 Novena in honor of St. Agnes
2016-11-19
INTRODUCTION We give into the hands of the Dear Reader our first novena in honor of St. Agnes. In the liturgy of the Church, the tradition of the novena is affiliated with the nine-month preparation by God of the Mother of God for the miracle of the birth of the Savior. In the usual form, it consists of nine days of prayer related to church ceremonies. The novenas also encompass the cult of saints. The majority of the canonization miracles of saints occurred through their intercession after saying a novena in their honor. The everyday prayer of this novena is made of several parts. The first one consists of a fragment of the biography of St. Agnes narrated by herself. The second part is a fragment of advisements and teachings of the Saint. The third part is the direct prayer to the saint Patroness to obtain a particular grace. The fourth part is made of the prayers: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father and the Litany to St. Agnes Virgin and Martyr. In addition, at the end of the book is located the favorite prayer of St. Agnes and a prayer for daily recitation, both dictated by the Saint. Saint Agnes is one of the few together with Saint Agatha, Lucia, Cecilia and Anastasia mentioned in the Roman Canon of the holy Mass. She owes this important position in the Church to the greatness of the miracles, which began to happen at her grave after her death. The Roman emperor Constantine the Great himself, who in the year 313 issued an edict of tolerance for Christians, owed the healing of his daughter Constance to the intercession of St. Agnes, when Constance suffering from leprosy prayed at her grave and regained health. This event made the grateful father emperor to build a temple on the site of the grave of St. Agnes. After the healing, the future St. Constance did not marry, and founded a sisterhood monastery near this temple. St. Constance lived in the period 325-354. Today, in this place stands a wonderful basilica of St. Agnes outside the Walls (Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura), built at the request of Pope Honorius I in the VII century. We encourage the beloved Reader to pray the novena in honor of St. Agnes. Let it be a journey towards faith. Saint Agnes is the complete opposite of modern man. In today's world there are no miracles, because people do not believe. May saying the novena in honor of St. Agnes awaken your faith, because as a 13-year-old girl, she had an astonishing faith, which can be clearly seen in the messages that she gave us. When she walked stripped to the house of debauchery, her purity and innocence has been miraculously preserved by a sudden growth of the hair on her head and the miraculous defense of the angel. Men desirous of debauchery, looking then at her, became blind, because the angel threw lightning at anyone who wished to possess her.
Saint Agnes is remembered on January 21st. Her name in Latin means agnus or lamb, a symbol of purity and innocence. St. Agnes lived in the years approx. 290-304. Ks. Dr. Hab Piotr Maria Natanek The life of Saint Agnes She was born in Rome from respectable and very wealthy parents. They raised her up so devoutly, that in the tenth year of life she made a vow of chastity and devoted her life to her heavenly Spouse. Her extraordinary beauty brought her to the attention of the sons of the most distinguished families of Rome, whom by all means tried to win her heart. - Once when she was returning from school for maidens, the son of Sempronius, the prefect of Rome, saw her and became so enamored with her that he sent her right away rich gifts in robes, jewels, and money, asking her to become his spouse. However, Agnes did not accept the gifts, and in response stated that she was already engaged to a much more respectable Bridegroom, who gave her more expensive and costly gifts; therefore she could not break the given word. The young man understood that she meant an earthly bridegroom, and since he believed that no one could be more respectable than him, he gave her even more costly gifts, personally professing to her how much he loved her. Only then, Agnes, about whom it was not known that she was a Christian, started to speak openly: "Back away from me, motive for sin, dish of eternal death! I am already engaged to the One whose life is eternal, whose nobility is the oldest, whose beauty is the prettiest, whose love is the most tender, whose grace is the kindest, in whose embrace I will keep my virginity, and whom only I unspeakably, eternally love." The young man saddened by this answer, not understanding yet its proper meaning, began to worry and waste away. The caring father Sempronius, worried about the life of the only son, begged Agnes himself not to push away his son, but Agnes always stood by her first answer. Sempronius, angry because of the disdain shown to his son, began to inquire who the mysterious bridegroom of Agnes was, and thus found out that she was a Christian. Having heard this, he was thrilled thinking that he will be able