The Veil of the Holy Face of Manoppello, (Photo: Paul Badde/EWTN) Unique among other images of the Holy Face, in that it is an “achieropoeta” (as is the Shroud of Turin), not made by human hands. This “living image” of the Suffering and Risen Face of Jesus, bears traces of the Passion, and is believed to have been created at the moment of the Resurrection. It could be said that it is an “Icon of Easter”–the “Face of the Risen Christ” which we look forward to in Hope at the beginning of Lent.
“I wish that all the world could celebrate the Face of my Beloved. If I could at least honor Him for all those who honor Him not.” –Bl. Mother Maria Pierina De Micheli
Consecration to the Holy Face
O Lord Jesus, we believe most firmly in You. You are the Son Incarnate of the Blessed Virgin Mary. You are the Lord and Absolute Ruler of all creation. We acknowledge you, therefore, as the Universal Sovereign of all creatures. You are the Lord and Supreme Ruler of all mankind, and we, in acknowledging this Your dominion, consecrate ourselves to You now and forever. Loving Jesus, we place our family under the protection of Your Holy Face, and of Your Virgin Mother Mary most sorrowful. We promise to be faithful to You for the rest of our lives and to observe with fidelity Your Holy Commandments. We will never deny before men, You and Your Divine rights over us and all mankind. Grant us the grace to never sin again; nevertheless, should we fail, O Divine Saviour, have mercy on us and restore us to Your grace. Radiate Your Divine Countenance upon us and bless us now and forever. Embrace us at the hour of our death in Your Kingdom for all eternity, through the intercession of Your Blessed Mother, of all Your Saints who behold You in Heaven, and the just who glorify You on earth. O Jesus, be mindful of us forever and never forsake us; protect our family. O Mother of Sorrows, by the eternal glory which you enjoy in Heaven, through the merits of your bitter anguish in the Sacred Passion of your Beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, obtain for us the grace that the Precious Blood shed by Jesus for the redemption of our souls, be not shed in vain. We love you, O Mary. Embrace us and bless us, O Mother. Protect us in life and in death. Amen.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
The Holy Face on the Shroud of Turin
“Christ’s response, ‘Whoever has seen me, has seen the Father, lead us into the heart of Christological faith.'” — Pope Benedict XVI
St. Pope John Paul II “In the Eucharist, the Face of Christ is turned towards us.”
“Thy Face is my only Homeland” by P. Ioannes Maria, O.S.B. (with permission)
The sources of devotion to the Most Holy Face of Jesus are found, first of all, in the Sacred Scriptures. One might say that the entire Bible, from beginning to end, glows with the light that shines from the Face of God. “Scripture,” writes Maurice Zundel, “is a person. Scripture is Jesus. Before or after His advent, it is full of Him.”1 The Greek word for person (πρόσωπο) also means face or countenance. Nothing, in fact, is more personal than a man’s face, for a man’s face reveals the movements of his heart. So often as the Church, in her liturgy, opens the Sacred Scriptures, she contemplates “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the Face of Christ Jesus.” Only in the light of the human Face of God”2 can believers chant, read, and hear the Scripture rightly, compelling Maurice Zundel to say: “Scripture can be understood only on our knees, as we feed upon it and become aware of an invisible current of air that moves all its leaves in an unconstrainable aspiration towards the glorious Countenance of Jesus Christ.”3
The features of a child’s face are formed very early in pregnancy, at about the same time as the heart begins to beat. The face and the heart are inseparable, even from the womb. Just as the Heart of Jesus was “formed by the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mother,” so too was His Face. We can, therefore, pray, Vultus Jesu, in sinu Virginis Matris a Spiritu Sancto formatus, miserere nobis. Face of Jesus, formed by the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mother, have mercy on us.” The human Face of God,” hidden in His Mother’s womb as in a tabernacle, sanctifies John, the son of Zachary and Elizabeth; eight days after his birth, his father addresses him, saying: “Thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Most High: for thou shall go before the Face of the Lord to prepare his ways.”4
In Advent, the Divine Office makes us sing every evening at Vespers, Ostende faces tuam, et salvo erimus, Domine. “Show us Thy Face, O Lord, and we shall be saved.”5 And then, we open the First Vespers of Christmas, singing, Rex Pacific’s magnificatus set, jujus vultum desiderat universa terra. The King of Peace shines forth, whose Face all the world desires to see.”6 The first adorers of the “human Face of God” were His Virgin Mother and Saint Joseph. Then the shepherds “came with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the Infant lying in the manger.”7 What would the shepherds have desired to see more than the Face of the Saviour whose birth was announced to them by an angel? Wise men, coming from the East, were guided to the Infant King by a star, “and entering into the house, they found the Child with Mary His mother, and falling down, they adored Him.”8 What must have been their joy at beholding the Face of the Child!
