The Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and Mary at Pentacost, the first Marian Prayer Cenacle. Attribution: By Juan Bautista Maino [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons: Juan Bautista Maíno, Pentecostés, 1612-1614, óleo sobre lienzo, 285 cm x 163 cm. Museo del Prado

 What Is A Marian Prayer Cenacle, And Why Should We Promote Them?

The Blessed Mother, in her many visitations and apparitions throughout the world, is specifically requesting that the faithful come together in cenacles of prayer through, with and in her, in order to invoke a new, “Second Pentecost;” that Mary’s Divine Spouse, the Holy Spirit of God, might come again, just as He did during that first Pentecost, which is chronicled in Acts 2:1-47, and has been reproduced below.

Moreover, Our Lady, in numerous private revelations and messages, has promised to be present in an especially substantial fashion, with her glorified body, during these cenacles of prayer. In fact, it is not at all uncommon for persons to receive beautiful signal graces and supernatural signs and confirmations of Our Lady’s presence amongst her children during such gatherings of prayer offered to God through her. Some of the signs of Our Lady’s presence are the scent of roses where there are no roses present; the chain and other metal pieces of one’s rosary inexplicably changing from the original silver color to a gold color; the ability to stare into the sun while witnessing various solar miracles, similar to the solar miracle which took place on October 13, 1917, during the last apparition of Our Lady at Fatima; statues and images of the Blessed Mother and other saints seemingly “weeping” tears of water, rose-scented oil, or, in some rare instances, tears of human blood; instances of statues of the Blessed Virgin that appear to come alive or change hue or color; the miraculous manifestation / materialization of rose petals, etc. Contrary to the beliefs of many persons, even deeply spiritual persons, such occurrences are extremely common at the numerous places throughout the world where Our Lady is currently appearing. Moreover, Our Lady, according to one of her messages given to Fr. Gobbi of the Marian Movement of Priests, claims that she is currently appearing on every continent throughout the world, and that these are some of the many signs that accompany and lend credibility to the apparitions that she is making and that certain persons are reporting.

Typical Structure of a Marian Prayer Cenacle

A Cenacle must have a minimum of two persons, but may be as large as a soccer stadium full of people!  Essentially, the more persons present, the better.  We offer the following outline as a suggested format for a traditional Marian Prayer Cenacle.  The outline has intentionally been left vague and without specific prayers, in order that individuals developing Cenacles of their own may be open to the promptings of the Spirit regarding the specific prayers that they believe ought to be used.  The general format, however, almost always should include the following:

• Introductory prayer to the Holy Spirit;
• Prayers for the Holy Father, for all priests, and for the Church, that it might withstand all of the many and varied attacks that are daily made upon it from both within and without;
• Recitation of the Holy Rosary (at least 5 decades);
• A reading taken from one of the four Gospels, or, possibly, the Gospel reading either for that day or the upcoming or previous Sunday;
• A Mariological Reading/Reflection that may be taken from a variety of sources, such as the writings of  any of the saints on Mary; passages from St. Louis de Montfort’s “True Devotion to Mary;” the Marian writings and reflections of St. Maximilian Kolbe;  passages from “The Glories of Mary” or “The City of God;”  Church/Magisterial teachings on Mary; Blessed John Paul’s Marian Encyclical Letter, “Redemptoris Mater;” private revelations that have received a nihil obstat and/or an Imprimatur, which is an official Church declaration that the document contains nothing that is contrary to the faith;
• Recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy;
• Intercessory prayers;
• Group recitation and renewal of a solemn Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary;
• Closing prayers to the Trinity and prayers of thanksgiving. 

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost in the First Cenacle with Our Lady (Acts 2:1-47)

1When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues^a as the Spirit enabled them.

5Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7Utterly amazed, they asked: “Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? 9Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11(both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 12Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” 13Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.^b”

Peter Addresses the Crowd

14Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17“‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 21And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’^c

22“Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men,^d put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25David said about him:

“‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, 27because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. 28You have made known to me the paths of life;you will fill me with joy in your presence.’^e 29“Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,^f that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 35until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’^g 36“Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” 37When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

40With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

The Fellowship of the Believers

42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved (Acts 2:1-47).