Lenten Indulgence #1

Yes, I know, Lent is all about giving up your indulgences! But I thought I would indulge in a little über-Catholicism this Lent with a series of extracts fom the USCCB English translation of the the Enchiridion indulgentiarum quarto editur (1999), aka “Manual of Indulgences”.

There are no specific indulgences granted for Ash Wednesday – but the reminder is always there that the highest graces are received through participation in the Eucharist, which presumably you will be doing today when you go to get your ashes. Also remember what indulgences are about: they aren’t magic. By making indulgenced works or prayers a part of your daily life, your relationship with God in Christ and in Communion with the whole Church is strengthened.

Don’t forget to consult the Norms which apply to indulgences, which you can find here: Norms on Indulgences.

There is one indulgence that specifically mentions Lent, and I draw this to your attention:

8

EUCHARISTIC AND SPIRITUAL COMMUNION

§1 A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who
2° on any of the Fridays of Lent devoutly recite after Communion the prayer En ego, O bone et dulcissime Iesu before a crucifix.

One of the really neat things about the manual is that it is also a prayer book: the prayers are included in the same volume. So here, in case you don’t know it, is the prayer as given above in both English and Latin:

Behold, O kind and most sweet Jesus, I cast myself upon my knees in thy sight, and with the most fervent desire of my soul, I pray and beseech thee that thou wouldst impress upon my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope, and charity, with true contrition for my sins and a firm purpose of amendment; while with deep affection and grief of soul I ponder within myself and mentally contemplate thy five wounds, having before my eyes the words which David the prophet put on thy lips concerning thee: “My hands and my feet they have pierced, they have numbered all my bones.”

En ego, o bone et dulcissime Iesu, ante conspectum tuum genibus me provolvo, ac maximo animi ardore te oro atque obtestor, ut meum in cor vividos fidei, spei et caritatis sensus, atque veram peccatorum meorum paenitentiam, eaque emendandi firmissimam voluntatem velis imprimere; dum magno animi affectu et dolore tua quinque vulnera mecum ipse considero, ac mente contemplor, illud prae oculis habens, quod iam in ore ponebat tuo David Propheta de te, o bone Iesu: « Foderunt manus meas et pedes meos; dinumeraverunt omnia ossa mea ».