“And when the time had come for purification according to the law of Moses, they brought Jesus up to Jerusalem, to present Him before the Lord there.”9 Simeon, “led by the Spirit into the temple,”10 took the Infant Jesus into his arms, and gazing at “the human Face of God,” said, “Now Thou dost dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, according to Thy word in peace; because my eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of al peoples: a light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.11 An antiphon for the feast of Candlemas sings: “The ancient carried the Infant, but the Infant guided the steps of the ancient.”12 Simeon, the image of all that in us has grown old with waiting, carries Divine Mercy in his arms, but Divine Mercy, by the light that shines on his Face, guides the old man’s steps. Let anyone guided by Divine Mercy follow the example of Simeon by fixing his gaze on the Face of Christ.
Simeon, beholding the Face of God made visible, was “borne aloft to the love of things invisible.”13 Illumined by the Holy Face, the old priest recognised the new High Priest, “holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the heavens.”14 In this, Simeon models the holiness of every priest who, taking the Host into his hands, raises it for the faithful to see. By looking at the “Eucharistic Face of Christ,”15 day after day, the priest, like Simeon, becomes capable of bearing witness to “things no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no human heart conceived, the welcome God has prepared for those who love Him.”16
At the same time, there entered the Prophetess Anna the daughter of Phanuel, whose name means “Face of God.” Anna had made the temple her home. Abiding day and night in the temple, Anna served God with fasting and prayer. Drawn by the radiance of the Face of Christ and by a mysterious operation of the Holy Ghost, Anna emerged from the shadowy recesses of the temple to praise God and speak of the Child to all that patiently waited for the deliverance of Israel. Anna of the Face of God models the vocation of every consecrated woman.
When Jesus, at the age of twelve, remained in Jerusalem after the solemn feast of the Pasch, the greatest sorrow of His Mother and of St, Joseph was that, for three days, they lost sight of His Holy Face. There is, in the Office for the Feast of the Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple,17 an antiphon that expresses the anguish of the Most Holy Virgin and Saint Joseph as they sought Jesus: Quasi illum, et non inveni: vocaviet non responded mini. “I sought Him, and found Him not: I called, and He did not answer me.”18 If the finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple numbered among the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary, rather than the Sorrowful, it is because the sight of the Holy Face filled His Mother and Saint Joseph with surpassing gladness.
Nearly two decades later Jesus “took Peter and John and James with Him, and went up into a mountain to pray.”19 And He was transfigured before them, and His Face shone like the sun.”20 Saint John beheld the same Face on the island of Patmos; “His Face,” he testifies, “was like the sun when it shines at its full strength.”21 Between these two manifestations of the Holy Face of Jesus shining like the sun, Saint John beheld the same adorable Face darkened and disfigured in the agony of Gethsemane and on Calvary, without “form or comeliness that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him, despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces.”22
In the glory of the Resurrection, the divine majesty of the Holy Face of Jesus remained mysteriously veiled. Mary Magdalene took Him for the gardener,23 and the disciples on the road to Emmaus, for a stranger,24 and when He showed Himself to the disciples at the sea of Tiberius, standing at daybreak on the shore, “the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.”25 It was only after Jesus said, “Cast to the right of the boat, and you will have a catch,” causing them to catch a prodigious shoal of fish, that “the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, It is the Lord.”26
The same adorable Face remains mysteriously veiled in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar, the Deus absconditus,27 unrecognised by most and forsaken in the abandoned tabernacles of the world. Saint Gaetano Catanoso, canonised by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005, at the conclusion of the Year off the Eucharist, said, “If we wish to adore the real Face off Jesus…, we can find it in the divine Eucharist, where the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, the Face of Our Lord is hidden under the white veil of the Host.”28
The Feast of the Ascension, the Sunday that follows it, and the Feasts of the Epiphany and Transfiguration have long been kept as days particularly suited to the contemplation and adoration of the Holy Face of Jesus. With the mystery of the Ascension, “the human Face of God” fills the heavenly sanctuary with a new brightness. God prays to God with a human voice. God having a human Face, intercedes with God on behalf of men.
Saint John Henry Newman remarked that there is a certain sadness about the Ascension of Our Lord, the last glimpse of His adorable Face. 29 At the same time, there is a joy in knowing that the Holy Face of Our High Priest, forever turned to His Father in the heavenly sanctuary, is no less turned towards us in the tabernacles of our churches, where, silent and hidden, He waits. “We see Him not,” says the new Doctor of the Church, “but we are to believe that we possess Him, that we have been brought under the virtue of His healing hand, of His life-giving breath, of the manna flowing from His lips, and of the blood issuing from His side.”30 We see Him not, but one who tarries close to the tabernacle will go away a changed man, for the Eucharistic Face of Jesus will have shone in the innermost places of his soul, purifying what is clean, warming what is cold, and healing what is sick.
The “modern” feast of the Holy Face, instituted by Pope Pius XII in 1958, at the request of Blessed Maria Pierina De Micheli31 and Venerable Abbot Idldebrando Gregori,32 synthesises all that the great Christological feasts of the liturgical year and the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary pass in review: the human Face of God in Bethlehem, in Jerusalem, and in Egypt; on Mount Thabor, in Gethsemani, and on Calvary; on the road to Emmaus and, finally on the Mount of Olives. All these converge in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. The Holy Face of Jesus is in the Sacrament of His Love as it was in His life on earth: as it was in nearly every moment of His Passion; as it was in the agony of His death upon the Cross; and as it is now and for all eternity, in the glory of heaven. To contemplate and adore the Holy Face of Jesus, “hidden under the white veil of the Host,” is to enter into His own priestly work of reparation to the Father and reparation of the ravages of sin in souls.
