O Jesus, who in Thy bitter Passion
didst become “the most abject of men,
a man of sorrows”,
I venerate Thy Sacred Face
whereon there once did shine
the beauty and sweetness of the Godhead;
but now it has become for me
as if it were the face of a leper!
Nevertheless, under those disfigured features,
I recognize Thy infinite Love
and I am consumed with the desire to love Thee
and make Thee loved by all men.
The tears which well up abundantly
in Thy sacred eyes appear to me
as so many precious pearls
that I love to gather up,
in order to purchase the souls of poor sinners
by means of their infinite value.
O Jesus, whose adorable Face ravishes my heart,
I implore Thee to fix deep within me
Thy Divine image and to set me
on fire with Thy Love,
that I may be found worthy
to come to the contemplation
of Thy glorious Face in Heaven.
Amen.
(Prayer of St. Theresa of Jesus to the Holy Face.)