Novena to St. Francis of Assisi
September 25 to October 4
Introductory Prayer
Heavenly Father, You have given us the
saints to be our models, patrons and friends. Today we turn to Saint Francis of
Assisi and as You helped him reflect the image of Christ through his life of
poverty and humility, grant us through his intercession the graces we so much
need for soul and body. Especially during this novena we ask for: [mention
intention here]. We also ask Your blessings on all those whom we love.
May the example of Saint Francis inspire
us to grow in holiness as we imitate his joyful love.
Grant what we ask in Your Merciful love,
through the merits of Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and
the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever, Amen.
THE FIRST DAY
Mary, the Mother of Jesus
We ask St Francis to entrust us to Mary, that she might cherish, help and protect us to the end. She is our model, our Queen and our Mother. Let us join him in the salutations he composed for her;
You were chosen by the Most High
Father in heaven, consecrated by Him,
with His Most Holy Beloved Son and the Holy Spirit, the
Comforter.
On you descended and still remains all the fullness of grace and every good. Hail, His Palace.
Hail, His Tabernacle
Hail, His Robe.
Hail, His Handmaid
Hail, His Mother.
And Hail, all holy Virtues, who, by grace and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, are poured into the hearts of the faithful so that from their faithless state, they may be made faithful servants of God through you.
[Here mention your special intention]
Let us pray:
Most High, Glorious God, enlighten the darkness of our hearts.
Give us a right faith, a firm hope, perfect charity and profound humility, with wisdom and perception, O Lord so that we may do what is truly Your Holy Will. Amen.
THE SECOND DAY
The Most Blessed Eucharist
St Francis had such an immeasurable love for the Blessed Sacrament. He understood this sublime Mystery as few others. He exhorted his friars to have the greatest possible reverence for the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, together with His Holy Name and the writings which contain His words, those words which consecrate His Body as well as chalices, corporals and all that is related to the Holy Sacrifice. Let us praise and worship our God and Savior, present in this Most Holy Sacrament, in the words of St Francis:
Let the whole of humanity tremble, the whole world shake and the heavens exult when our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, is present on the altar in the hands of a priest! O admirable heights and sublime lowliness! O sublime humility! O humble sublimity! That the Lord of the universe, God and the Son of God, so humbles Himself that for our salvation
He hides Himself under the little form of bread! Look at the humility of God and pour out your hearts before Him! Humble yourselves as well, that you may be exalted by Him. Therefore, hold back nothing of yourselves for yourselves so that He who gives Himself totally to you may receive you totally.
[Here mentions your special intention]
Let us pray: Most High, Glorious God, enlighten the darkness of our hearts. Give us a right faith, a firm hope, perfect charity and profound humility, with wisdom and perception, O Lord, so that we may do what is truly Your Holy Will. Amen.
THE THIRD DAY
In Praise of God
There is nothing St Francis loved more than praising God. He would spend his days in prayer meditating upon and pondering the wonder of God the Almighty. These praises were written by St. Francis to help his close companion, Br. Leo, who was struggling with temptation. Immediately the brother prayed these words, all temptation was lifted from him. Let us join St Francis in lifting our hearts, our minds and our spirits in singing these praises:
You are holy, Lord, the only God, and Your deeds are wonderful.
You are strong.
You are great
You are the Most High. You are Almighty. You, Holy Father are King of heaven and earth.
You are Three and One, Lord God, all good,
You are Good, all Good, supreme Good,
Lord God, living and true.
You are love,
You are wisdom.
You are humility,
You are endurance.
You are rest,
You are peace.
You are joy and gladness.
You are justice and moderation.
You are all our riches,
You suffice for us.
You are beauty.
You are gentleness.
You are our protector,
You are our guardian and defender.
You are our courage.
You are our haven and our hope.
You are our faith, our great consolation.
You are our eternal life, Great and Wonderful Lord, God Almighty, Merciful Savior.
[Here mention your special intention]
Let us pray:
Almighty, eternal, just and merciful God, grant us in our misery the grace to do for You alone what we know You want us to do, and always to desire what pleases You. thus inwardly cleansed, interiorly enlightened and inflamed by the fire of the Holy Spirit, may we be able to follow in the footsteps of Your Beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.
And by Your grace alone, may we make our way to You, Most High, Who live and rule in perfect Trinity and simple Unity, and are glorified God all powerful
forever and ever.
