a year of prayer: 365 Rosaries

Today, June 9, we celebrate the feast of Blessed Anna Maria Taigi (1769-1837), an example of a devoted wife, a loving mother, and an accurate and amazing mystic. Blessed Anna Maria was gifted with the supernatural abilities of prophecy, and experienced frequent ecstasies, during which she communed with both Our Lord and Blessed Mother. The prophecies of Blessed Anna Maria are hopeful in many ways, but also serve as a call to repentance and penance—not only for ourselves, but for the sins of the world.


Anne Maria Taigi was born in Siena, Italy to working class parents. Her father was a pharmacist, and despite his training and good reputation, his business went bankrupt when Anna was just five years old. Due to these financial struggles, the family moved from Siena to Rome the following year. Again, despite his training, Anna’s father was unable to find work, and eventually her parents took jobs as household servants.

In Rome, Anna Maria attended school, and was educated by the Filippini Sisters. However, she only attended school for a couple of years prior to finding employment herself, including working as a maid, to assist her parents financially. While employed she met and was eventually married to Dominico Taigi, a butler to a Roman noble family. Together, they produced seven children, although sadly, two died very young.

The marriage of Dominico and Anna was characterized by the highest of Christian principles, and Anna saw that her children were raised piously in the faith. Dominico himself, while pious, was both quick to anger and sometimes difficult, but Anna concentrated on his virtues, praying for his soul over the course of their 49 year marriage. She never complained, rather embracing patience and obedience, and devoting her non-working hours to charitable works.

Anna embraced her role as wife and mother, viewing it as her mission from the Lord to live the sacrament of holy matrimony. Through her devotion, she transformed her home into a Godly place in the world, drawing closer to the Lord through her practice of virtue, diligence, respect, and hard work. Despite the family’s poverty, she donated all she could to those who were less well off. While working full time, she further found time to educate her five children in both spiritual and secular matters.

As Anna aged, she grew closer and closer to the Lord, desiring only to love and serve God in all that she did. She prayed and undertook penances to remove even the slightest of imperfections from her soul. She was greatly devoted to the Holy Eucharist, to the Most Holy Trinity, to the Infant Jesus, to the Sacred Passion of Our Lord, and ever had the tenderest devotion to Our Blessed Mother.

Blessed Anna Maria entered the Third Order of the Most Holy Trinity at the age of 39. God had enriched her with many supernatural gifts, including clairvoyance, the gift of prophecy. Many local leaders (including cardinals, royalty, and three popes) would come to the household of the nobles she and her husband served, but would then seek out Anna for guidance and counsel. The most unusual of Anna’s supernatural gifts was the apparition of a luminous globe like a miniature sun, which shone before her eyes and in which, for forty-seven years, she could see present and future events anywhere in the world as well as the state of grace of individuals, living or dead. She further experienced frequent ecstasies, during which messages and prayers were passed to her.

Blessed Anna Maria Taigi is one of the great mystics of the last century. However, it was not her supernatural gifts that assisted her in achieving sanctification. Rather, Anna’s embracing of the ordinary life of wife and mother, of Christian believer, given to her by the Lord, brought her into holiness. Her daily attendance at Mass, her total surrender to God, her readiness to help anyone in need, and her active membership in the Third Order of the Most Holy Trinity were the sources and the fruits of her intense spiritual life.

Blessed Anna died peacefully in her home, and the Church declared her “Blessed” in testament to her extraordinary approach to life. Her relics have been translated many times from place to place, each time found to be completely incorrupt. They now are venerated in the Chapel of the Madonna in the Basilica of San Crisogono in Rome, Italy.

A description of Blessed Anna, and the recording of some of her prophecies, from “The Reign of Antichrist” by Reverend Gerald Culleton (1951):

"She knew with certainty the fate of the dead. Her gaze traveled to the ends of the earth and discovered there people on whom she had never set eyes, reading them to the depth of their souls. ...The poor, the great of the world, the princesses of the Church came to her for advice or help. They found her in the midst of her household cares and often suffering from illness.


She touched the sick, and they were cured; she warned others of their approaching end, and they died holy deaths. She endured great austerities for the souls of purgatory, and the souls, once set free, came to thank her....She suffered in body and soul... She realized that her role was to expiate the sins of others, that Jesus was associating her with His Sacrifice, and that she was a victim of His company.


To tell the truth, her state of ecstasy was continual because her sense of the presence of God was continual. All pain was sweet to her....She went her way, her feet all bloody; with shining eyes she followed the Royal way."


a) "God will send two punishments; one will be in the form of wars, revolutions and other evils; it shall originate on earth. The other will be sent from Heaven. There shall come over the whole earth an intense darkness lasting three days and three nights. Nothing can be seen, and the air will be laden with pestilence which claim mainly, but not only, the enemies of religion.


