The Holy Face of Jesus

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History of the Holy Face Devotion

The Devotion to the Holy Face was first revealed to the French Carmelite nun, Marie de Saint Pierre (1816–1848). Between 1844 to 1847, our Lord spoke to her about sharing this devotion with the world.

Jesus explained that God, the Father, was greatly offended by sin, especially by the widespread violation of the first three of his Commandments, which are:

1. I am the Lord your God; you will have no other gods before me.
2. You should not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
3. Remember the Lord’s day and keep it holy.

Through the devotions of reparation to the Holy Face, God’s justice would be disarmed, Jesus told her. He promised to imprint His divine likeness on the souls of those who honour His most holy countenance. He further promised that all who defend His cause in the Work of Reparation by words, by prayers, or in writing, will be defended by Him before His Father.

This Work of Reparation included reparation for what is generally called blasphemy (abusing the Holy Name of God), and reparation for all attacks against religion and the Church.

This booklet is a collection of devotional prayers that honour the Holy Face of Jesus in reparation for the insults and indignities suffered by God, Jesus and the Church. Some are taken from the Autobiography of Marie de Saint Pierre called The Golden Arrow.

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In January 1849, Pope Pius IX had the relic of the veil of Veronica placed St Peter’s basilica in Rome for public view and adoration. Reportedly, when it was first displayed, the Divine Face appeared clearly, and was illuminated by a soft light. Today the image appears dark and relatively indistinct. Even so, artistic representations of the Holy Face, often based on the negative of the Turin Shroud, are used in devotional books.

Prayers in Reparation to the Holy Face

Introductory Prayer

Dear Lord, through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary we offer you these prayers in reparation for the sins that offend God the most in these modern times.

The Golden Arrow Prayer

May the most holy, most sacred, most adorable, most incomprehensible, and ineffable Name of God be forever praised, blessed, adored, loved, and glorified, in heaven, on earth, and under the earth, by all the creatures of God, and by the Sacred Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Amen.

This daily prayer was dictated by our Lord to Sr Marie de Saint Pierre on August 26th, 1843. In her Autobiography, she said Our Lord explained that the sin of blasphemy “wounds His divine Heart more grievously than all other sins”.

Jesus called the prayer the Golden Arrow, as it “delightfully” pierced his heart in reparation for sins against God the Father.

Offering of the Holy Face of Our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father

Eternal Father, we ask that You turn Your gaze away from those people whose face has become unsightly in Your eyes. Look instead upon the Face of Your beloved Son, in Whom You are well pleased.

We humbly offer You His Holy Face, covered with shame and disfigured by bruises, in reparation for the crimes of our age, to appease Your anger, justly provoked against us. Because Your Divine Son, our Redeemer, took upon Himself all the sins of the world, that we might be spared, we now beg You, Eternal Father, to grant us mercy. Amen.

Aspirations to the Eternal Father

Recited through the day.

Eternal Father, we humbly offer You the Holy Face of Jesus, covered with blood, sweat, dust, and spittle, in reparation for our sins and the sins of the whole world.

Alternative Prayer

Almighty and eternal God, look upon the Face of Your Son Jesus. “We present it to You with confidence to implore Your pardon.” The All-Merciful Advocate opens His mouth to plead our cause; hear His cries, behold His tears, Dear Father, through His infinite merits, please listen to Him when He intercedes for us poor, miserable sinners.

Aspiration to the Holy Face for the Sick and Dying

Eternal Father, I humbly offer You the Adorable Face of Your Beloved Son, for the honour and glory of Your Holy Name, for the conversion of sinners and for the salvation of the dying.

Prayer to Reproduce the Image of God in Our Souls

I Salute You, I adore You, and I love You, adorable Face of my Beloved Jesus, as the noble stamp of the Divinity! Completely surrendering my soul to You, I most humbly beg You to stamp this seal upon us all, so that the Image of God may once more be reproduced by its imprint in our souls. Amen.