Italy is stupendously rich in sanctuaries of the Holy Face of Jesus: the Veil of Manoppello, the Shroud of Turin, the Volto Santo of Lucca, that of Sansepolcro (Arezzo), the Mandylion of Genoa, and the Casa of Madre Flora De Santis at Capodimonte, among others. It is not, however, necessary to undertake pilgrimages far from home. It is enough to go, quietly and humbly, to the nearest tabernacle, and to remain there in adoration and reparation, repeating the Royal Prophet’s heartfelt plea: “Thy Face, O Lord, do I seek; hide not Thy Face from me.” One who prays in this way, adoring the Deus absconditus, will, at length, begin to say with Saint Therese: Ta Face set ma seule Patrie. “Thy Face is my only Homeland.”
Maurice Zundel, The Splendor of the Liturgy (New York: Sheed & Ward, 1939), 284. ↩︎
“The human Face of God that has burst into history to reveal the horizons of eternity. The silent Face of Jesus, suffering and risen, when loved and accepted, changes our hearts and lives.” Pope Benedict XVI, Prayer at Manoppello, 1 September 2006. ↩︎
Senex puerum portabat, Puer autem senem regebat: quem Virgo pepent, et post partum Virgo permansit: Ipsum quem genuit, adoravit. “The old man bore the Child, but the Child ruled the old man’s steps; even the Child Whom a Virgin bore, and remained a Virgin as before; and when that Virgin had brought Him the world, bowing low, she adored Him.” (Antiphon of the Magnificat at First Vespers. ↩︎
This is expressed in the Preface of the Nativity: Quia per incarnati Verbi mysterium nova mantis nostril oculus lux tuae claritatis infulsit: ut dum visibiliter Deum cognoscimus, per hunch in invisibilum amorem rapiamur. “Because by the mystery of the Word made flesh the light of Thy glory hath shone anew upon the eyes of our mind: that while we acknowledge Him to be God seen by men, we may be borne aloft to the love of things unseen.” ↩︎
The hidden God, following the word of the Prophet Isaias, who says, “Verily thou art a hidden God, the God of Israel the Saviour” (Isaias 45:15).↩︎
Homily of Pope Benedict XVI, Saint Peter’s Square, 23 October 2005. ↩︎
John Henry Newman, “Sermon 10: The Spiritual Presence of Christ in the Church,” in Parochial and Plain Sermons (London: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1918), 121. ↩︎
“Oh Savior Jesus, who did will that reparation should be as public and universal as had been the offense, penetrate us with the true spirit of reparation. Give us the grace to love Your Divine Face, to make it known and loved by the whole world, in order that it may be to us a source of light and means of salvation. Amen.” –Bl. Maria Pierina de Micheli, “Missionary of the Holy Face”
Christ as the Man of Sorrows; Quentin Metsys (Netherlandish, 1465 or 1466 – 1530); Belgium; 1520–1530
Lord Jesus Christ, Saviour of the World, by Thy Passion death and Ressurection, by Thy Holy Face and Holy Name Save us! Holy Mary, Intercede for your poor children around the world! Diptych with Christ as Salvator Mundi and Mary Praying by Quintin Metsys
Prayer to the Holy Trinity
The Man of Sorrows in the arms of the Virgin Mary, by Hans Memling
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Ninth Day
Psalm 51: 18-21
For in sacrifice you take no delight, burnt offering from me you would refuse, my sacrifice a
Altar of The Holy Face, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York
contrite spirit. A humbled, contrite heart you will not spurn. In your goodness, show favor to Zion; rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Then you will be pleased with lawful sacrifice, holocausts offered on your altar.
Sacred Face of our Lord and our God, what words can we say to express our gratitude? How can we speak of our joy? That you have deigned to hear us, that you have chosen to answer us in our hour of need. We say this because we know that our prayers will be granted. We know that you, in your loving kindness, listened to our pleading hearts, and will give, out of your fullness, the answer to our problems.
Mary our Mother, intercede for us, St. Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
Prayer to the Holy Trinity
Sr. Lucia’s vision of The Trinity
Most Holy Trinity, Godhead indivisible, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, our first beginning and our last end. Since you have made us after your own image and likeness, grant that all the thoughts of our minds, all the words of our tongues, all the affections of our hearts and all our actions may be always conformed to your most Holy Will, so that that after having seen you here on earth in appearances and in a dark manner by the means of faith, we may come at last to contemplate you face to face, in the perfect possession of you forever in paradise. Amen.
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.
Tomorrow will be the Feast of the Holy Feast and Act of Consecration
Our Lord told Sr. Marie St. Pierre that the image of His Holy Face is like a Divine stamp, which if applied to souls, through prayer, has the power of imprinting anew within them the Image of God.
Holy Face on the Shroud of Turin
Prayer to reproduce the Image of God in our souls
I salute You! I adore you and I love you, O 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 the image of God may once more be reproduced in our souls. Amen.
