In 2018, the Novena to the Holy Spirit (the Pentecost Novena) is prayed on May 11 through May 19, culminating on May 20, the feast of Pentecost. This year at Holy Spirit the feast of Pentecost holds special significance: it falls on the same day as our annual parish festival, the Festival of the Holy Spirit. This year during the festival, we will break ground on our new church building!

More information about the Festival of the Holy Spirit »

Praying the Novena to the Holy Spirit, we join our prayer to the prayers of the Apostles in the upper room after Christ’s ascension, where they, “devoted themselves with one accord to prayer”¹ for nine days until the Holy Spirit descended upon them on the fiftieth day.

How to Pray the Novena

1. Start with the Sign of the Cross
2. Pray the Opening Prayer
3. Read the Sequence Verse and Scripture Passage for the day you are on.
4. Pray the Closing Prayer

Printable versions of the novena in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese are available on the Archdiocesan web site .

What’s a Novena?

A novena is an ancient form of devotional prayer consisting of prayers over nine consecutive days (or weeks).

In 1897, Pope Leo XIII asked the whole church to renew its devotion by praying a Novena to the Holy Spirit in the nine days leading up to Pentecost (Divinum Illud Munus). He asked that this novena be done every year in every parish throughout the world.

References

1. Acts 1:14
2. Divinum Illud Munus