It is important to remember that the host we consume at Mass is indeed the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ! (Although the wine at communion is “my blood of the new covenant” as our Lord put it at the Last Supper (Mark 14:24) the host as the body of Christ contains our Lord’s blood as well.)
The Litany of the Most Precious Blood was approved for public use in 1960 by Pope John XXIII, although devotion to the Precious Blood goes back centuries. Indeed, as Father Faber wrote in 1860 “the lives of the saints are replete with devotion to the precious blood.” The month of July is dedicated to the Precious Blood in the Church’s Liturgical Calendar.
When the Litany of the Most Precious Blood is prayed publicly, the congregation’s responses to a leader are given in italics below.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.