Tomorrow, Tuesday, February 17th, will be The Feast of the Holy Face and The Act of Consecration to the Holy Face
“Living” Face of Jesus on the miraculous Veil of Manoppello. Photo: Paul Badde/EWTN
“All of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image.”
“It is the Church’s task to reflect the light of Christ in every historical period, to make His Face shine before the generations of the new millennium. Our witness, however, would be hopelessly inadequate if we ourselves had not first contemplated His FACE!” –St. Pope John Paul IIMay the Lord bless and keep you; may He make His Face shine upon and be merciful to you; may He turn His Countenance toward you and grant you His PEACE! (Num 6:22-27)
Padre Pio called the Holy Veil of Manoppello the “greatest relic of the Church” photo: Patricia Enk
Adorable Face of my Jesus, my only love, my light and my life, grant that I may see no one, except Thee, that I may love Thee alone, that I may live with Thee, of Thee, by Thee and for Thee. Amen
“Gaze at Jesus, our model. Let us copy Him; He is our example in all. Let us study Him in all the moments of His Life,, and let us not be content with an intellectual study, but with love that penetrates the divine teachings, and let us transform them into our very being.” –Bl. Mother Pierina de Micheli, “Missionary of the Holy Face”
Daily Preparatory Prayer
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Eighth Day
Psalm 51: 16-17
O rescue me, God my helper, and my tongue shall ring out your goodness. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.
The Good Shepherd
Most merciful Face of Jesus, who in this vale of tears was so moved by our misfortunes to call yourself the healer of the sick, and the Good Shepherd of the souls gone astray, allow not satan to draw us away from you, but keep us always under your loving protection, together with all souls who endeavor to console you.
Mary our Mother, intercede for us, St. Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
Prayer to St. Peter
O Jesus, the divine look of whose adorable Face wounded the heart of Peter with repentant sorrow and love, have mercy on us.
O glorious St. Peter, who in return for thy lively and generous faith, thy profound and sincere humility and thy burning love, was honored by Jesus Christ with singular privileges, and in particular, with the leadership of the other apostles and the primacy of the whole church, of which thou was made the foundation stone, do thou obtain for us the grace of a lively faith, that shall not fear to profess itself openly in its entirety and in all of its manifestations, even to the shedding of blood, if occasion should demand it, and to the sacrifice of life itself in preference to surrender. Obtain for us likewise a sincere loyalty to our Holy Mother the Church. Grant that we may ever remain most closely and sincerely united to The Holy Father, who is the heir of thy faith and of thy authority, the one true visible head of the Catholic Church. Grant moreover, that we may follow, in all humility and meekness, the Church’s teaching and counsels and may be obedient to all her precepts, in order to be able here on earth to enjoy a peace that is sure and undisturbed, and to attain one day in heaven to everlasting happiness. Amen.
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (3 times)
Sorrowful Mother of The Holy Face, Shirburn Chapel England
“This novena which Jesus desires transforms us to correspond with His love, and thus unites us to the Divine Victim, offering ourselves on all the altars of the world to be with Him–true souls of reparation, in union with the Immaculate Virgin–the first Reparatrix.” –Bl. Mother Maria Pierina de Micheli, “Missionary of the Holy Face”
Daily Preparatory Prayer
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Seventh Day
Psalm 51: 14-15
Give me again the joy of your help, with a spirit of fervor sustain me, that I may teach
ECCE HOMO! “Behold the Man!”
transgressors your ways and sinners may return to you.
Lord Jesus! After contemplating Thy features, disfigured by grief, after meditating upon Thy passion with compunction and love, how can our hearts fail to be inflamed with a holy hatred of sin, which even now outrages Thy Adorable Face! Lord suffer us not to be content with mere compassion, but give us grace so closely to follow Thee in this Calvary, so that the opprobrium destined for Thee may fall on us. O Jesus, that thus we may have a share, small though it may be, in expiation of sin. Amen.
Mary our Mother, intercede for us, St. Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
“Lord, grant to your Church to stand like Your Virgin Mother, at the glorious Cross and all the crosses of all people to bring about consolation, hope and comfort.” — St. Pope John Paul II
Mater Dolorosa by Dieric Bouts, 1470-75
Prayer in Honor of Mary
Hail Mary, Daughter of God the Father! Hail Mary, Mother of God the Son! Hail Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit! Hail Mary, Temple of The Most Holy Trinity! Hail Mary, our mistress, our wealth, our mystic rose, Queen of our hearts, our Mother, our life, our sweetness and our dearest hope! We are all thine, and all we have is thine. O Virgin blessed above all things, may Thy soul be in us to magnify the Lord; may Thy spirit be in us to rejoice in God. Place Thyself, O faithful Virgin, as a seal upon our hearts, that in Thee and through Thee we may be found faithful to God. Grant, most gracious Virgin, that we may be numbered among those who Thou are pleased to love, to teach and to guide, to favor and to protect as Thy children. Grant that with the help of Thy love, we may despise all earthly consolation and cling to heavenly things, until through the Holy Spirit, Thy faithful spouse and through Thee, His faithful spouse, Jesus Christ, Thy Son, be formed within us for the glory of the Father. Amen. (St. Louis De Montfort)
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (3 times)
Pieta, with Holy Trinity and Blessed Mother, (Jean Malouel 1400-1410) Met Museum
What are our sufferings when we think of those of Jesus? Have we perhaps sweated blood? Have we received blows and spittle, been scourged and crowned with thorns?…And what can we possibly give Jesus save a heart desirous of loving Him…to desire nothing save His Will? — Bl. Mother Maria Pierina de Micheli
Daily Preparatory Prayer
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
A pure heart create for me, O God, put a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence not deprive me of your Holy Spirit.
Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit
May our hearts be cleansed, O Lord, by the in-pouring of the Holy Spirit, and may He render them fruitful by watering them with His heavenly dew. Mary, the most chaste spouse of the Holy Spirit, intercede for us, St. Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
“Who is like God?” St. Michael holding high the Face of Jesus (Sculpture by Cody Swanson)
O Victorious Prince, most humble guardian of the Church of God and of faithful souls, who with such charity and zeal took part in so many conflicts and gained such great victories over the enemy, for the conservation and protection of the honor and glory we all owe to God, as well as for the promotion of our salvation; come, we pray Thee, to our assistance, for we are continually besieged with such great perils by our enemies, the flesh, the world and the devil; and as Thou wast a leader for the people of God through the desert, so also be our faithful leader, and companion through the desert of this world, until Thou conduct us safely into the happy land of the living, in that blessed fatherland from which we are all exiles. Amen. (St. Aloysius)
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (3 times)
“Who is like God!” St. Michael sculpture by Cody Swanson, Old St. Patrick’s New Orleans (photo: Patricia Enk)
“So may sins of impurity are committed in this city, but true souls of reparation are few, do thou at least console and comfort me.”–words of Our Lord to Bl. Mother Pierina de Micheli, “Missionary of the Holy Face”
The Divine Prisoner, Holy Face of Manoppello photo: Patricia Enk
“O Holy Face of Christ, light that enlightens the darkness of doubt and sadness, life that has defeated forever the force of evil and death, O inscrutable gaze that never ceases to watch over mankind; Face concealed in the Eucharistic signs and in the faces of those that live with us! Make us pilgrims in his world, longing for the infinite and ready for the final encounter, when we shall see you, Lord, “face to face” (Cor. 13-12) and be able to contemplate you forever in Heavenly Glory.” — Pope Benedict XVI (Excerpt from his prayer in honor of his visit to the Basilica Shrine of the Holy Face of Manoppello.)
Daily Preparatory Prayer
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Make me hear rejoicing and gladness, that the bones you have crushed may revive. From my sins turn away your Face, and blot out all my guilt.
Holy Face of Jesus, Sacred Countenance of God, how great is your patience with humankind, how infinite your forgiveness. We are sinners, yet you love us. This gives us courage For the glory of your Holy Face and of the Blessed Trinity, hear and answer us. Mary our Mother, intercede for us, St. Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
Prayer to St. Joseph
“Blessed are the pure of heart; for they shall see God” (Mt. 5:8)
St. Joseph
Dear St. Joseph! Adopt us as thy children, take charge of our salvation; watch over us day and night; preserve us from occasions of sin; obtain for us purity of body and soul, and the spirit of prayer, through thy intercession with Jesus, grant us a spirit of sacrifice, of humility and self-denial; obtain for us a burning love for Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, and a sweet, tender love for Mary, our Mother. St. Joseph, be with us in life, be with us in death and obtain for us a favorable judgement from Jesus, our merciful Savior. Amen.
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (3 times)
[The prayer to St. Joseph in this novena reminds us of the love of God the Father. He looks upon us with infinite pity, mercy and love through the Face of His Son, Jesus Christ. The Holy Face of Jesus shows us the eternal, tender love that God the Father has for us.]
“Oh Jesus, who in Thy Cruel Passion didst become the “Reproach of men and the Man of Sorrows,” I worship Thy Divine Face.” –St. Therese
Daily Preparatory Prayer
“Every time that anyone gazes at my Face, I will pour my love into hearts and by means of the Holy Face, the salvation of many souls will be obtained.” –Our Lord to Bl. Mother Pierina de Micheli, “Missionary of the Holy Face”
Face of Christ: Fra Angelico, c. 1427
Daily Preparatory Prayer:
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Third Day – Holy Face Novena
Psalm 51: 6-7
You are just when you pass sentence on me, blameless when you give judgement. You know I was born guilty, a sinner from the moment of conception.
Bl. Pope Pius IX “Reparation is a work destined to save society”
Prayer of Pope Pius IX
O Jesus! Cast upon us a look of mercy; turn your Face towards each of us as you did to Veronica; not that we may see it with our bodily eyes; for this we do not deserve, but turn it towards our hearts, so that, remembering you, we may ever draw from this fountain of strength the vigor necessary to sustain the combats of life. Amen. our Mother Mary, and St. Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
Prayer of St. Francis
All highest, glorious God, cast your light into the darkness of our hearts, give us true faith, firm hope, perfect charity and profound humility, so that with wisdom, courage and perception, O Lord, we may do what is truly your holy will. Amen.