to enslave her and to punish her through the law as the one who opposes pagan gods. Sending for her immediately, he ordered to bring her to him as to the office, and pretending mercy towards her misdemeanor, he tried to convince her through promises to make a sacrifice and to bow down to the idols. The delicate virgin however firmly refused to do so. Therefore, the governor changed his way of conduct and started to threaten. To finally make a greater impact on the virgin, he ordered to spread out before her eyes tools used for torture, such as executioner racks, pincers, and the like. Agnes looked at them without fear. "Your stubbornness - the prefect said sternly - indeed deserves the most painful death, but I will have mercy upon your youth if you bow now to the gods". Agnes responded to that cheerfully: "Do not have mercy upon my youth, because I do not require this from you at all. For faith does not depend on years, but on conviction. The almighty God does not look at age, but at the feelings. Thus, do as you please''. The prefect now delivered her into the hands of lecherous henchmen, but the benevolent God wonderfully defended her, and when Sempronius' son approached her, he fell dead at her feet. Agnes, however, revived him in the name of Jesus Christ, raised him and returned him healthy to his father. Meanwhile, the mob began to shout to burn her. The Saint was thus thrown onto the pile that was lit, but the fire did not hurt her. Livid with anger, the prefect ordered to stab her with a dagger. The martyrdom and death of saint Agnes happened on January 21st of the year 304. The parents themselves buried the body of their beloved daughter, and mourned in tears for a long time over her grave. Then, Agnes appeared to them in the company of many virgins, glowing with heavenly light, and holding in her hand a white lamb. "Do not mourn me as lost - she said - but be happy that now, in the infinite bliss, I am betrothed to the One, whom I loved on earth with all my heart." Emperor Constantine the Great built upon her grave a magnificent church in which, until this time, two white lambs are blessed and given to the nuns to care for. From the wool of those lambs are made palliums or tapes with white, red and black crosses. They may be stored at the tomb of Saint Peter, and the Pope later distributes them among the cardinals, patriarchs and archbishops as a sign of their ecclesiastical authority. NOVENA DAY 1: To live by faith form an early age I was a child, it is true. I have always remained a child in the perception of God, because regardless of age, people depart from God when it seems to them that they are dependent upon themselves. I never succumbed to that illusion, and I deeply believed and placed my trust in God. Jesus remained my chosen one, although it is rather He who chose me, so I may testify about His love. Do you think that I alone I would have been able to suffer death by martyrdom for Him? No... no man is able to do so, if God does not give him this grace (Compendium III, p. 117). Man was created by God and only the one God knows how many years He gave him to spend on Earth. If from an early childhood man begins to follow the good, it will be much easier for him to walk the right path in the future. If he is left alone to himself without a proper education, then, without an extraordinary grace of God, he can succumb to an easy life and get used to choose things that are comfortable and pleasant, but not necessarily good. And for our deeds, we should care from the beginning; because the Book of Life does not record the deeds of man from a mature age, but from the early childhood, from the beginning, although it takes into account his awareness and circumstances (Compendium IV, p. 152). Saint Agnes, who entrusted yourself to God at the beginning of your life and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 2: To believe with your whole heart When I found out that there is a God and the He offered us the proof of His love towards us in His Son, I wanted to devote all my life to Him, to the crucified Jesus, in whom I believed wholeheartedly. Christianity was not a popular religion at that time. It was considered rather as a dangerous sect that was feared like fire and destroyed with great ferocity due to this fear, and this is because Christians were free. They submitted to the law of the state only as far as it was consistent with the confession of the One God. Everything that was at odds with Christianity was overlooked and disobeyed (Compendium IV, p.153). True faith puts everything in the light of eternity, and in this light material things completely lose their value; instead spiritual values gain immensely. In this light, it is clearly visible that all material things will undergo destruction and we will not salvage anything from them. And even if we manage to safeguard them from destruction or loss, to what avail? We still need to leave them all behind when departing from this world. Posterity? How do we know whether wealth will be a benefit for our posterity? Or