Blessed Pius IX defined the dogma of the Immaculate Conception in the bull Ineffabilis Deus on 8 December 1854: from the first instant of her conception the Blessed Virgin Mary was preserved free from all stain of original sin, by a singular grace and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ. Four years later, at Lourdes, Our Lady told St. Bernadette, I am the Immaculate Conception. Pius XII recounted this history in the encyclical Fulgens Corona (1953). This is a devotional novena for private or parish use; the day-by-day distinction below lies in the meditation, since the received prayer is the same each day.