Amen.
THE FOURTH DAY
In Praise of Virtue
St Francis spent his life desiring to imitate Christ His Lord. He always urged his brothers and all people to do so. He knew that the essential way to imitate the Lord was to grow in the practice of virtue, the good habits necessary to vanquish vice.
As a man who gave himself so totally to Jesus, St Francis was infused with the Wisdom that can only come from God. These praises which poured out of his soul not only salute the virtues, but they also give us the dispositions necessary to receive them. For Francis, self-denial, dying to self is the basis of virtue. As we sing these praises with St Francis, let us strive to put them into practice in our lives:
There is surely no one in the whole world who can possess any one of you unless he first dies to himself.
Whoever practices one and does not offend the others, possesses all. and whoever offends against one, possesses none and violates all. Each and every one of you puts vice and sin to shame. Holy Wisdom puts Satan and all his wiles to shame.
Pure and holy Simplicity puts all the learning of this world, all the wisdom of the body, to shame.
Holy Poverty destroys the desire of riches and avarice and the cares of this world. Holy Humility destroys pride, putting to shame the inhabitants of this world and all things that belong to the world.
Holy Love destroys every temptation of the devil and of the flesh and every carnal fear.
Holy Obedience destroys every natural and selfish desire, binding the mortified body to obedience of the Spirit and to obedience of one’s brother.
Obedience
subjects us to everyone on earth.
And not only to man, but all beasts and wild animals, so that they may do whatever they want with us, as far as God allows them.
[Here mention your special intention]
Let us pray:
Almighty, eternal, just and merciful God, grant us in our misery the grace to do for You alone what we know You want us to do, and always to desire what pleases You. Thus inwardly cleansed, interiorly enlightened and inflamed by the fire of the Holy Spirit, may we be able to follow in the footsteps of Your Beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
THE FIFTH DAY
The Canticle of Creation
Perhaps the most famous of all St Francis’ writings would be this Canticle. In it, St Francis gives praise to God for every aspect of life, from the joys of creation to the sufferings of death. He understands something of the deep mystery of life, seeing God at work through the world in which we live. More than anything else, St Francis saw that all things were intended to touch the hearts of men and lift them to God.
With the joy and confident trust of St Francis in the living and merciful Providence of God, let us sing from our hearts this Song of Brother Sun;
Most High, all powerful, all good Lord,
All praise is Yours, all glory, all honor and all blessings. To You alone, Most High, do they belong,
and no mortal lips are worthy to pronounce Your Name.
Praised by You my Lord with all Your creatures, especially sir Brother Sun,
Who is the day through whom You give us light. And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendor; Of you Most High, he bears the likeness.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars, In the heavens you have made them bright, precious and fair.
Praised be You, my Lord through Brothers Wind and Air, And fair and stormy, all weather’s moods,
by which You cherish all that You have
made.
Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water, So useful, humble, precious and pure.
Praised be You my Lord through our Sister Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, producing varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs.
Praised be You my Lord through those who grant pardon for love of You and bear sickness and trial.
Blessed are those who endure in peace,
By You Most High, they will be crowned.
Praised be You my Lord through Sister Death, from whom no living man can escape.
Woe to those who die in mortal sin! Blessed are they She finds doing Your Will, No second death can do them harm.
Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks, And serve Him with great humility!
Let us pray:
Let every creature in heaven, on earth, in the sea and in the depths, give praise, glory, honor and blessing to Him
Who suffered so much for us,
Who has given so many good things to us and will continue to do so for the future.
For He is our power and strength, He who alone is Good,
Most High, All Powerful, Admirable and Glorious; He who alone is Holy, Praiseworthy,
And blessed throughout endless ages. Amen.
THE SIXTH DAY
Admonitions of St Francis
St Francis would always turn to the Lord before he said or did anything. Thus seeking the counsel of his Master, his mind and heart were open to receive all manner of grace, blessings and wisdom from God. His “Admonitions” or directives, a fruit of this relationship, are a wonderful guide in our spiritual life. Let us strive with our whole heart, mind, body and soul as St Francis did, to love our Lord and our neighbor, and all creation. To be thoroughly courteous and noble, sensitive to all that is good and beautiful, and so to be true disciples of Christ. As we listen to his guidance, through these selected Admonitions, let us open ourselves to our Lord that we may receive mercy grace peace and abundant blessings.
