mary and saints.
- Virginia Kimball
| Litanies in the West |
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In
the liturgy of the Western Church the word litany is derived from litania,
meaning prayer of invocation or intercession. It also meant, up to
the twelfth century, a procession with intercessory character, also known
under the designation of rogation. Speaking of
litanies in the classical sense, the Church has approved for official
use the following ones: The Litanies of All Saints, probably the oldest,
the Litanies of the Names of Jesus (1886), the Litanies of the Sacred
Heart of Jesus (1899), those in honor of Saint Joseph (1909)
and the Precious Blood (1960) as well as the Litanies of Loreto. |
| The Litany of Loreto |
| The only thus approved Marian litany is that of Loreto. The Litanies of Loreto, so called because of their use in the sanctuary of Loreto since at least as far back as 1531, were officially approved in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V. Its origin is believed to be a medieval rimed litany (see Paris manuscript Nat. lat. 5267, fol., 80r) influenced by Eastern Marian devotion, in particular by the famous Hymnos Akathistos. Contrasting with the older Litany of All Saints, the Loreto Litanies are purely ad- or invocational litanies. As can be observed, for example, in the so called Officia Mariana, many more Marian litanies were and are in use but destined for private devotion. |
| Modern Advocations |
| The 1587 version of the Litany of Loreto was subsequently enriched with new advocations. |
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1675 1950 1883 1980 1903 1995 1917 |
Queen of the most Holy Rosary (for the confraternities of the Holy Rosary). Queen Assumed into Heaven (Pius XII) Queen Conceived without Original Sin (Leo XIII for the whole church) Mother of the Church (John Paul II) Mother of Good Counsel (Leo XIII) Queen of Families (John Paul II) Queen of Peace (Benedict XV) |
| The Composition and Meaning of the Litany of Loreto |
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The Litanies of Loreto are structured as follows:
1. Mary's Holiness - Three introductory advocations highlight Mary's sanctity as person (Sancta Maria), her role as mother of Jesus Christ (Sancta Dei Genitrix), and her vocation as virgin (Sancta Virgo Virginum). Mary's sanctity is stressed. 2. Mary, the Mother - Twelve advocations refer to Mary as Mother. The purpose of this series of advocations is to highlight the various facets of Mary's role as mother. Some of these advocations, especially at the beginning (1-3) and at the end (11-12) of the series, are referring explicitly to her maternal activity and the addressees (Christ, the Church . . .) of this activity. Mary is:
And again, at the end of the series:
The intermediate advocations (4-10) qualify or characterize the person of Mary as mother, mainly with adjectives:
Mary attracts love and admiration, and she is of good counsel, but most of the characteristics mentioned (4-7) refer to the miraculous and virginal birth of Jesus. 3. Mary, the Virgin - The advocations of Mary Mother are followed by six titles extolling her as Virgin. They stress not only the merit of her virginity: Virgin Most Prudent (Virgo prudentissima), Virgin Most Venerable (Virgo veneranda), Virgin Most Renowned (Virgo praedicanda), but also the "efficacy" of virginity. Mary is : Virgin Most Powerful (Virgo potens), Virgin Most Merciful (Virgo clemens), and Virgin Most Faithful (Virgo fidelis). 4. Symbols of Mary - We then have thirteen symbolic advocations, mostly taken from the Old Testament and applied to Mary which highlight her virtues and her eminent role in salvation history:
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5. Mary, the Helper - The group of four advocations that follows extol Mary's role as advocate for spiritual and corporal works of mercy. She is:
6. Mary, the Queen - The last part of the Marian advocations is composed of a series of 13 titles referring to Mary as Queen. Mary is Queen of Saints and inhabitants of heaven:
There are five advocations which emphasize the personal holiness, distinction, and role of Mary's queenship:
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| Illustrations and Explanations of the Litany of Loreto |
The Marian Library has in its possession rare books of the eighteenth century with engravings by the renowned Augsburg artist, Josef Sebastian Klauber (ca. 1700-1768). The highly symbolic and illustrative reproductions are typical of the Baroque period. Their message is of great spiritual riches. Mary's profile is that of the exalted Mother, Virgin, and Queen, as suits the period. We limited ourselves to the illustrations of the Marian titles. The reader needs to keep in mind that the titles introduced in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, obviously, are not included in Klauber's illustrations.
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| Illustrated and Commented Titles |
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You will find on the following pages the illustrations and commentaries of the various
invocation beginning with Holy Mary and ending with Mirror of Justice,
Speculum Justitiae.
Each one of these images and commentaries leads to more illustrations (see: additional illustrations) of the same title. These additional illustrations are part of an extensive collections of mainly French Holy Cards from the late 1900's and the first part of the twentieth century. The collection was compiled by Ms. Simone Mathieu, Bordeaux, France, and Ms. Marie Joly. The whole collection comprises twenty-seven binders of holy cards and was donated to The Marian Library in May 2002. |
Illustrated and
Commented Titles
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This page, maintained by The Marian Library/International Marian Research Institute, Dayton, Ohio 45469-1390, and created by Kris Sommers , was last modified Wednesday, 08/03/2011 15:48:04 EDT by Michael Duricy. Please send any comments to jroten1@udayton.edu. |