PRAYERS TO OUR LADY

Prayer of Saint Expeditus (and Background)

Prayer to Saint Expeditus

Our dear martyr and protector, Saint Expeditus,
You who know what is necessary and what is urgently needed.
I beg you to intercede before the Holy Trinity, that by your grace
my request will be granted.

____________ (Here mention your need)

May I receive your blessings and favors.
In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.

St. Expeditus, Saint For Expediting Solutions to Problems

The word EXPEDITE means to speed up the progress of a desired result, to work out a solution or to execute a plan quickly.

He is the patron saint of the Republic of Molossia and the patron of emergencies and quick solutions. His feast day is April 19th and is mentioned in the Roman Martyrology of that day.

‘At Malathia, in Armenia, the holy martyrs Hermogenes, Caius, Expeditus, Aristonicus, Rufus, and Galata, who were all crowned upon one and the same day.’

Traditionally he is depicted as a Roman centurion who was martyred in Armenia on April 19, 303, for converting to Catholicism. His is usually depicted as a soldier holding in his left hand the palm leaf of martyrdom and in his other hand, a cross with the word “Hodie” (Latin for today) written on it. His right foot is stepping on a raven, which is speaking the word “Cras” (tomorrow).

On the day he was to convert to Catholicism, the devil, appeared as crow screeching ‘Cra, Cra’ or ‘Cras, Cras’, which in Latin means ‘tomorrow, tomorrow’. The devil wanted him to put it off till tomorrow.

The devil always uses the vice of procrastination to get us to not stop sinning and to keep us in forever his service. But instead, St. Expeditus crushes the devil, (the Crow), with his foot and replies ‘Hodie, Hodie’, which in Latin means, ‘Today, Today’. What he meant was he would become a Catholic today and not put it off till tomorrow, even though it would mean being tortured to death for his faith in Jesus Christ.

‘Expeditus’ means in Latin a soldier without a marching pack, or a soldier with light equipment. So if we are to be soldiers for Christ the King, we need to travel lightly by being detached from all worldly possessions. We only need to keep what we use to extend the Kingdom of God.