St. Francis Xavier Novena – 9 Days of Prayer
Novena to the greatest missionary since St. Paul — who baptized thousands, crossed oceans, and died looking toward China
St. Francis Xavier was a Jesuit missionary, a co-founder with St. Ignatius, who travelled to India, Japan and the East and baptised thousands. He died in 1552 on an island off China. This novena asks for missionary zeal. His feast is December 3, and the novena is traditionally prayed in the days before it. He baptised thousands in India and Japan and is the patron of missions with St. Therese. Pray it in the days before his feast, for missionary work, and for the courage to cross a boundary you have been avoiding.
A novena is nine consecutive days of prayer. Begin nine days before the feast (December 3) 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 StoreGoogle PlaySt. Francis Xavier Novena – prayer for all nine days
Intention: For Missionaries and the Spread of the Gospel
St. Francis Xavier, you were born a Spanish nobleman with a brilliant career ahead of you. Then you met Ignatius of Loyola at the University of Paris, and everything changed. He repeated to you the words of Christ: 'What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul?' You couldn't unhear them.
St. Francis Xavier, you left Europe in 1541 and never came back. You sailed to India, to Japan, to the Spice Islands — covering more missionary ground than any single person in history. You slept on beaches. You learned languages no European had ever spoken. You baptized so many people that your arm grew tired and you had to stop and rest it.
You said: 'Give me the souls, and keep the rest.' You gave your life in exchange for souls — not as an abstraction, but as a practice: each face, each name, each village, each person who received the news of Christ for the first time through you.
You died alone on a small island off the coast of China, looking toward a continent you had prayed to reach. You were forty-six. You had been a missionary for eleven years. In those eleven years you had changed the religious landscape of Asia.
I bring before you the missions — near and far.
(Pause to mention your intentions — missionaries you know, people who have not yet heard the Gospel, your own call to witness)
St. Francis Xavier, patron of foreign missions, pray for all missionaries — those who cross oceans and those who cross the street to speak to a neighbor. Pray that the Church may always have men and women who love souls more than comfort. And pray for me, that I may never keep the Good News to myself when someone around me needs to hear it.
Our Father... Hail Mary... Glory Be...
St. Francis Xavier, pray for us.
Pray this prayer once a day for nine days in a row.
Traditional Catholic Devotional Prayer · Feast Day: December 3. Co-founder of the Jesuits with St. Ignatius. Patron of foreign missions and all missionaries
More novenas
- St. Jude Novena
- Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena
- St. Joseph Novena
- St. Therese Novena
- St. Anthony of Padua Novena
- St. Rita Novena
Frequently asked questions
When should I start the St. Francis Xavier Novena?
Begin on November 24 to end on December 2, the eve of the feast on December 3. A famous Jesuit tradition also prays a novena of grace in March.
How do I pray the St. Francis Xavier Novena?
Pray the daily prayer once a day, and offer it for missionaries.
Who is the St. Francis Xavier Novena for?
It is for missionaries, travellers and anyone far from home.
Pray this novena with daily reminders in the Sacred Novenas app
Open in the app App StoreGoogle Play