Catholic Novenas
Nine days of prayer, offered together for a single intention. The novena is one of the oldest and most beloved forms of Catholic devotion, prayed by the apostles and the Blessed Virgin in the Upper Room between the Ascension and Pentecost (Acts 1:14) and continued in the lived tradition of the Church for two thousand years.
What is a novena?
A novena (from the Latin novem, nine) is a nine-day prayer of petition for a specific intention. The structure has its scriptural root in the nine days the Apostles and the Blessed Virgin Mary spent in prayer in the Upper Room awaiting the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Catholic tradition has multiplied the form: novenas to particular saints, novenas to the Mother of God under her many titles, novenas to the Sacred Heart, the Holy Spirit, the Divine Mercy, and novenas anchored to the great solemnities of the liturgical year.
The structure of a novena is simple. Each day, the Catholic prays a brief set of prayers (typically including the day's particular prayer for the intention, three Hail Marys or a decade of the Rosary, and the Our Father), naming the intention each time. The discipline is for nine consecutive days; if a day is missed, the practice is to begin again from day one, since the unbroken sequence is itself part of the prayer.
Why pray a novena?
Catholics pray novenas for the same reasons they pray any prayer of petition: because the Lord Jesus invites the persistent prayer of His disciples (Luke 18:1-8), because the Communion of Saints includes the intercession of the saints in heaven for the souls on earth (Catechism of the Catholic Church 956-962), and because the nine-day discipline deepens the soul's interior life beyond what a single act of petition can do. The novena is, in many cases, more transformative of the soul praying it than of the outward circumstances for which it is prayed.
The novenas of the Catholic Church
Each of the novenas below is a complete Catholic devotion in itself. Each has its own theological foundation, its own historical origin, its own daily structure, and its own particular fruit. Read the overview, then pray the nine days at your own pace.
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The Divine Mercy Novena
Intent: trust in the Divine Mercy of Jesus, with each day praying for a specific group of souls
The Divine Mercy Novena given by Jesus to Saint Faustina Kowalska. Prayed from Good Friday to Divine Mercy Saturday, with the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.
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The Holy Spirit Novena
Intent: the outpouring of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit on the soul and the Church
The Holy Spirit Novena, prayed by the Apostles and Mary in the upper room between Ascension and Pentecost. The original Christian novena.
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The Immaculate Conception Novena
Intent: preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, with consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
The Immaculate Conception Novena, prayed in the nine days before December 8, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.
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The Infant of Prague Novena
Intent: trust in the Christ Child for urgent needs and family graces
The Infant of Prague Novena, also known as the Express Novena. Prayed in 9 hours or 9 days for urgent needs.
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The Mary Undoer of Knots Novena
Intent: the untying of the knots of life: family conflict, sin, anxiety, resentment, addictions, the impossibilities that have wound themselves into our days
The Mary Undoer of Knots Novena, based on the 1700 Augsburg painting and rooted in St Irenaeus. Popularized by Pope Francis.
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The Miraculous Medal Novena
Intent: graces through the Immaculate Conception of Mary, by the medal she revealed to Saint Catherine Labouré
The Miraculous Medal Novena, drawn from the 1830 apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Saint Catherine Labouré in Paris.
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The Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena
Intent: the perpetual help and intercession of the Mother of God in every need
The Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena, prayed before the Byzantine icon at Rome. The Wednesday devotion of the Redemptorists.
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The Sacred Heart of Jesus Novena
Intent: love of and reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, with consecration to His mercy
The Sacred Heart of Jesus Novena, drawn from the apparitions to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque at Paray-le-Monial. Nine days of consecration to His Heart.
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The St Andrew Christmas Novena
Intent: preparation for Christmas, asking the graces of the Holy Family through the prayer recited fifteen times each day
The St Andrew Christmas Novena, the traditional Catholic prayer recited 15 times daily from St Andrew's Day to Christmas Eve.
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The St Anthony Novena
Intent: the intercession of Saint Anthony of Padua, particularly for lost things, lost causes, and the conversion of sinners
The St Anthony Novena to Saint Anthony of Padua, the Franciscan Doctor of the Church and patron of lost things, lost souls, and the poor.
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The St Joseph Novena
Intent: the protection and intercession of Saint Joseph for family, employment, holy death, and the needs of the Universal Church
The traditional St Joseph Novena. Nine days of prayer to the foster father of Jesus, husband of Mary, patron of the Universal Church and workers.
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The St Jude Novena
Intent: the intercession of Saint Jude Thaddeus for impossible and desperate causes
The traditional St Jude Thaddeus Novena, prayed for impossible and desperate causes. Nine days of intercession to the Apostle Jude.
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The St Peregrine Novena
Intent: the intercession of Saint Peregrine Laziosi for healing from cancer and serious illness
The St Peregrine Novena, prayed for healing from cancer and serious illness. The Servite saint miraculously cured the night before amputation.
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The St Therese Novena
Intent: the intercession of Saint Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower, with confidence in her promise of a shower of roses
The St Therese Novena to the Little Flower, St Therese of Lisieux. Nine days asking the saint who promised a shower of roses.
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The Surrender Novena
Intent: surrendering anxieties, illnesses, family troubles, and impossible situations to Jesus
The Surrender Novena to Jesus by Don Dolindo Ruotolo. Nine days, ten daily acts of surrender, the refrain Jesus, take care of everything.
How to pray a novena well
A novena is most fruitful when prayed in the ordinary disciplines of Catholic life: in a state of grace, with frequent recourse to the sacraments, and with a real intention named at the start. Many of the great Catholic spiritual writers recommend writing the intention at the top of the prayer, so that the soul does not drift from the specific request into general petition. The Our Father, Hail Mary, and the Glory Be are commonly added at the close of each day's prayer, with the explicit petition for the intentions of the Holy Father (which is also part of the conditions for many indulgences).
For a treatment of the Catholic doctrine of the Communion of Saints that lies beneath the novena tradition, see the Communion of Saints. For the Catholic theology of intercessory prayer more broadly, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraphs 2634-2636 and the magisterial development of the doctrine in Lumen Gentium chapter 7.