To the Angels and Saints
We salute you, through the Holy Face and Sacred Heart of Jesus, all you holy Angels and Saints of God. We rejoice in your glory, and we give thanks to our Lord for all the benefits which He has showered upon you; we praise Him, and glorify Him, and offer you for an increase of your joy and honor, the most Holy Face and gentle Heart of Jesus. Pray that we may become formed according to the heart of God. Amen.
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (3 times)
“Their Face is the Face of Christ” –Pope Francis
“The Face of God is like that of a merciful Father that always has patience and is willing to forgive…All of us have felt joy, sadness, and sorrow in our lives. Have we wept during the darkest moment? Have we that gift of tears that prepare the eyes to look, to see the Lord?” — Pope Francis
“All those who attracted by my love, and venerating my countenance, shall receive, by virtue of my humanity, a brilliant and vivid impression of my divinity. This splendor shall enlighten the depths of their souls, so that in eternal glory the celestial court shall marvel at the marked likeness of their features with my divine countenance.” (Our Lord to St. Gertrude)
Daily Preparatory Prayer (to be said each day as you console the Holy Face) O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with His sorrows, love and total abandonment. We now implore all the Angels and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Second Day Psalm 51: 5-6 My offenses truly I know them; My sin is always before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned; What is evil in your sight I have done. Most Holy Face of Jesus, we are truly sorry that we have hurt you so much by constantly doing what is wrong; and for all the good works we have failed to do. Immaculate Heart of Mary, Saint Joseph, intercede for us, help us to console the Most Holy Face of Jesus. Pray that we may share in the tremendous love Thou hast for one another, and for the most Holy and Blessed Trinity. Amen. Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, …Pardon and mercy.
Prayer to The Holy Spirit
Come Holy Spirit
Come, Holy Spirit, Sanctifier, all powerful God of love, Thou who didst fill the Virgin Mary with grace, Thou who didst wonderfully transform the hearts of the apostles, Thou who didst endow all Thy martyrs with a miraculous heroism, come and sanctify us, illumine our minds, strengthen our wills, purify our consciences, rectify our judgments, set our hearts on fire and preserve us from the misfortune of resisting Thine inspirations. We consecrate to Thee our understanding, our heart and our will, our whole being for time and for eternity. May our understanding be always submissive to Thy heavenly inspirations and to the teachings of Thy Holy Catholic Church, of which Thou art the infallible guide; may our heart be ever inflamed with love of God and neighbor; may our will be ever conformed to the divine will, and may our whole life be a faithful imitation of the life and virtues of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to whom with the Father and Thee be honor and glory forever. Amen. Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Mary’s, one (1) Glory Be.O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (3 times)
Holy Face Veil of Manoppello, which shows traces of bruises and wounds of the Passion. (photo: Paul Badde)
“O God, Who did constitute Your only begotten Son the Savior of mankind, and did command that He should be called JESUS; grant in Your kindness that our heart’s joy in Heaven may be the Face of Him Whose Holy Name we venerate on earth.” Amen. — Blessed Mother Pierina De Michelli, “Missionary of the Holy Face”
Sanctuary Basilica of the Holy Face of Manoppello, (photo: Sr. Blandina Pachalis Schloemer, from the 2017 Omnis Terra Feast Day.)
Let all the earth worship and praise You, O God; may it sing in praise of Your Name, O Most High. Shout joyfully to the Lord all the earth; sing a psalm in honor of His Name, praise Him with magnificence!
–Omnis Terra Introit
“The Veronica Veil” Face of Jesus from the precious manuscript “Liber Regulae Sancti Spiritus in Saxia,” which was first carried in public procession by Pope Innocent III, beginning in 1208.
“Omnis Terra,” Latin for “All the Earth,” is celebrated on the second Sunday after Epiphany, which falls on January 18th for 2026. The entire Community of the Capuchin Friars of Manoppello will be celebrating this years “Omnis Terra” feast day in the Basilica of the Holy Face. The bishop of Chieti-Vasto, Mons. Bruno Forte will preside over the Eucharistic Celebration, in the presence of the Provincial Minister of the Capuchin Friars’ Father Simone Calvarese. There will be a brief procession of religious and faithful and a solemn blessing will be imparted to “All the Earth”, lifting in his hands–the precious of the Holy Face Veil of Manoppello.
Bishop Forte, before the relic veil of Manoppello — (Omnis Terra, Jan. 19, 2025)
The late Rev. Daren J. Zehnie in Roman Procession of Holy Face in Rome, 2016 photo: Edward Pentin
“Omnis Terra,” which had originally begun in 1208, was once again renewed during the Jubilee Year of Mercy, 2015-2016. At that time, a facsimile of the Merciful Face of of Christ on the Holy Veil of Manoppello was carried in a historic procession once again through the streets of Rome. 2016 was the first year that the Holy Face was processed in Rome since the ancient procession of Pope Innocent III from St. Peter’s Basilica to the nearby hospital of Santo Spirito in Sassia in 1208, giving alms to the poor along the way. The Omnis Terra celebration was later continued at the Basilica Shrine of Il Volto Santo in Manoppello. This significant event, celebrating the revelation of His glory is certainly a reason for all the earth to rejoice!
