The Thirty-Day Novena to St. Joseph

The "Never-Failing Novena." Thirty days of trust for the intentions that seem impossible.

TLDR

Attributed to the Ursuline nuns and prayed for centuries, the Thirty-Day Novena to St. Joseph has been called the "never-failing novena" because of the extraordinary number of petitions granted through it. Tradition holds that if the request is just, it will be answered before the thirty days are complete, or the person will receive the grace to accept God's will with peace. It is the novena for the desperate, the exhausted, and the ones who have tried everything else.

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History

The origins of the Thirty-Day Novena are traced to the religious sisters of the Ursuline Order, who developed a tradition of thirty continuous days of prayer to St. Joseph for intentions that seemed beyond human remedy. The "never-failing" reputation has been attested by countless testimonies over the centuries, from nuns to laypeople, from small requests to seemingly impossible ones.

The prayer itself is short and can be prayed in under two minutes. The power is in the consistency: thirty days, without missing one, offered with trust in the man who never refused a request.

How To Pray

Pray the following prayer once each day for thirty consecutive days without interruption. If you miss a day, begin again from day one. Bring your specific intention to mind before each recitation and offer it with confidence to St. Joseph.

Let's Pray

Ever blessed and glorious Joseph, kind and loving father, and helpful friend of all in sorrow! You are the good father and protector of orphans, the defender of the defenseless, the patron of those in need and sorrow. Look kindly on my request. My sins have drawn down on me the just displeasure of my God, and so I am surrounded with unhappiness. To you, loving guardian of the Family of Nazareth, do I go for help and protection.

Listen, then, I beg you, with fatherly concern, to my earnest prayers, and obtain for me the favors I ask.

I ask it by the infinite mercy of the eternal Son of God, which moved Him to take our nature and to be born into this world of sorrow.

I ask it by the weariness and suffering you endured when you found no shelter at the inn of Bethlehem for the holy Virgin, nor a human hand to help you when the Son of God came into this world.

I ask it by that bitter grief you felt when the angel told you to arise and to take the Child and His Mother and flee into Egypt.

I ask it by all the sorrow, toil, and suffering of that long and dangerous journey.

I ask it by all your grief of soul when you humbly adored your Redeemer in the manger and saw the prophecy of Simeon fulfilled.

I ask it by that painful fear you felt when the Child Jesus was lost and you sought Him for three days, sorrowing.

I ask it by the joy with which you found Him in the Temple, and by the comfort you found at Nazareth.

I ask it by the wonderful submission to the will of God which you showed in your whole life.

I ask it by the sweet peace and eternal reward you obtained by your death in the arms of the Savior and His Immaculate Mother.

O blessed Saint Joseph, I implore your goodness. By the love you bear to Jesus Christ, and for the glory of His Name, hear my prayers and obtain my petitions.

[State your intention.]

Three times: Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.

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Further Reading

• 30-Day Novena to St. Joseph · The Catholic Company

• The Never-Failing Novena · Pray More Novenas