“Be conscious, O man, of the wondrous state in which our Lord God has placed you, for He created you and formed you to the image of His Beloved Son according to the body, and to His likeness according to the spirit. And yet every creature under heaven serves and acknowledges and obeys its Creator in its own way better than you do. Even the devils were not solely responsible for crucifying Him; it was you who crucified Him with them and you continue to crucify Him by taking pleasure in your vices and sins.
“If you were the most handsome and richest person in the world and could work wonders, like driving out demons, all that would be something outside for you; it would not belong to you and you could not boast of it.
“But there is one thing in which we can glory; we can boast of our humiliations and in taking up daily the Holy Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
“We can never tell how patient or humble a person is when everything is going well for him. But when those who should do him justice, do the opposite to him, he has only as much patience and humility as he has then, and no more.
[Here mention your special intention]
Let us pray:
Let every creature in heaven, on earth, in the sea and in the depths, give praise, glory, honor and blessing to Him
who suffered so much for us
Who has given so many good things to us, and will continue to do so for the future. for He is our power and strength,
He who alone is Good.
Most High, All Powerful, Admirable and glorious;
He who alone is Holy, Praiseworthy,
And blessed throughout endless ages. Amen.
THE SEVENTH DAY
Our Father
To teach his brethren, St Francis gave them lessons on prayer centered on the Our Father. He loved this gospel prayer and would often meditate on each phrase. This prayer expresses the inner life of St Francis, filled with praise, with confidence and a deep love of God. He would so often spend himself in prayer – giving time, thought and effort, all for His Lord. Sometimes we forget to try with all our might, and too readily find ourselves saying prayers quickly without thought. St Francis urges us to stop and think deeply about our God who has given Himself completely for us, who are so unworthy of His great love. Let us pray with him, and learn from him.
Our Most Holy Father, Creator, Redeemer, comforter and Savior, Who art in Heaven: In the angels and saints, Enlightening them to love, because You Lord are Light Inflaming them to love, because You Lord are Love Dwelling in them and filling them with happiness, because You Lord are the Supreme Good, the Eternal Good, from whom comes all good without Whom there is no good
Hallowed be Your Name:
May our knowledge of You become ever clearer, that we may know the breadth of Your blessings, the steadfastness of Your promises, the height of Your Majesty and depth of Your judgments.
Your Kingdom Come:
So that You may reign in us by Your Grace and enable us to come to Your Kingdom, where we shall see You clearly,
love You perfectly, be blessed in your company and enjoy You
forever.
Your Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven:
That we may love you with our whole heart by always thinking of You; with our whole soul by always desiring You, with our whole mind by directing all our intentions to You and by seeking Your Glory in everything; and with our whole strength by spending all our energies and affections of soul and body in the service of Your love alone. And may we love our neighbors as ourselves, encouraging them all to love You as best as we can, rejoicing in the good fortunes of others just as if it were our own and by sympathizing with the misfortunes of others, while giving offence to no one.
Give us this day our daily Bread:
Your own Beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to remind us of the love he showed for us and to help us understand and appreciate it and everything that he did and said and suffered. And forgive us our trespasses:
In Your infinite mercy, and through the power of the Passion of Your Beloved Son, together with the merits and intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and all Your Chosen ones
As we forgive those who trespass against us:
And what ever we do not forgive perfectly, do You O Lord, enable us to forgive to the full so that we may truly love our enemies and fervently pray for them before You, returning no one evil for evil and striving to help everyone in You
And lead us not into temptation,
hidden or obvious, sudden or persistent,
But deliver us from evil, past, present and to come.
[Here mention your special intention]
Let us pray:
May the power of Your love O Lord, fiery and sweet as honey, wean my heart from all that is under heaven so that I may die for love of Your love, You who were so good as to die for love of my love. Amen.
THE EIGHTH DAY
Prayer and Thanksgiving
To pray constantly and to always give thanks to God – a Gospel precept which St Francis lived. The thought of always praying is a thought which at the very least seems impossible to most people. Yet, St Francis as well as many other saints were able to achieve this in their lives. It is clear that they also accomplished a great deal. Somehow they were able to make everything they did a real prayer to the Father – they became a “living sacrifice” (Rom 12:1). It is evident from the following prayer of St Francis, which flowed from his heart that he was constantly aware of the Divine Presence, Mercy and Love, and he constantly gave thanks for such immeasurable love.
