Novena to Saint Damien of Molokai – 9 Days of Prayer

A nine-day novena to Saint Damien de Veuster (1840–1889), the Belgian priest who voluntarily exiled himself to the leper colony of Molokai, Hawaii, and eventually contracted leprosy himself — patron of those with HIV/AIDS, outcasts, and the marginalized.

St. Damien of Molokai was a Belgian priest who volunteered to live among people with leprosy on the Hawaiian island of Molokai. He eventually contracted the disease himself and died in 1889. This novena asks for his help for the sick and for those who care for them. His feast is May 10. He arrived at Kalaupapa in 1873 and stayed, building a church and caring for the community. Pray the novena for people stigmatised by illness, for carers who sacrifice, and for the grace to draw near to those others avoid.

Saint Damien of Molokai · May 109 dayssaint

A novena is nine consecutive days of prayer. Begin nine days before the feast (May 10) 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

Novena to Saint Damien of Molokai – prayer for all nine days

Intention: For Those Who Are Cast Out, for the Sick and Marginalized, and for the Courage to Stay When Others Leave

Saint Damien, you went where no one else wanted to go, and you stayed when you could have left. You did not serve the lepers from a safe distance — you lived with them, ate with them, built coffins for them, and eventually became one of them. Pray for us, that we might have a fraction of your courage — to draw near to those whom the world has pushed away. Amen.

Saint Damien of Molokai,
you sailed to the edge of the world
to find people who had been sent there to disappear.

They were not disappeared to God.
They were not disappeared to you.

You built them a church.
You built them coffins, so they would not be buried like animals.
You bathed their wounds.
You heard their confessions.
You sat with them while they were dying
and made sure they did not die alone.

And then one day you said from the pulpit:
'We lepers.'
Because you had become one of them.
Not by accident. By love.

Saint Damien, the world is still full of leper colonies.
Full of people sent to the margins to be forgotten.
Full of the sick, the addicted, the imprisoned,
the ones society has decided are not worth the cost.

Pray for those people.
Pray for those who serve them.
Pray for the courage to stay —
when leaving would be easier, safer, cleaner.

And pray for all of us who are ourselves outcasts
in some way we cannot show —
that we would know we are not forgotten by God,
that someone is building a church for us too.

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

Saint Damien of Molokai, pray for us.

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

Traditional Catholic Devotional Prayer · Feast Day: May 10. Damien de Veuster (1840-1889) was a Belgian priest of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts who volunteered to serve the leper colony on Molokai, Hawaii. After sixteen years of service, he began his homily with: 'We lepers...' He had contracted the disease. He died of leprosy in 1889. Canonized 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI.

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Frequently asked questions

When should I start the Novena to Saint Damien of Molokai?

Begin on May 1 to end on May 9, the eve of the feast on May 10.

How do I pray the Novena to Saint Damien of Molokai?

Pray the daily prayer once a day, and remember those with chronic or stigmatised illness.

Who is the Novena to Saint Damien of Molokai for?

It is for people with leprosy, HIV and chronic illness, and their carers.

Pray this novena with daily reminders in the Sacred Novenas app

Open in the app App Store Google Play