August Queen of Heaven Prayer Card
On 13 January 1864, Blessed Louis Cestac (+1868), who was already accustomed to the favours of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was suddenly struck as if by a ray of divine light and thought he saw demons spread out over the whole earth, causing unbelievable devastation. It was then that the August Mother of God told him the time had come to pray to the Queen of the Angels and to ask her to send her holy legions to combat and over-throw the powers of Hell.
‘My Mother,’ Blessed Cestac replied, ‘you are so good, could you not send them without our having to ask?’
‘No,’ said the Holy Virgin. ‘Prayer is a condition set by God Himself to obtain graces’
‘Well then, my Mother!’ he replied ‘Would you teach me yourself how to pray to you?’
In response to this request, the Blessed Virgin dictated this prayer to him.
‘My first duty,’ said Blessed Cestac, ‘was to present this prayer to Msgr. Lacroix, Bishop of Bayonne, who approved it. This duly accomplished, I had 500,000 copies drawn up, then I sent them everywhere.’ During the first printing of this prayer, the presses broke down twice!
Under the leadership of Blessed Cestac, this prayer has been granted ecclesiastical permission all over the Catholic world, and many and extraordinary favours have followed. As a sign of his support, Pope St. Pius X wanted the prayer to be enriched with an indulgence.