The first “Omnis Terra” Procession of Pope Innocent III in 1208 carrying “the Veronica” Face of Christ (from “Liber Regulae Sancti Spiritus in Saxia” manuscript 1350)
Salve! Sancta Facies! Hail, Holy Face!
Salve, Sancta Facies! Hail, Holy Face (c. 1450-1455), Willem Vrelant (1481) and associates, Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore, MD.
The exquisite illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages reflect the great love and devotion shown to the Holy Face, as well as provide evidence of what the Holy Face of Jesus looked like, as it was seen on a miraculous veil, known as “the Veronica.” “The Veronica,” or Veil of the Holy Face of Jesus, was the greatest relic in Rome at that time. To gaze upon the veil was the deep desire of pilgrims to Rome, who came from far and wide, to see for themselves the sheer veil bearing the Face of Jesus. Beginning with public exhibitions and processions of the Holy Veil by Pope Innocent III in the mid thirteenth century, the miraculous veil could be viewed by all. Soon the artists got to work on paintings, illustrations, poetry, prayers, and hymns in honor of the Holy Face. ( “The Veronica Route” website wonderfully catalogues many of these “Veronica” artworks, and where they may be found throughout the world.)
Portrait of a Young Man, 1450-60, Petrus Christus, London National Gallery. Seen on the wall, above the prayerful young man, is the Holy Face and the Salve! Sancta Facies Hymn
Pope John XXII, who was elected Pope in 1316, composed a beautiful hymn in honor of the Holy Face, and he also granted a special indulgence to those who recited it — and for those who could could not read, the Pope granted the same indulgence to the faithful for reciting five Our Fathers, Hail Marys, and Glory Be’s.
Detail from “Portrait of a Young Man” of the Hymn “Salve, Sancta, Facies.”
Hymn in Honor of the Holy Face by Pope John XXII (translated from the original Latin)
Hail! Holy Face of our Redeemer, hail! Which shines in all its majesty divine Upon the spotless veil, a priceless gift To Saint Veronica; of love the sign.
Hail! Glory of all time, mirror-glass of the Saints, Wherein the blessed love for eye to gaze; Destroy within us every stain of sin, And with the elect our souls towards Thee raise.
Hail, Face of God! With His own gifts adorned, Whose splendor through the ages shall not cease; Oh! make Thy light descend into our hearts, And from their earthly toils our souls release.
Hail! Mighty bulwark of the Christian faith, Of heresy and lies the Victor Thou; King in the Sacred Bread, renew the strength Of all the faithful who before Thee bow.
Hail! all our joy in this hard life below, So frail and fugitive, so quickly over; Sweet Picture, lead us onwards to the skies, That we may there the Face of Christ adore.
Hail! noblest of all gems, celestial pearl, In Thee innumerable graces shine; No hand depicted Thee, no chisel carved, Thou wert of God alone the work divine.
The tints with which Thy features He has traced Will never alter and will never fade; Changeless amidst the ravages of time, The everlasting King Thy Face may see.
Forever incorrupt and free from stain, The living Christ we honour still in Thee; Thou turnest into joy our sighs and tears, Oh! grant that we, in heaven, thy Face may see.
Be thou, we pray, our buckler and defense, Our consolation and refreshment sweet, That nothing hostile may our spirits harm, Till, after death, we rest at Jesus’ feet. Amen.
Prayer: Shed, O Lord, joy over the faces of Thy faithful, and turn them away from the depths of hell, that, protected by the contemplation of Thy divine Face, we may have strength to tread underfoot the desires of the flesh, and that we may behold Thee face to face, without fear, Lord Jesus Christ, when Thou will come to judge us. Amen.
The tints with which Thy features He has traced Will never alter and will never fade; Changeless amidst the ravages of time, The everlasting King Thy Face may see.
“Changeless through the ravages of time,” the “tints” of the image, “have never altered or faded” through the centuries. Holy Face Veil of Manoppello,( photo: Patricia Enk)
Pope Benedict XVI contemplates the Face on the Veil of Manoppello. September 1, 2006. (Photo: Paul Badde/EWTN)
Prayer of Pope Benedict XVI
Lord Jesus, as the first Apostles, whom you asked: “What do you seek?” accepted your invitation to “Come and See,” recognizing you as the Son of God, the Promised Messiah for the world’s redemption, we too, your disciples in this difficult time, want to follow you and be your friends, drawn by the brilliance of Your Face, much desired, yet hidden. Show us, O Lord, we pray you, Your Face ever new; that mirror, mystery-laden, of God’s infinite mercy. Grant that we may contemplate it with the eyes of our mind and our hearts: the Son’s Face, radiance of the Father’s glory and the imprint of His Nature (cf. Hb 1:3), the human Face of God that has burst into history to reveal the horizons of eternity. The silent Face of Jesus, suffering and risen, when loved and accepted, changes our hearts and lives. “Your Face, Lord, do I seek, do not hide Your Face from me.” (Ps. 27:8ff) How many times through the centuries and millennia has resounded the ardent invocation of the Psalmist among the faithful! Lord, with faith, we too repeat the same invocation: “Man of suffering, as one from whom other hide their faces.” (Is. 53:3) Do not hide your Face from us! We want to draw from your eyes that look on us with tenderness and compassion the force of love and peace which shows us the way of life, and the courage to follow you without fear or compromise, so as to be witnesses of your Gospel with concrete signs of acceptance, love and forgiveness. O Holy Face of Christ, Light that enlightens the darkness of doubt and sadness, life that has defeated forever the force of evil and death, O inscrutable gaze that never ceases to watch over mankind. Face concealed in the Eucharistic signs and in the faces of those that live with us! Make us God’s pilgrims in this world, longing for the infinite and ready for the final encounter, when we shall see you, Lord, “face to face” (Cor. 13:12) and be able to contemplate you forever in heavenly Glory. Mary, Mother of the Holy Face, help us to have “hands innocent and a heart pure,” hands illumined by the truth of love and hearts enraptured by divine beauty, that transformed by the encounter with Christ, we may gift ourselves to the poor and the suffering, whose face reflect the hidden presence of your Son Jesus. Amen. Pope Benedict XVI Sept. 1, 2007, written in memory of his pilgrimage to the Sanctuary Basilica of the Holy Face in Manoppello, Italy, the year before, on Sept. 1, 2006.
