The Novena for Mary Undoer of Knots to End Racism

Holy Mary, full of the presence of God, during your life you accepted with great humility the holy will of the father and the legacy of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, and evil never dared entangle you with its confusion.  Since then you have interceded for all of our difficulties as you did at the wedding feast of Cana.  With all simplicity and with patience, you have given us an example of how to untangle the knots in our complicated lives.  By being our mother forever, you arrange and make clear the path that unites us to Our Lord.
Holy Mary, Mother of God and ours, with your maternal heart, untie the knots that upset our lives.  We ask you to receive into your hands this knot:

The Knot: (written by Irene Alonso-Perez and Sandra Nepacena)

1.  The blindness, ignorance, lack of faith, and the hardness of our hearts that keep us from treating each other with dignity, respect, and equality.

2.  The systematic injustices that have been practiced and continue to be practiced in all areas dealing with Black lives, Indigenous people, and other people of color.

3.  To help America see the unjust violence and death inflicted on Black Americans, Indigenous people, and other people of color by systematic oppression by American institutions founded by those in power.

4.  To help America heal 500 years of racial violence and injustice against Black Americans, Indigenous people, and other people of color.

5.  To help all of us uphold the equal rights of Black Americans, Indigenous people, and other people of color to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

…and deliver us from the chains and confusion that restrain us. 

Blessed Virgin Mary, through your grace, your intercession and by your example, deliver us from evil, and untie the knots that keep us from being united to God.  So that free of all confusion and error, we may find him in all things, keep him in our hearts and serve him always in our brothers and sisters.  Mother of Good Counsel, pray for us. 

Amen

***********************************************************************
The Benefits of Prayer:

When we pray, we allow ourselves to put our best, kindest words to our thoughts and feelings.  We become more sure of our beliefs and attitudes.  The link between beliefs, attitudes, and our actions is scientifically proven.  Having used our best words to describe our peaceful, healing, and just intentions, we are more likely to act as our best selves.  The centuries-old Catholic tradition of praying a novena, or praying with focused intention for nine days, actually follows the theory of modern health psychology: positive actions repeated daily for more than a week become good habits (Bandura, 1977). 

This is part of the Christian path to self-improvement and a stepping stone to becoming more holy and more like Christ.

For more information and for the complete set of nine days of prayer, visit the following helpful website, created by John-Paul and Mary Deddens:
https://www.praymorenovenas.com/mary-undoer-knots-novena

You may pray this novena in addition to doing a full, meditative rosary prayer, but that is optional.  All prayers for peaceful, healing, and just intentions are good prayers.  For more information about how to pray the rosary, visit the Rosary Center website at https://www.rosarycenter.org/homepage-2/rosary/how-to-pray-the-rosary/.