Novena to St. Jude (Patron of Desperate Causes)
Begin by reciting the prayer:
St. Jude, glorious apostle,
faithful servant and friend of Jesus,
the name of the traitor
has caused you to be forgotten by many.
But the Church honors and invokes you universally
as the patron of hopeless cases,
and of things despaired of.
Pray for me who am so distressed.
Make use, I implore you,
of that particular privilege accorded you
to bring visible
and speedy help where help was almost despaired of.
Come to my assistance in this great need
that I may receive the consolation
and succor of Heaven in all my necessities,
tribulations and sufferings, particularly….
(Make your request here.)
and that I may bless God with you
and all the elect throughout eternity.
St. Jude, apostle, martyr,
and relative of our Lord Jesus Christ,
of Mary, and of Joseph,
intercede for us!
Amen.
Recite the appropriate prayer for each of the 9 days.
DAY ONE
O blessed apostle St. Jude,
who labored zealously among the Gentiles in many lands,
and performed numerous miracles in needy
and despairing cases,
we invoke you to take special interest in us and our needs.
We feel that you understand us in a particular way.
Hear our prayers and our petitions
and plead for us in all our necessities especially…
(Make your request here.)
May we be patient in learning God’s holy will
and courageous in carrying it out.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY TWO
O blessed apostle Jude,
who has been instrumental
in gathering us here together this day,
grant that we may always serve Jesus Christ
as he deserves to be served,
giving of our best efforts in living
as he wishes us to live.
May we dispose our hearts and minds
that God will always be inclined
to listen to our prayers and petitions,
especially those petitions
which we entrust to your care
and for which we ask you to plead for us…
(Make your request here.)
Grant that we may be enlightened
as to what is best for us,
in the present and future,
not forgetting the blessings
we have received in the past.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY THREE
O holy St. Jude,
apostle of Jesus Christ,
you who have so faithfully
and devotedly helped to spread his Gospel of Light,
we who are gathered together today in your honor,
ask and petition you to remember us and our needs.
Especially do we pray for…
(Make your request here.)
May it also please our Lord
to lend an ear to your supplications in our behalf.
Grant that we may ever pray with fervor and devotion,
resigning ourselves humbly to the divine will,
seeing God’s purpose in all our trials
and knowing that he will leave
no sincere prayer unanswered in some way.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY FOUR
Saint blessed Jude, you were called
to be one of Christ’s chosen apostles
and labored to bring men
to a knowledge and love of God;
listen with compassion to those gathered together
to honor you and ask;
your intercession.
In this troubled world of ours we have many trials,
difficulties, and temptations.
Plead for us in the heavenly court,
asking that our petitions may be answered,
especially the particular one
we have in mind at this moment…
(Make your request here.)
May it please God to answer our prayers
in the way that he knows best,
giving us grace to see his purpose in all things.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY FIVE
O holy St. Jude,
apostle and companion of Christ Jesus,
you have shown us by example
how to lead a life of zeal and devotion.
We humbly entreat you today
to hear our prayers and petitions.
Especially do we ask you
to obtain for us the following favor…
(Make your request here.)
Grant that in praying for present and future favors
we may not forget the innumerable ones granted in the past
but often return to give thanks.
Humbly we resign ourselves to God’s holy will,
knowing that he alone knows what is best for us
especially in our present needs and necessities.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY SIX
St. Jude,
apostle of Christ and helper in despairing cases,
hear the prayers and petitions
of those who are gathered together in your honor.
In all our needs and desires
may we only seek what is pleasing to God
and what is best for our salvation.
These, our petitions…
(Make your request here.)
we submit to you,
asking you to obtain them for us,
if they are for the good of out souls.
We are resigned to God’s holy will in all things,
knowing that he will leave no sincere prayer unanswered
in some way though it may be in a way unexpected by us.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY SEVEN
O holy apostle Saint Jude,
in whose honor we are gathered today,
may we never forget that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
chose you to be one of twelve apostles.
Because of this and of the martyrdom you suffered for the Faith,
we know you are a close friend of Almighty God.
Therefore we do not hesitate to petition you
in our necessities, especially…
(Make your request here.)
We humbly submit ourselves to the will of God,
knowing full well that no sincere prayer
is ever left unanswered.
May we see God’s good and gracious purpose
working in all our trials.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY EIGHT
O holy Saint Jude,
apostle of Christ,
pray that we may ever imitate the Divine Master
and live according to His will.
May we cooperate with the grace of God
and ever remain pleasing in His sight.
Especially do we ask you to plead for us
and obtain whatsoever is necessary for our salvation.
Forget not our special petitions…
(Make your request here.)
May we always be thankful to God
for the blessings we have received in the past.
Whatsoever we ask for the present or future,
we submit to the divine will,
realizing that God knows best what is good for us.
We know He will respond to our prayers
and petitions in one way or another.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!
DAY NINE
O holy Saint Jude,
apostle and martyr,
grant that we may so dispose our lives
that we may always be pleasing to God.
In working out our salvation in this life
we have many needs and necessities.
Today we turn to you,
asking you to intercede for us
and obtain for us the favors we ask of God.
Especially do we petition for…
(Make your request here.)
May we not so much seek temporal good
but rather what will avail our souls,
knowing that it will profit us nothing
if we gain the whole world yet suffer the loss of our soul.
Therefore, may we incline ourselves toward the divine will,
seeing God’s good and gracious purpose in all our trials.
Amen.
St. Jude, pray for us!
My Jesus, mercy!