Saint Maria was a deeply pious child. She couldn't read or write, but she learned her Catechism and received her First Communion just one year before she died. She attended Mass as often as she could. Today we pray that St. Maria will intercede for all children, that their faith may grow and prosper as hers did.
St. Maria Goretti Novena Prayers - Day 8
St. Maria Goretti, patron of youth, please pray for the children in our lives and the youth across the world. that their faith may be as strong as yours when you were but a child. Help them prize their virtue and see their bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit. Pray that we do all we can to support children in their faith, to encourage them to love our Lord, put Him first in their lives, and to follow Him.
O God, author of innocence and chastity, who bestowed the grace of martyrdom on your handmaid, the Virgin Saint Maria Goretti, in her youth, grant, we pray, through her intercession, that, as you gave her a crown for her steadfastness, so we too may be firm in obeying your commandments. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, who reigns with you, and with the Holy Spirit, one God for ever. Amen.
