Which saints are turned to for premature babies?
The mother tries to surround her newborn baby with maximum care. A premature baby requires even more attention. Premature birth is a pathology that can cause serious health problems in the child: retardation in physical, mental and intellectual development.
Mothers of premature babies should know that you can pray for the health of a child born prematurely:
- Lord God;
- Holy Mother of God;
- Matrona of Moscow;
- Guardian Angel;
- Simeon the God-Receiver.
The Almighty sends trials for human sins. Difficulties in carrying a pregnancy most often occur in women who are careless about their health and who, due to their youth and inexperience, have not thought about the consequences. But the Lord is merciful to repentant sinners. We must daily pray to Him to grant health to the infant.
The Heavenly Queen is sensitive to the requests of mothers who beg to help their sick or weak children. The Mother of God, who survived the execution of her Son, understands and is close to the feelings of women who gave birth to premature children.
Saint Matrona of Moscow was blind from birth, and subsequently paralyzed and could not move independently. For her deep faith and mercy towards people, the Lord rewarded her with the gift of clairvoyance. Through her prayers, paralyzed and blind people were healed. After her death, believers continue to turn to her with a prayer to pray to the Lord for their recovery.
A guardian angel is invisibly present next to a person from baptism to death. To pray to the guardian angel for the health of a premature baby, you should baptize him immediately after birth. The clergy meet the parents halfway and baptize such children in the hospital. (You can also pray to the Mother of God and the Heavenly King for an unbaptized/unborn baby).
Simeon the God-Receiver is a righteous man, the first of the people to proclaim the baby Jesus as God, when the Blessed Virgin Mary brought the child to the temple according to custom. In the person of Simeon, humanity met with the Son of God. In honor of this event, the Christian holiday of Meeting (Meeting) was established. They turn to the God-Receiver to beg Jesus Christ to forgive maternal sins and grant health to premature children.
Prayers to the saints
Orthodox people are convinced that all illnesses come from a spiritual state. You need to pray, attracting the Lord's attention, and ask for a solution to the problem. Maternal prayer is the best protector for a child. Little children are angels, and sometimes a mother’s heart can break from mental pain when a child is seriously ill.
In Orthodoxy, there are several saints to whom you can turn with prayers for the health of Nicholas the Wonderworker, the Mother of God, the healer Panteleimon, the Guardian Angel and the Matrona of Moscow.
Orthodox texts of prayers for premature babies
Prayers for children are contained in Orthodox prayer books, which can be purchased in churches.
Maternal
Thank you, Lord, for the newborn baby. Give him good health and protect him from real diseases. Amen.
Holy Mother of God
O Most Holy Lady Virgin Theotokos, save and preserve under Your shelter my children (names), all youths, young women and infants, baptized and nameless and carried in their mother’s womb.
Cover them with the robe of Your motherhood, keep them in the fear of God and in obedience to their parents, pray to my Lord and Your Son to grant them what is useful for their salvation.
I entrust them to Your maternal supervision, for You are the Divine Protection of Your servants.
Mother of God, introduce me to the image of Your heavenly motherhood.
Heal the mental and physical wounds of my children (names) caused by my sins.
I entrust my child entirely to my Lord Jesus Christ and Your, Most Pure, heavenly protection. Amen.
Matrona of Moscow
O blessed Mother Matrono, with your soul standing in heaven before the Throne of God, with your body resting on earth, and exuding various miracles by the grace given from above.
Look now with your merciful eye on us, sinners, in sorrows, illnesses and sinful temptations, our waiting days, comfort us, desperate ones, heal our fierce ailments, from God we are allowed by our sins, deliver us from many troubles and circumstances, pray to our Lord Jesus Christ forgive us all our sins, iniquities and falls, in whose image we have sinned from our youth even to this day and hour, and through your prayers having received grace and great mercy, we glorify in the Trinity the One God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and ever. Amen.
Guardian Angel
Holy Guardian Angel of my children (names), cover my children (names) with Your protection from the arrows of the demon, from the eyes of the seducer, and keep their hearts in Angelic purity. Amen.
Simeon the God-Receiver
O great servant of God, God-receiving Simeon!
Standing before the throne of the great King and our God Jesus Christ, we have great boldness towards Him, and rush into our arms for the sake of salvation.
To you, as a powerful intercessor and a strong prayer book for us, we resort to sinners and unworthiness (name).
Pray for His goodness, that He may turn away His anger from us, righteously driven by our deeds against us, and, having despised our countless sins, turn us to the path of repentance and establish us on the path of His commandments.
