Novenas

 

A novena is nine days of prayer offered for a particular intention or in preparation for a feast. The custom goes back to the first novena of all: the nine days the Apostles spent in prayer with Mary between the Ascension and Pentecost (Acts 1:14). A novena is not a formula that guarantees an answer. It is a way of persevering in prayer, as Our Lord taught, trusting that the Father hears us and gives what is truly good.

How to Pray a Novena

 

 

 

 

A novena is a prayer said for nine days in a row for a special intention. To pray one, choose a novena, make your intention, and pray that novena's prayer once a day for nine consecutive days, usually with an Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be. Many novenas are timed to end on a saint's feast day. If you miss a day, simply continue and add the missed day at the end.

 

Novenas to Start Soon

 

• St. Andrew Christmas Novena (Nov 30 to Christmas)

• Christmas Novena, Dec 16-24

• Holy Souls Novena

• Novena of Grace to St. Francis Xavier

• Sacred Heart Novena

• Novena to the Holy Spirit

• Full calendar: Novena Calendar

 

Novena FAQs

 

 

Why are novenas nine days?

 

The custom comes from the nine days Our Lady and the Apostles prayed in the Upper Room between the Ascension and Pentecost (Acts 1:14).

 

What happens if I miss a day of a novena?

 

Don't worry. Pick up where you left off and add a day at the end. A novena is a devotion, not a rule.

 

When should I start a novena?

 

To end on a feast day, start nine days before it. For example, the Christmas Novena begins December 16.

 

Can I pray more than one novena at a time?

 

Yes. Many Catholics pray two or more together, each for its own intention.

​

 

How to pray a novena

 

1. Choose your intention and, if you like, write it down.

2. Pray the same prayer each day for nine days in a row. If you miss a day, simply continue. God is not keeping score.

3. Add an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be each day, as many traditional novenas do.

4. Time it for a feast if you can, so that the ninth day falls on the eve of the feast day.

5. Go to Mass and confession during the novena if possible, and end with thanksgiving whatever the outcome.

 

Novenas and chaplets on this site

 

• Novena to the Holy Spirit: Opening Prayer, for the nine days before Pentecost

• Sacred Heart Novena Prayer

• Prayer to St. Joseph, prayed as a novena, before March 19 or May 1

• The Thirty Days' Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary

• Chaplet of the Five Wounds

• Chaplet of Divine Mercy (Structure & Link)

 

Saints often invoked in novenas

 

• St. Jude, for hopeless cases

• St. Rita of Cascia, for impossible causes

• St. Anthony of Padua

• St. Therese of the Child Jesus

• Our Lady of Perpetual Help

 

Browse more: Novenas & Chaplets · Litanies · Prayers to the Saints & Angels

 

More novenas and chaplets

 

• Novena of Grace to St. Francis Xavier: March 4 to 12, or before his December 3 feast.

• St. Andrew Christmas Novena: prayed 15 times a day from November 30 to Christmas.

• Chaplet of St. Michael: honoring the nine choirs of angels.

• Prayer to the Infant Jesus of Prague: often prayed as a novena for an urgent need.

• St. Anthony Responsory (Si Quaeris): for finding what is lost.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

Where can I find Catholic novenas online?

 

Right here. Daily Catholic Prayers has traditional novenas and chaplets that are free to read and pray, with no account needed. They are listed on this page and arranged by start date on the Novena Calendar.

 

Each novena post gives the prayer to say each day, and the calendar shows when to begin so that the ninth day falls on the eve of the feast. Your parish may also pray a public novena before a major feast, which is a lovely way to pray one with others.

 

What is the most powerful novena?

 

No novena is more powerful than another. What matters is praying with faith, persevering for the nine days, and trusting God with the answer.

 

Some novenas are especially loved, though: the Prayer to St. Jude, to St. Jude, patron of hopeless cases; the Sacred Heart Novena Prayer; the Novena of Grace to St. Francis Xavier; the Prayer to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, to Our Lady of Perpetual Help; and the Novena to the Holy Spirit, prayed between the Ascension and Pentecost, the oldest novena of all.

 

Which novena should I pray for a job, for healing, or for a hopeless situation?

 

Pray to the saint the Church traditionally asks for help with that need, using the saint's prayer each day for nine days, followed by an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be.

 

• Work or a job search: Prayer to St. Joseph the Worker, to St. Joseph.

• Cancer: Prayer to St. Peregrine, to St. Peregrine Laziosi.

• Any illness: Prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes for Healing, to Our Lady of Lourdes.

• A desperate or impossible situation: Prayer to St. Rita of Cascia, to St. Rita, patron of impossible causes, or the Prayer to St. Jude above.

• Something lost: the St. Anthony Responsory (Si Quaeris), to St. Anthony of Padua.

• A child who has left the faith: Prayer to St. Monica for Children, to St. Monica.

• Anxiety and mental health: Prayer to St. Dymphna, to St. Dymphna.

 

For more needs, see Patron Saints for Every Need.

 

Can I pray a novena for someone else, or for someone who has died?

 

Yes. Novenas are often prayed for someone you love: a person who is sick, someone who has drifted from the faith, or someone who has died.

 

Many Catholics pray the Novena for the Holy Souls in November, and it may be prayed at any time of year for a person who has died. For more, see Prayers for the Dead and the Grieving.

 

What is the difference between a novena and a chaplet?

 

A novena is measured in days, and a chaplet in beads. A novena is any prayer repeated for nine days in a row; a chaplet is a set of prayers counted on beads, usually prayed in one sitting.

 

The two often go together. The Divine Mercy Novena is prayed with the Chaplet of Divine Mercy on each of the nine days from Good Friday, and the Chaplet of St. Michael is often prayed as a novena before the feast of St. Michael on September 29.

 

How long does a novena take each day, and can I pray it with others?

​

Most novenas take five to fifteen minutes a day: the novena prayer itself, often followed by an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be.

 

You can pray alone, with your family at dinner or bedtime, or with friends who agree to pray the same novena wherever they are. A few novenas follow a different pattern: the St. Andrew Christmas Novena is a short prayer said 15 times a day from November 30 to Christmas.

​

Praying through Advent? The Advent & Christmas Novena Pack has six novenas with tick-box calendars, $4.99.

​​​