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“To rejoice in the splendor of His Face means penetrating the mystery of His Name made known to us in Jesus, understanding something of His Interior life and of His will, so that we can live according to His plan for humanity. Jesus lets us know the hidden Face of the Father through His human Face; by the gift of the Holy Spirit poured into our hearts.”
“While we too seek other signs, other wonders, we do not realize that He is the real sign, God made flesh; He is the greatest miracle of the universe: all the love of God hidden in a human heart, in a human Face.”
Antonio Bini presenting a book on the Holy Face to Archbishop Cordileone of San Francisco on the occasion of his pilgrimage to the Basilica Shrine of Il Volto Santo in 2019.
Antonio Bini, who communicates all the good news coming from the Shrine in Manoppello, Italy, has shared a new video put together by a filmmaker–it is a compilation of reports by news media from 1999–that was made to commemorate the historic work and discoveries of the late Father Heinrich Pfeiffer (1939-2021), a historian of Christian art at the Gregorian University in Rome, and who had studied the Holy Face for years. Antonio met Fr. Pfeiffer in 1998, and convinced him to make the results of his studies public at an international press conference that Antonio Bini had organized in Rome on May 31, 1999. “The conference reverberated throughout the world,” said Antonio.
(The video is in Italian, however, a closed-captioned translation is possible by clicking “cc” first; then “settings,” and next choose the option “auto translate” and the language of your choice.)
The Relic was recently removed from the glass enclosure for viewing and procession, on the Feast of the Transfiguration (Photo: Alexandra Prandell)
I can confirm the truth of Antonio’s statement about the news of the Veronica being heard throughout the world. As a life-long devotee of the True Face of Jesus known as the”Veronica,” I was most interested when I first read a U.S. news article about Fr. Pfeiffer’s startling claim of finding “the historic Veronica.” A very strong yearning grew in my heart each day and did not go away; the desire to see the Holy Veil of Manoppello, Italy with my own eyes. However, many more years passed before an opportunity would present itself to travel to Rome, and from there, to somehow find the way through the Abruzzo Mountains to Manoppello–which might as well have been the other side of the moon to me at that time.
Fr. Heinrich Pfeiffer and Paul Badde look on as Pope Benedict XVI greets Sr. Blandina Paschalis Schloemer, whose forensic study comparisons of the Face of the Shroud of Turin and the Face on the Manoppello Veil were key to its rediscovery. Historic visit to the Shrine of Il Volto Santo in 2006.
Thanks to Paul Badde’s wonderful book, The Face of God: The Rediscovery of the True Face of Jesus, I learned that the Shrine of Il Volto Santo was much more accessible that I had first thought; providentially due to a new highway being completed close to the Shrine. The pilgrimage turned out to be a life-changing spiritual experience to say the least, as it has been for so many other pilgrims from all over the world.
Fr. Heinrich Pfeiffer’s important role in bringing the Holy Face of Manoppello, from obscurity to the world, was not an easy one, as his friend, Antonio Bini, reminded me. Therefore, this video was made for the growing community of faithful devotees of the Holy Face, and in gratitude and appreciation of the man who helped pave the way for pilgrims to the Basilica Shrine of Il Volto Santo in this millennium dedicated by Pope St. John Paul II to the Holy Face of Jesus Christ!
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More beautiful photos below, sent by Alexandra Prandell, from the Feast of the Transfiguration celebration in Manoppello, Italy–not “on the other side of the moon,” but only two and a half hours from Rome, in the Abruzzo Mountains:
Holy Veil of Manoppello, Photo: Alexandra Prandell
Relic of the Holy Face carried in procession through the streets. (Photo: Alexandra Prandell)
(Transfiguration procession of the relic) Photo: Alexandra Prandell)
Fireworks explode in the sky as the relic of the Holy Face Veil returns to the Basilica Shrine. (Photo: Alexandra Prandell)
The serene gaze of the Holy Face of Jesus, of Manoppello. (Photo: Alexandra Prandell)
Illumina Domine Blog - Devotion to The Holy Face 