Protect our life in peace with your prayers, and ask for good haste in all good things, granting us everything we need for life and piety.
Through your intercession, deliver all the cities and villages of our country from all misfortunes and misfortunes and vain deaths, and protect from all enemies, visible and invisible, with your protection.
Let us live a quiet and silent life in all piety and purity, and so, having passed this temporary life in the world, we will achieve eternal peace, where we will be worthy of the Heavenly Kingdom of Christ our God.
To Him all glory is due, together with the Father and His Most Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
What prayer to read for strengthening the health of a child
The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments tell us about the importance of the process of raising children. The main emphasis is on the spiritual development of the children: “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). Prayer is rightfully considered one of the main assistants in raising the younger generation.
Orthodoxy has compiled a large number of prayers for children . Believing parents, in accordance with their needs and capabilities, include petitions for their children in their morning and evening rules. It can be:
- prayers to the Lord, Mother of God, Angels, saints;
- akathists;
- canons;
- Psalter;
- Gospel.
In today's variety of texts, it is difficult to choose the right one. A clergyman can help here. He will suggest the best option based on an analysis of the situation in the family, availability of free time, spiritual experience and other parameters.
The gospel is not literally considered prayer. This is God's appeal to man. For believers, the Gospel is the criterion for the correct development of spiritual life. But in church practice this book is read for the health of loved ones. After reading one or more chapters, there is a special prayer where all the names are remembered.
In church stores at churches and monasteries, special books are sold containing prayers for children
Prayer cannot be “strong” or “weak.” What gives strength is the degree of faith and trust in God.
Traditions of prayer for children
In addition to personal prayer for children, other forms of turning to God have developed in church life. Among them:
- Prayer at a service. There is a special grace of God in the temple. The congregational prayer of parishioners and clergy has enormous power. People get comfort. In difficult situations, the Lord can open paths to the right decision.
- Ordering names of children (baptized) for proskomedia, prayer service, magpie. You can submit notes to the service with any regularity. Specific ordering rules can be found at the nearest temple.
- Prayer by agreement. Recently, this form of turning to God has become very popular. The bottom line is that people from all over Russia and other countries agree to read a specific prayer for children at a precisely agreed time. Based on reviews on the Internet, we can conclude that such a petition has miraculous power.
- Works of mercy. At all times, doing good has been considered a godly activity and benefits the whole family.
Reading rules
You can pray for a premature baby in church, privately, in front of an image or mentally (to the Lord, Guardian Angel). The prayer will not be heard if the mother does not repent of her sins. Before reading the prayer, you must mentally turn to God and ask for forgiveness.
They light candles or a lamp in front of the icon and make the sign of the cross. To gain a God-inspired mood, the holy fathers advise reading “Our Father.” The prayer is read from memory or from a prayer book, out loud or silently. It is important that at these moments nothing and no one distracts from the holy text. All matters and worries must be forgotten for a while.
There is no need to hold a grudge against anyone in your thoughts and heart. At the end of the prayer, they cross themselves again and extinguish the candle if they are praying privately. One must ask the heavenly patrons every day for the health of the baby.
What to do with the roar?
- You can distract the baby, turn everything into a joke, hug and say something positive (“Nothing, it will pass!”). In a word, show him sympathy and support, but at the same time show that you can react to troubles without tears.
- You can’t get angry, swear, or lament: “Let me pity you, poor thing, I pricked my finger!” This will intensify the sobbing. You should also not give in to provocations. If a child throws a tantrum in a store, demanding to buy a toy, calmly, not paying attention to the tears, say that you have no money. Did you cry even more? Take him by the hand and take him outside. When he stops crying (and he will stop, because tears did not bring results), explain that you can’t always get what you want. Especially with the help of tears.
It's funny that every year in Japan there is a festival of crying children - Naki Sumo. During the festival, two sumo wrestlers each take a small child in their arms and stand opposite each other. And then the battle begins... of children. Sumo wrestlers bring them to tears in every possible way: they make scary faces and make frightening sounds. If the kids don’t “get it”, a judge in a scary mask gets involved. Eventually, the babies begin to sob desperately. Whoever cries louder and louder wins. From the outside, of course, this looks like a complete mockery of children, but the Japanese themselves do not think so. They are sure that good crying will only benefit the child - he will be healthier. If he harms anyone, it will be to evil spirits. And I don’t feel sorry for these. This is why the festival was invented - to scare away all evil spirits.
If you still have questions, you can ask them to a pediatrician or other specialists online in the Doctis application.
