Novenas
Pentecost, by Buoninsegna di Duccio, 1308-11
Its name deriving from the Latin word "novem,"
meaning "nine," a novena is nine days' private or
public devotion in the Catholic Church to obtain
special graces. Though they are not part of our
liturgy and remain a "popular devotion" (a very
few are prayed paraliturgically), they've been
prayed since the very beginning of the Church --
and before its official beginning: Mary and the
Apostles prayed from His Ascension to the
Pentecost, a period of nine days (Acts 1). Also,
a nine-day period of supplication was a pagan
Roman and Eastern practice, so novenas were
easily accepted by the earliest converts in these lands.
The Christian and Jewish meaning of the number
"9" entered into Christian thinking on the
matter, as "9" was associated with suffering,
grief, and imperfection, making it a fitting
number for when "man's imperfection turned in
prayer to God" (Catholic Encyclopedia). St.
Jerome wrote that "the number nine in Holy Writ
is indicative of suffering and grief" (Ezechiel, vii, 24).
Novenas, then, often, but not necessarily, have
about them a sense of "urgency"; they are
typically made for special intentions, one's own
or another's ("I'll make a novena for you").
Novenas to certain Saints are often made
according to that Saint's patronage; for ex.,
because of his New Testament letter encouraging
Christians to persevere in the face of
persecution, St. Jude is the patron of desperate
situations and "hopeless" causes, so a person who
finds himself or a loved one in a real tough bind
might make a novena to St. Jude (by the way, it
is traditional, after making a novena to St.
Jude, to make a public expression of your
gratitude. This is the reason for those
mysterious thank you notes to St. Jude that you
might see in your local newspaper's Classifieds section).
There are four main types of novenas (a novena
may fit into more than one category):
* novenas of mourning, such as the novena
made during the novemdiales -- the nine day
period following the death of a Pope
* novenas of preparation, or "anticipation,"
such as the Christmas or Easter Novenas
* novenas of prayer
* the indulgenced novenas
In some novenas, the same prayer is said each day
for nine days, or sometimes 9 times in one day;
others may have (or add) different prayers for
each of the 9 prayer sessions. Some "novenas"
aren't properly called "novenas" because the
number nine plays no role in any way, but still
retain the label. When a Novena is prayed in
anticipation of a Feast, it is typically begun
such that it ends the day before the Feast (i.e.,
to know when to start a Novena in anticipation of
a Feast, count 10 days back from the Feast, with
the Feast itself counting as "one.")
Be aware that some uneducated persons think about
Novenas in a superstitious manner. Any Novena
instructions that include words such as, "say
this prayer for 9 consecutive days and your wish
will be granted to you," or that describe the
Novena as "never fail" in some sense that would
lead one to believe that we have God at our beck
and call rather than our being His humble
servants -- well, while the prayers themselves
might (or might not) be OK, such instructions should be absolutely rejected.
Below is a selection of traditional Novenas. Most
are written in the first person singular, but can
easily be altered so they can be prayed in groups
(change the "I's" to "we's" and "me's" to "us," etc.).
Selection of Popular Novenas
Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Novena to the Precious Blood
Novena to the Holy Face
Novena to the Holy Name
Novena to the Infant of Prague
Novena to Christ the King
Novena to the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ
Novena to the Holy Ghost
Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help
Novena to the Immaculate Conception
Novena to Our Lady of Good Success
54-Day Rosary Novena
Novena to St. Joseph
Novena to St. Benedict
Novena in honor of St. Blaise
Novena to St. Nicholas
Novena to St. Patrick
Novena to St. Dominic
Novena to St. Jude
Novena to St. Francis of Assisi
Novena to St. Clare of Assisi
Novena to St. Anthony of Padua
Novena to St. Teresa of Avila
Novena to Ste. Thérèse of Lisieux
Novena to St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio)
Novena to St. Gerard
Novena to St. Rita of Cascia
Novena to St. Philomena
Novena to St. Dymphna
Novena in honor of St. George
Novena to St. Anne
Novena to St. Martha
Novena to St. Maximilian Kolbe
Novena of Grace (in honor of St. Francis Xavier)
Novena for the Holy Souls in Purgatory
All Souls Novena
Christmas Novena I (St. Andrew Novena)
Christmas Novena II
Novena to the Magi in anticipation of the Epiphany
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