VISITA IGLESIA: Prayers before the Altar of the Repose

Visita Iglesia is a catholic tradition which is very popular here in the Philippines. This religious devotion is usually done during Maundy Thursday, right after the Mass of the Lord's Supper and the procession of the Blessed Sacrament, where the faithful will visit seven (7) different churches. 
The highlight of this devotion is to visit and adore Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament found in the Altar of the Repose.

Altar of the Repose at the Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat, Manila (San Beda)

 

Here are some contemplative prayers that you can use during the Maundy Thursday vigil with the Blessed Sacrament:

1. Prayer While Visiting The Most Blessed Sacrament by St. Alphonsus Liguori
   
   

   

   Altar of the Repose at the
   Saint Anthony Shrine,
   Sampaloc, Manila

   My Lord Jesus Christ, for the love which You bear to men, You remain night and day in this Sacrament full of compassion and of love, awaiting, calling, and welcoming all who come to visit You. I believe that You are present in the Sacrament of the Altar: I adore You from the abyss of my nothingness, and I thank You for all the graces which You have bestowed upon me and in particular for having given me Yourself in this Sacrament, for having given me your holy Mother Mary for my advocate, and for having called me to visit You in this chapel. I now salute  Your most loving Heart: and this for three ends: 
   
   In thanksgiving for this great gift;
    
   To make amends to You for all the outrages which You receive in this Sacrament from all Your enemies;
    
   I intend by this visit to adore You in all the places on earth in which You are the least revered and the most abandoned.
   
   My Jesus, I love You with all my heart. I grieve for having so many times offended Your infinite goodness. I promise with Your grace never more to offend You in the future.
   Now, miserable and unworthy though I be, I consecrate myself to You without reserve;
   I give You my entire will, my affections, my desires, and all that I possess. From now on dispose of me and of all that I have as You please. All that I ask of You and desire is Your holy love, final perseverance, and the perfect accomplishment of Your will. I recommend to You the souls in purgatory; but especially those who had the greatest devotion to the most Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin Mary. I also recommend to You all poor sinners.
   
   My dear Saviour, I unite all my affections with the affections of Your most loving Heart; and I offer them, thus united, to Your eternal Father, and beseech Him in Your name to vouchsafe, for Your love, to accept them.  Amen.
   
   
   
2. Prayer before the Blessed Sacrament by Saint Cajetan
   
   Look down, O Lord, from Thy sanctuary and from the

   

   Altar of Repose at the Sacred Heart
   of Jesus Parish, Sta. Mesa, Manila
   

   high habitation of heaven, and behold this sacred Victim, which our great High Priest, Thy Holy Child, the Lord Jesus, immolates unto Thee for the sins of His brethren, and be propitious to the multitude of our iniquities. Be hold, the voice of the Blood of Jesus, our Brother, crieth to Thee from the Cross! Graciously hear, O Lord: be appeased, O Lord: heartken and do not delay for Thine own sake, my God, because Thy Name is invoked, upon this city, and upon Thy people; and do with us according to Thy mercy.
   
   Amen.
   
   V. That Thou vouchsafe to defend, pacify, keep, preserve and bless this city.
   
   R. We beseech Thee to hear us.
   
   
   
3. Adoration Prayer by Saint Faustina
   
   

   

   Altar of the Repose at the
   Archdiocesan Shrine of
   the Divine Mercy,
   Mandaluyong City

   I adore You, Lord and Creator, hidden in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I adore You for all the works of Your hands, that reveal to me so much wisdom, goodness and mercy, O Lord. You have spread so much beauty over the earth and it tells me about Your beauty, even though these beautiful things are but a faint reflection of You, incomprehensible Beauty. And although You have hidden Yourself and concealed Your beauty, my eye, enlightened by faith, reaches You and my soul recognizes its Creator, its Highest Good, and my heart is completely immersed in prayer of adoration.
   My Lord and Creator, Your goodness encourages me to converse with You. Your mercy abolishes the chasm which separates the Creator from the creature. To converse with You, O Lord, is the delight of my heart. In You I find everything that my heart could desire. Here, Your light illumines my mind, enabling it to know You more and more deeply. Here streams of graces flow down upon my heart. Here my soul draws eternal life. O my Lord and Creator, You alone, beyond all these gifts, give Your own self to me and unite Yourself intimately with Your miserable creature.
   O Christ, let my greatest delight be to see You loved and Your praise and glory proclaimed, especially the honor of Your mercy. O Christ, let me glorify Your goodness and mercy to the last moment of my life, with every drop of my blood and every beat of my heart. Would that I be transformed into a hymn of adoration of You. When I find myself on my deathbed, may the last beat of my heart be a loving hymn glorifying Your unfathomable mercy. Amen.