Other prayers for newborn babies
The Orthodox prayer book contains prayers that can be used for the health of newborns.
First
I turn to you in prayer, Panteleimon the Healer!
Grant healing to my child, send him strength, touch his flesh, kiss his soul.
Extinguish the blazing fire, tame passion, revoke weakness.
Wake up the servant of God (name), raise him from his sick bed.
Let the embittered bed let him go.
May he be gifted with a church blessing.
We submit to your will and expect mercy.
Second
O Most Holy Lady Virgin Theotokos, save and preserve under Your shelter my children (names), all youths, young women and infants, baptized and nameless and carried in their mother’s womb.
Cover them with the robe of Your motherhood, keep them in the fear of God and in obedience to their parents, pray to my Lord and Your Son to grant them what is useful for their salvation. I entrust them to Your maternal supervision, for You are the Divine Protection of Your servants.
Mother of God, introduce me to the image of Your heavenly motherhood. Heal the mental and physical wounds of my children (names) caused by my sins. I entrust my child entirely to my Lord Jesus Christ and Your, Most Pure, heavenly protection. Amen.
Third
Holy Matronushka! I beg you, I conjure you with my mother’s heart, go to the throne of the Lord, ask God to give health to the servant of God (name).
I beg you, holy mother Matrona, do not be angry with me, but be my intercessor. Ask the Lord to grant my child (name) good health. Deliver him from physical and spiritual ailments. Take away every disease from his body.
Forgive me for my sins, voluntary and involuntary. Pray for the health of my child (name). Only you, Holy Matrona, are my great intercessor and adviser. I trust in you. Amen.
Why does prayer to Matrona of Moscow help?
The girl was born at the end of the nineteenth century into a family of middle-aged parents with a physical defect; there were no eyeballs. The dream of a mother with a bird without eyes saved the girl from the shelter, she remained in the family. At the age of eight, Matrona gained deep faith in the Lord and could heal people. People turned to her for help with illnesses and problems. People paid some with money and some with products. So she became the main breadwinner and justified her mother's sleep.
In her youth, Matrona traveled a lot and visited many holy places. After the revolution, she settled in Moscow with friends and lived in this city until her death. During the day she received people, gave advice, and at night she prayed. Prayers for the health of the newborn baby are addressed to Matrona of Moscow, because the saint was physically disabled, had no eyes, and at the age of 17 her legs gave out. She, like no one else, understood what illness was. Requests to Matrona work many miracles in healing and such cases are recorded.
Also read: Prayer to Cyprian against damage, the evil eye and witchcraft
The miraculous power of the Saint is recognized by the Russian Church. Matrona was buried at the Danilovsky cemetery, and May 2 is considered the day of remembrance. The remains are kept in the Church of the Intercession, and a large queue forms to see them.
Real examples of help
Anna, 32 years old: “One day my son fell ill with the flu and could not recover from it. No matter what I tried, not a single pill helped. Only a helping prayer to the Mother of God for health cured the flu. After this incident, I regularly pray to Our Lady.”
Tatyana, 41 years old: “Recently, my child fell ill with a sore throat, he developed a runny nose, and it became difficult to breathe. The medications prescribed by the doctors did little to help, and the condition did not improve. Desperate, I turned to the Lord God for help and asked him for the well-being and health of my son. Just a few days later, the condition began to improve and the disease subsided.”
Who should you pray for your child’s recovery?
Before you begin to say your prayer, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with who you should pray to.
Holy Mother of God
The prayer words of the Mother of God are spoken by mothers to protect their children from diseases. The prayer service is said both at home and within the sacred walls of the temple. If you say the prayer sincerely, the sick baby will fully recover.
Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker
Nicholas the Wonderworker is considered one of the most famous saints, to whom people most often turn for help. His whole life was devoted to good deeds and serving God. Despite the fact that during his life he was a rich man, he gave up all his material goods and distributed them to people in need.
Nicholas was endowed with the gift of miracles, and therefore many still turn to him for help. It helps restore health and solve life's difficulties.
Blessed Matrona of Moscow
When children begin to get sick, you can turn to Saint Matrona of Moscow for help. She is able to heal a person and save him from many diseases.
Saint Panteleimon the Healer
To help a child who is seriously ill, they turn to Panteleimon the Healer. It is necessary to pray to him in the following cases:
- for quick recovery;
- in case of weakness;
- before the operation.
Lord God
Mothers whose children have fallen ill should pray to the Lord God. Such a prayer for health will help the child cope with illnesses and recover.
