Nine days of persistent prayer — modeled on the nine days the Apostles and Our Lady spent in the Upper Room between the Ascension and Pentecost, waiting in faith for what God had promised.
Thirteen of the most beloved novenas in the Catholic tradition
Begin Praying ↓A novena (from the Latin novem, nine) is a prayer or set of prayers repeated over nine consecutive days, offered with a specific intention or in honor of a particular mystery or saint. The word and the practice both trace to the nine days Mary and the Apostles spent praying in the Upper Room after the Ascension — the first novena, and the model for every novena since (Acts 1:14).
Every novena is an act of persevering prayer — a choice to return, day after day, with the same intention and the same trust. It is the prayer of the persistent widow Our Lord praised (Lk 18:1–8): not because God needs to be worn down, but because we need to be shaped by the discipline of returning. The nine days form us more than they inform God.
The Church has never canonically defined a single obligatory form for novenas. Some are prayed on specific days of the liturgical year; others may be begun at any time. All share the same essential character: persistent, trusting, nine-day prayer directed to God through the intercession of Our Lord, Our Lady, or the saints.