maybe the opposite? Therefore one should not accumulate wealth, and one should not draw excessive joy from what rejoices human senses, because these items, although so fleeting and deceptive, have a great power to beguiled souls (Compendium IV, p. 154). Saint Agnes, who believed in God with your whole heart and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 3: The Blood and the Body of God Christians were considered to be mad people, enslaved by their teachers and priests, officiating strange rites, eating blood and flesh in the literal and human sense, and not in the mystical sense. No one, however, who does not have faith, can comprehend what for a Christian are the Blood and the Flesh of his God. All our services and prayers were misunderstood. For the Rome of that time, where reigned the cult of the body and well-being, spiritual faith and worship in a spiritual way were incomprehensible; the communion with God in such a close and real way, but on the spiritual plane. Rome deemed that the worship of man, whom Rome found guilty and sentenced to death, already is a crime against Rome (Compendium IV, p. 153). In the light of faith, the human soul climbs on a pedestal. She, as seen through the eyes of eternity, does not lose its value at all, does not grow old, does not decay, does not pass, does not disappear, lasts forever. Therefore, we should care only for her. For her we should care by all means, because the way in which we will proceed with her now, will be decisive about her eternal future. (...) Striving for my appearance became an excess for me, and I lost all respect for the body. I thought a lot about the fact that it is the dwelling of man on Earth, but God had treated it very cruelly in His Son. Thinking about the sufferings of Jesus, I thus tried to have my body for nothing and, in the measure of possible, to mortify and to torment it. The smaller the body becomes in man, the more his soul grows, and I wanted to have a beautiful soul, because only the soul is eternal (Compendium IV, p. 154-155). Saint Agnes, who tormented the body to embellish the soul and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 4: I put such great trust into Him I trusted, I believed that only He alone can make me happy, and the Holy Spirit send down upon me His gifts, to arm me in faith and bravery. I was not stronger than the other girls, I was not better than them at all. Only I trusted Him so much and I believed with joy in His Resurrection that the Lord was pleased with my trust and gave me to suffer for His Name. It is a great honor and I do not owe this grace to anything, but only to His great love for me (Compendium III, p.117). The comparison of the world to eternity always brought me the answers to all my dilemmas. Thanks to this method, I was able to distinguish between what is good and what is bad; what should be cultivated and what should be avoided like fire. The man, who truly believes, lives by faith in every moment of life, because he has no time to waste for anything that does not lead to the goal. Also, a good name does not belong to eternity, because a good name in the world does not mean yet a good name in eternity, rather vice versa, as testified to us Lord Jesus Himself. Until now, His great and holy Name was despised, and yet in the highest there is no greater name. So a good name in the world does not mean anything. It is better to renounce it right away, and then it is not a pity to be judged and despised (Compendium IV, p. 155). Saint Agnes, who had for nothing human glory and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 5: The goal of life of a Christian When I decided to completely give myself to God, I felt a deep relief in my heart. I was no longer afraid that I will go down the wrong, path that I will be swallowed by the world of games and pleasure, or the love for a man will take away from me the love for God. I chose the purpose of my life and I strove towards it without looking back. The purpose the life of man on Earth is the Salvation of his soul. Thus, it is totally not worth it to involve ourselves in matters that distance us from this goal (Compendium IV, p. 154). When we choose a road leading to a goal, we should never look back, because then we can lose sight of the goal and never reach it. However, you can not risk the loss of Salvation; so you also should not put yourself to trial, meditating upon the validity of your decision. I decided that I will forever belong to Jesus and never to anyone else. This decision cost me my life, but I have gained eternal life, and so I have reached my goal (Compendium IV, p. 156). Saint Agnes, who recognized the salvation of the soul as the only goal of your life and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 6: The futility of the world After completing my 13 year of life, I have been summoned to the prefect so that I could see better how my future life would look like. (...) everything there was so nice that I was filled with fear that I could take part in these wonders, which really are the