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24 BEGONE SATAN
MICHAEL
ST.
At the very mention of St. Michael Satan began
to recoil. He was tortured by that part of the prayer
which refers to the solemn petition addressed to St.
Michael. He absolutely refused to listen to the statement
that St. Michael, as leader of the faithful angels,
cast Lucifer together with his legions into the very
abyss of hell.
the prayer in honor of St. Michael commonly recited at
the end of the Mass. The prayer is as follows
It was astounding how much he dreaded
"St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares
of the devil. Restrain him, 0 God, we humbly beseech
Thee, and do Thou, 0 Prince of the heavenly
host, by the power of God cast him into hell with the
other evil spirits, who prowl about the world seeking
the ruin of souls. Amen."
Would that we as Christians recited this prayer in
honor of St. Michael with greater fervor and devotion.
A rather peculiar circumstance induced Pope Leo
XIII to compose this powerful prayer. After celebrating
Mass one day he was in conference with the
Cardinals. Suddenly he sank to the floor. A doctor
was summoned and several came at once. There was
no sign of any pulse-beating, the very life seemed to
have ebbed away from the already weakened and aged
body. Suddenly he recovered and said: "What a horrible
picture I was permitted to see!" He saw what
was going to happen in the future, the misleading
powers and the ravings of the devils against the
Church in all countries. But St. Michael had appeared
in the nick of time and cast Satan and his cohorts back
into the abyss of hell. Such was the occasion that
caused Pope Leo XIII to have this prayer recited over
the entire world at the end of the Mass.
CRUCIFIX AND RELIC OF THE CROSS
As indicated before, Satan dreaded the sign of
the Cross, a crucifix, or a relic of the true Cross.
one occasion a crucifix not made of wood was handed to
Father Theophilus. This time Satan broke out in a
On