Prayers for Our Special Needs

Eternal Father, since it has pleased our Divine Saviour to reveal to mankind in our present century the power residing in His Holy Face, we now avail ourselves of this treasure in our great needs. Since our Saviour Himself promised that by offering to You, Eternal Father, the Holy Face disfigured in the Passion, we can procure the settlement of all our affairs, and that nothing whatsoever will have refused us, we now come before Your Throne.

Offering to You, Father, this adorable Countenance, disfigured with painful bruises and covered with shame and confusion, we beg through the merits of this Holy Face to obtain these, our pressing needs. Grant us pardon, Eternal Father, for the worst crimes of our age, which are atheism, blasphemy, and the desecration of Your holy days. May this offering of the Holy Face of our Saviour before Your throne obtain for us deliverance from these evils.

Send us, Father, many vocations to the priesthood and to the religious life, so that by their prayers, their works, and their sacrifices, they may spread the blessings of Your Church and confound Your enemies. Amen.

Alternative Prayer

O Lord Jesus Christ, in presenting ourselves before Your adorable Face, to ask of You the graces of which we stand most in need, we beseech You, above all, to give us that interior disposition of never refusing at any time to do what You require of us by Your holy commandments and Your Divine inspirations.

O good Jesus, Who has said: “Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you”, give us, O Lord, faith which obtains all, and supply in us all that might be deficient. Grant us, by the pure effect of Your charity and for Your eternal glory, the graces we need and which we look for from Your infinite mercy, particularly: (Here mention the favour you hope for). Amen.

Litany of the Holy Face of Jesus

I salute and adore You, adorable Face of Jesus. I offer You, through the heart of Your Blessed Mother, the worship of all the Angels and Saints, and humbly beseech You to repair and renew in me and in all men Your image, disfigured by sin.

Adorable Face of Jesus, adored with profound respect, by Our Lady and St Joseph, when they saw You for the first time, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face that overcame with joy, the Angels, the shepherds and the Magi, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face which pierced with a dart of love, saintly Simeon and the prophetess Anna, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, which was admired by Doctors of Law in the Temple, when you spoke with them aged 12, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, masterpiece of the Holy Spirit, so pleasing to the Father, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, brilliant like the sun, radiant with glory on Mount Tabor, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, troubled in the Garden of Gethsemane by the weight of our sins, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, bowed on the Cross, for the salvation of the world, cast upon us a glance of your compassion and peace, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, washed and anointed by the Blessed Virgin and the holy women, and covered by a cloth, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, resplendent with glory on the day of the Resurrection, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, present in the Eucharist, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face which will fill the just with joy through all eternity, have mercy on us.

Adorable Face, which merits all our reverence, homage and adoration, have mercy on us.

O Lord, show us Your Face and we will be saved. (three times)

O Jesus, through the merits of your Holy Face, have pity on us and on the whole world. (three times)

Promises of Our Lord Jesus Christ to Those Who Honour His Holy Face

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• All those who honour My Face in a spirit of reparation, and by doing so, perform the office of the pious Veronica. According to the care people take in making reparation to My Face, disfigured by blasphemers, so will I take care of their souls which have been disfigured by sin. My Face is the Seal of the Divinity, which has the virtue of reproducing in souls the image of God.
• Those who by words, prayers or writing defend My cause in this Work of Reparation I will defend before My Father, and will give them My Kingdom. By offering My Face to My Eternal Father, nothing will be refused, and the conversion of many sinners will be obtained.
• All those who honour My Holy Face will work wonders, appease the anger of God and draw down mercy on sinners. As in a kingdom they can procure all that is desired with a coin stamped with the King’s effigy, so in the Kingdom of Heaven they will obtain all they desire with the precious coin of My Holy Face.
• Those who contemplate the wounds of My Face will behold it radiant with glory in Heaven. They will receive in their souls a bright and constant irradiation of My Divinity, so that by their likeness to My Face, they will shine with particular splendour in Heaven.

The images used in this booklet are created by AI and remain the copyright of St Saviour’s Church, Lewisham, 2025.