It will be impossible to use any man-made lighting during this darkness, except blessed candles. He, who out of curiosity, opens his window to look out, or leaves his home, will fall dead on the spot. During these three days, people should remain in their homes, pray the Rosary and beg God for mercy."


b) "All the enemies of the Church, whether known or unknown, will perish over the whole earth during that universal darkness, with the exception of a few whom God will soon convert. The air shall be infected by demons who will appear under all sorts of hideous forms."


c) "Religion shall be persecuted, and priests massacred. Churches shall be closed, but only for a short time. The Holy Father shall be obliged to leave Rome."


d) "France shall fall into a frightful anarchy. The French shall have a desperate civil war in the course of which even old men will take up arms. The political parties, having exhausted their blood and their rage without being able to arrive at any satisfactory settlement, shall agree at the last extremity to have recourse to the Holy See. Then the Pope shall send to France a special legate....In consequence of the information received, His Holiness himself shall nominate a most Christian King for the government of France."


e) "After the three days of darkness, St. Peter and St. Paul, having come down from Heaven, will preach in the whole world and designate a new Pope. A great light will flash from their bodies and will settle upon the cardinal who is to become Pope. Christianity, then, will spread throughout the world. He is the Holy Pontiff, chosen by God to withstand the storm. At the end, he will have the gift of miracles, and his name shall be praised over the whole earth."


f) "Whole nations will come back to the Church and the face of the earth will be renewed. Russia, England, and China will come into the Church."


g) "During several successive days, Anna Maria beheld a most excessive darkness spreading itself over the whole world. She likewise saw falling ruins of walls, accompanied by much dust, as if a great edifice had tumbled down. This scourge was shown to her on divers occasions. This may indicate the ruins caused by frightful earthquakes, or the destruction effected by the wicked communists. We presume, and assume as pretty certain, that this darkness will be sensible, similar to that of Egypt, mentioned in Exodus, tenth chapter, and that it shall continue during three days.


h) "Religious shall be persecuted, priests shall be massacred, the churches shall be closed, but only for a short time; the Holy Father shall be obliged to abandon Rome.


i) "Our Lord said to her: 'First five big trees must be cut down in order that the triumph of the Church may come. These five trees are five great heresies.' Then the Servant of God said: 'Two hundred years are hardly sufficient that all of this may happen.' And Our Lord replied:’ It won't take as long as you think!'


j) "First, several EARTHLY scourges will come. They are going to be dreadful, but they will be mitigated and shortened by the prayers and the penances of many holy souls. There will be great wars in which millions of people will perish through iron. But, after these earthly scourges will come the HEAVENLY one, which will be directed solely against the impenitent. This scourge will be far more frightful and terrible; it will be mitigated by nothing, but it will take place and act in its full rigor. However, in what this heavenly scourge will consist, God did not reveal to anyone, not even His most intimate friends."


Prayer given by Our Blessed Mother herself to Blessed Anna Maria Taigi

Prostrate at thy feet, O great Queen of Heaven, we venerate thee with the deepest reverence and we confess that thou art the Daughter of the Father, the Mother of the Divine Word, the Spouse of the Holy Ghost. Thou art the store-keeper and the almoner of the Divine Mercies … For this reason, we call thee Mother of Divine Compassion. Behold us here in affliction and anguish! Deign to show us thy true love. We beg thee to ask the Holy Trinity, most fervently, to grant us the grace ever to conquer the devil and the world, and our evil passions; the efficacious grace that sanctifies the just, converts sinners, destroys heresies, enlightens infidels and brings all men to the true Faith.


Obtain for us this great gift that all the world may form but one people united in the One True Church.


Mary, Mother of Holy Hope, pray for us!




O Blessed Anna Maria Taigi, by that humble submission with which you believed in and adored the august mystery of One God in Three Persons, obtain for me from the Most Holy Trinity the favor which I confidently implore.


Blessed Anna Maria Taigi, by the great love and tender pity with which you honored the mysteries in the life of Jesus, obtain for me from Him the favor which I earnestly implore.


O Blessed Anna Maria Taigi, through your filial devotion to the Blessed Virgin, obtain for me from Her the favor which I humbly implore. Amen.





Year 2: Day 160 of 365
Prayer Intentions: Finding and serving the Lord through ordinary activities
Requested Intentions: Restoration of health (D); Successful employment for couple (N); For employment for children (K); For health of friend, for successful relationships for children, for safe pregnancy for daughter (C); For the health of a mother (J); Virtue for daughter (V); Successful acceptance to college for nephew (M); For the health of a cousin (T); Freedom from legal difficulties for husband (S); Husband’s freedom from illness (L); Personal intentions (S); Successful passing of dental board examination (P); Blessings on a family (Z); Successful permanent employment (C); Healing of a son with autism (J); Son’s successful employment (L); For the intentions of family and relatives, for the Carthusian community (T); For personal intentions (A); Restoration of lost hearing (C); Resolution of relational and financial challenges (S); Comfort following loss of husband, security for family, assistance with housing (B); Healing and return of brother (O); Successful hermitage foundation (S); Support from family, permission to marry (H); Recovery of wife following surgery, freedom from depression (W); Protection and recovery of mentally ill daughter (J); Successful resolution to legal proceedings (N); Freedom from worry and successful employment (M); For successful sale of home and freedom from debt (J); Freedom from pain and illness (E).