excesses and vanities of the world. Yet, I was frightened that Satan could easily deceive me if I remained there, so my decision was only reinforced within me and my resolve to remain faithful my only Spouse (Compendium III, p. 118). All people, even though they know that someday they must die, rather believe that they will live a very long time, and even when they are old, they think that they still have time. And I lived the other way around. I always felt that I had little time to prove my love to God. One should expect death at any moment; then it is not a surprise and man is able to accept it, because he lives in anticipation of it. This is not sad, it is true. After all, our destiny is another life, and in this other life we should already rejoice during the earthly life more than in the present life. Each day can be the final day. When we looks in this way at life, we pay no attention to unimportant things and we have no desire to sin, because who would want to sin just before his death? Also, there is no way to fall out with someone, because before death everyone wishes to reconcile with everybody (Compendium IV, p. 157). Saint Agnes, who was in a hurry to prove your love to God and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 7: The temptation of Satan Satan deceived me in multiple ways. First, he wanted to get close to me through flattery. Then he tried to bribe me. Then he set before my eyes the image of my heartbroken and unhappy parents who suffer so much because of me; how ungrateful I am by showing them a lack of obedience, because they have sacrificed their life for me, and I only think about myself. And finally he started to frighten me with the most brutal torments. When I was already on the verge of exhaustion, I saw the sweet Face of Jesus, and then all the fears and concerns melted away from me (Compendium III, p. 119). I can confirm that I have tried to live as if I was a one-day's human, as if every day I had to die and was ready for death each night, and in the morning I woke up again to life, in order to die in the evening. Such was my life, but thanks to this, I did not waste time on superfluous things, and just tried to do as much good as possible, believing that this may be the last day of my life. How valuable then the day becomes; how much one loves it, because it is the last. No matter how hard it is, one loves it anyway. By acting and thinking in this way, we can free ourselves from an awful lot of temptations, truly giving our life to God, and not gaining attachment to anything, even to our own life (Compendium IV, p. 157). Saint Agnes, who readied yourself each day for death and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 8: I would not give up my martyrdom for anything Only suffering (...), if you knew how happy I am now, what a beautiful crown of glory all the martyrs receive, I would not give up my martyrdom for anything. These were moments of great suffering and fear, but the thought of Jesus did not leave me, that I am suffering martyrdom for Him and this is the greatest honor for a Christian. I wished to die so and God fulfilled my desire (Compendium III, p.119). Firstly, during the entire life one should await death; and secondly, during the entire life one should await rebirth, rebirth for the true life. Saints are able to deny themselves everything, because they believe that after death, they will be satiated to the extent to which their faith was strong. They are able to wait for this fulfillment entire years, denying themselves everything. Those who do not believe are unable to wait. They want to experience everything in this life, fearing that they will not have enough time to enjoy life. However, life starts after death and then comes the time to enjoy life, and on Earth great work awaits man. For those who worked hard during life, after death comes eternal rest. Without faith, this reality is reversed and people wish to enjoy and to rest on Earth, and after death they pay for this very severely (Compendium IV, p. 158). Saint Agnes, who by nurturing true hope, denied yourself everything on this world and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. NOVENA DAY 9: Testimony through signs As if that was not enough, at the moment of my death, God still testified about His love for me, strengthening me through signs; and, thanks to that, arousing faith in all those who witnessed these events1. How great a testimony I bore with my existence, so that God may be recognized and His holy Name may be known in the whole world. From up here, after one can see exactly how many souls were later nourished by this hope, which God deigned to show through my martyrdom (Compendium III, p.119-120). Achieving holiness after the death requires enormous and long-lasting sufferings, while during lifetime the worst sufferings would be considered the lightest punishment in Purgatory. Also, not everyone gets this chance. Many souls will never again sanctify themselves and will never reach the state of eternal joy. Eternal suffering awaits them.