Let us now join him in prayer and lift our hearts and minds and souls and bodies to God.
All powerful, Most Holy, Most High and Supreme God, Holy and just Father, Lord, King of Heaven and earth, We thank you for Yourself for through Your Holy Will and through Your only Son with the Holy Spirit,
You have created all things spiritual and physical, and having made us in Your own image and likeness, You placed us in Paradise.
And through our own fault we have fallen.
We thank You for as through You Son You created us so also, through Your Holy Love, with which You loved us, You brought about His birth as true God and true man, by the glorious, ever a virgin, most blessed, holy Mary, and You willed to redeem us captives through His Cross and blood and death.
We thank you for your Son himself will come again in the glory of His majesty to send the wicked ones who have not done penance and who have not known You into the eternal fire, and to say to all those who have known You and have adored You have served You in penance:
“Come, you blessed of my Father,
receive the kingdom which has been prepared for you from the beginning of the
world.” (Mt 25:34).
We are all poor sinners not even worthy to mention Your name, and so we humbly ask that our Lord Jesus Christ Your Beloved Son in whom You were well pleased together with the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, give You thanks as it pleases You and Him, for everything, He who always satisfies You in everything through Whom You have done such great things for us!
Through Your love we humbly beg the glorious Mother, most Blessed Mary ever a virgin, Blessed Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, and all the blessed choirs of seraphim, cherubim, thrones, dominations, principalities, powers, virtues, angels, archangels, blessed John the Baptist, John the Evangelist, Peter and Paul, and blessed patriarchs, prophets, the Innocents, apostles, evangelists, disciples, martyrs, confessors, virgins, the blessed Elijah and Henoch, and all the saints who were, who will be and who are to give You thanks for these things as it pleases You, the Supreme and True God, eternal and living with Your most beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, world without end.
Amen.
[Here mention your special intention]
Let us pray:
May the power of Your love O Lord, fiery and sweet as honey, wean my heart from all that is under heaven, so that I may die for love of Your Love, You who were so good as to die for love of my love. Amen.
THE NINTH DAY
Glory to the Father, to the Son and to the Holy Spirit
God, who has first loved us invites us to Himself that we may be raised up into an eternal communion of love with Him. St Francis responded to this invitation with his whole being. He longed for nothing else, desired nothing else, took pleasure in nothing else than his Lord. We receive the same invitation of love and we are free to respond. Let us make a new decision for God. Choosing Him above all others, let us abandon ourselves to Jesus Christ, with complete confidence and trust in Him. Our Lord is Mercy, our Lord is Love, our Lord is our Hope. Therefore:
Let us desire nothing else let us wish for nothing else let nothing else please us and cause us delight except our Creator and Redeemer and Savior, the One True God, who is the Fullness of Good, all good, ever good, the true and supreme good; Who alone is Good, Merciful and Gentle, delectable and sweet;
Who alone is Holy, just and true,
holy and right; Who alone is kind, innocent, pure,
from Whom and through Whom and in Whom is all pardon, all grace,
all glory of all the penitent and the just, of all the blessed who rejoice
together in heaven.
Therefore let nothing hinder us,
nothing separate us or nothing come between us. let all of us, wherever we are,
in every place,
at every hour
at every time of the day,
everyday and continually
believe truly and humbly, and keep in our heart,
and love, honor, adore and serve, praise and bless, glorify and exalt, magnify and give thanks to the Most High Supreme Eternal God,
Trinity and Unity,
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Creator of all, Savior of all who believe in Him, and hope in Him, and love Him.
Who is without beginning and without end, Unchangeable, Invisible, Indescribable, Ineffable, Incomprehensible, Unfathomable, Blessed, Worthy of Praise, glorious,
Exalted on High, Sublime, Most High,
Gentle Lovable, Delectable and totally Desirable above all else, forever,
Amen!
Let us pray:
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace, Where there is hatred, let me sow love, Where there is injury, pardon,
Where there is doubt, faith, Where there is despair, hope, Where there is darkness, light, And where there is sadness, joy
Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand, to be love as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive, in pardoning that we are pardoned and in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen
Concluding Blessing
May the Lord
bless us and keep us.
May he
show His Face to us and have mercy on us,
May He turn His
Countenance towards us and give us Peace.
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