Baptism of the Lord Novena – 9 Days of Prayer

A nine-day novena for the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord (Sunday after Epiphany) — asking God to renew our baptismal identity, to help us hear the Father's voice saying 'You are my beloved,' and to embrace the mission that flows from it.

The Baptism of the Lord novena marks the day Jesus entered the Jordan and the Father spoke: You are my beloved Son. It asks God to renew your baptismal identity. It is celebrated on the Sunday after Epiphany in many places and closes the Christmas season. It is a good prayer for parents of newly baptised babies. The Church encourages us to remember the date of our baptism and to renew its promises. Pray the novena with your godparents or your children, and ask to live as a beloved child of God.

The Baptism of the Lord · January 139 daysfeast

A novena is nine consecutive days of prayer. Begin nine days before the feast (January 13) and finish on its eve. You can pray this novena at any time of year.

Pray this novena with daily reminders in the Sacred Novenas app

Open in the app App Store Google Play

Baptism of the Lord Novena – prayer for all nine days

Intention: For All the Baptized — to Live as Beloved Sons and Daughters of God, and to Embrace the Mission of Our Baptism

Father, when Your Son stood in the Jordan, You spoke over Him: 'You are my beloved Son, with You I am well pleased.' Those words were not only for Him. They were for all who are baptized into Him. Help us to hear those words spoken over us — today, now — and to believe them. Amen.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit —
you were all present at the Jordan.
The Son standing in the water.
The Spirit descending like a dove.
The Father speaking from the opened heavens.

And the words:
'You are my beloved Son. With you I am well pleased.'

Those words have echoed across two thousand years.
They echo over every baptismal font.
They echo over every person who has been buried with Christ in water
and raised with Him to new life.

Over us, too, the Father speaks.
Over us, who are so aware of our failures,
so convinced we are not enough —
the Father says: beloved.

Help us to believe it.
Not as a feeling that comes and goes,
but as a fact more solid than our doubt.

And help us to live from that identity —
not to earn it, not to prove it,
but to receive it,
and let it shape everything:
how we treat ourselves,
how we love others,
how we face what frightens us.

Lord, renew in us our baptism today.
Wash away what has accumulated.
Let the dove descend again.
Let the heavens open.
Let us hear: beloved.

Amen.
Hail Mary... Our Father... Glory Be...

Lord, let us hear: You are my beloved.

Pray this prayer once a day for nine days in a row.

Traditional Catholic Devotional Prayer · Feast Day: Sunday after Epiphany (January 13). When Jesus was baptized in the Jordan by John, the heavens opened, the Spirit descended like a dove, and a voice said: 'You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.' (Luke 3:22). This feast closes the Christmas season and marks the beginning of Christ's public ministry. It invites us to renew our own baptism.

More novenas

Frequently asked questions

When should I start the Baptism of the Lord Novena?

Begin nine days before the feast, which is celebrated in the days after Epiphany, and finish on its eve.

How do I pray the Baptism of the Lord Novena?

Pray the daily prayer once a day, and bless yourself with holy water.

Who is the Baptism of the Lord Novena for?

It is for the baptised, godparents and those preparing for baptism.

Pray this novena with daily reminders in the Sacred Novenas app

Open in the app App Store Google Play