I could never understand how one can take such risks, to risk such a cruel eternal fate for a moment of sin. Therefore, the whole wisdom of man lies in this: to deepen and to strengthen his faith, thanks to which it is increasingly easier to deny himself for the cause of his future life (Compendium IV, p.158). Saint Agnes, who never risked the loss of eternal life for a moment of sin and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace (mention your request). Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. Litany Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison, Christe eleison, Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us.
God, the Son, the Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us. Holy Mary, pray for us.
Holy Mother of God, pray for us.
Holy Virgin of virgins, pray for us. Saint Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, consecrated to God in your youth, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, lily of virginal innocence, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, rose among the thorns of paganism, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, inflamed with the love of God, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, defender of the faith, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, adornment of the Christian nation, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, loathing the lure of the world and all its vanity, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, by the particular grace of God protected by the angel from the stain of sin, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, singular model of virginal purity, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, mirror of piety, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, example of obedience and mores , pray for us.
Saint Agnes, invaluable treasure of the Church of Christ, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, victorious over all temptations, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, adornment of the female gender, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, consolation of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, guardian of all virgins, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, virgin in soul and body, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, bride of the Savior of the world, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, betrothed to God with the ring of His Faith, Hope and Love, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, despising the earthly bridegroom for the love of God, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, reviving the dead young man through your prayers, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, not afraid of terrible torments, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, wishing with joy for death by martyrdom, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, condemned by the enemy to be burned, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, perishing from a murderous hand armed with steel, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, unparalleled in martyr's patience , pray for us.
Saint Agnes, rare example of bravery and consistency, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, adorned with the palm of victory, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, rewarded with the crown of martyrdom, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, included in the fellowship of the martyrs of Christ, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, placed in the tabernacle of eternal glory, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, experienced Patroness in various adventures, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, consolation of God the Eternal Father, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, dwelling of the Holy Spirit, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, our Patroness, pray for us.
Saint Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, pray for us. Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison, Christe eleison, Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison, Kyrie eleison. Almighty eternal God, who in the midst of pagan darkness, having in particular care your faithful servant Saint Agnes, preserved her in innocence and gave her the crown of martyrdom in Your glory, we ask You humbly to deliver us through her intercession from the darkness of sin, and bring us through the road of virtue to the glory that she shares forever with You, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Favorite Prayer of Saint Agnes Jesus, alive and real, hidden in the white Host,
in front of You I stand in my littleness,
so you may deign to bless my thoughts and deeds
and make me holy in the manner of the Mother of Love. I am Yours forever, I want to serve you faithfully,
so strengthen me with the Spirit and keep me from sin.
In Your small Form are hidden my treasures,
let me know Your beauty, when I will live the miserable world. Daily Prayer to Saint Agnes Saint Agnes, my patroness, who entrusted yourself God to the end and with joy suffered death by martyrdom for the One, who died for all of us, I ask you humbly, deign to intercede for me in every minute of this day and obtain for me the grace of selfless service to God and neighbors. Let your prayer give me comfort in times of trials and torments. Be my friend in times of loneliness and abandonment, and obtain for me from your Spouse, Jesus Christ, the eternal happiness in Heaven. Holy innocent virgin, who paid the greatest price for preserving fidelity to Christ, obtain for me the grace of complete purity of the soul and the body. Amen. Attributes of Saint Agnes In iconography, St. Agnes is represented as a young girl with a lamb in her arms or at her feet. Her attributes are the palm and the sword. It also happens that she is shown with two crowns - of virginity and martyrdom, and next to her burns the pyre upon which she was thrown. Often, she is also shown with very long hair, which grew in a miraculous way and hid her like a mantle, when she was stripped for defamation in front of the crowd. The earliest likenesses of the martyr date back to the 4th century. Patronage of Saint Agnes Saint Agnes is the patron of: - Children - Youth - Maidens - Virgins - Purity - Fiancés - Girl scouts - Gardeners - Victims of rape
1 It is said that the miraculous signs that took place during the tortures, caused the conversion of 160 pagans. 
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