Novena to the Holy Spirit (to be done between Ascension and Pentecost)

Updated : Sat 27 Apr 2024 AM (UTC +1)

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Between the time of the Ascension and Pentecost, the Church, in prayer with the Virgin Mary and the Apostles, invites each member of the faithful to invoke the Holy Spirit in a special way. Sacred Scripture attests that during the nine days between the Ascension and Pentecost, the Apostles "with one heart participated faithfully in prayer, with some women, including Mary, the Mother of Jesus" (Acts 1:14), waiting to be "clothed with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). Let us not be afraid to grasp the great graces that are offered to us in making this novena of St. Alphonsus Liguori.

Let us prepare our hearts to welcome the power of the Holy Spirit with in all our lives!
Fear of God, piety, knowledge, strength, counsel, intelligence and wisdom are the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit that we ask for with faith and trust.

The ideal is to take time each day in praise, worship and singing in tongues to welcome the Glory of God and the Baptism in the Holy Spirit at Pentecost!
Let us also add every day the little prayer, the Veni Creator, an Our Father and a Hail Mary.

Veni Creator Prayer
Come, Creator Spirit visit us Come, enlighten the souls of your sons;
Fill our hearts with grace and light, You who create everything with love.
You the Gift, the envoy of the Most High God,
You made yourself the Defender for us;
You are Love, Fire, the Living Source,
Strength and sweetness of the Lord's grace.
Give us the seven gifts of your love,
You, the finger that works in the Name of the Father ;
You whose reign and coming he promised us,
You who inspire our tongues to sing.
Put your clarity within us, set us ablaze,
In our hearts, spread the Father's love;
Come strengthen our bodies in their weakness,
And give us your eternal strength.
Drive away the enemy that threatens us,
Make haste to give us peace;
That we may walk under your guidance,
And may our lives be washed of all sin.
Let us see the face of the Most High,
And reveal to us that of the Son;
And you, the common Spirit who gathers them together, come into our hearts,
that we'll always believe in you.
Glory be to God our Father in heaven,
Glory to the Son who ascends from Hell;
Glory to the Spirit of Strength and Wisdom,
In all the centuries of the centuries. Amen!

———–

First day Prayer to the Sanctifying Spirit
Holy Spirit sanctifier, I bow down before you and adore you in the deepest desire of my soul. I thank you for all the graces you have given me up to this day, and I ask you to forgive me for having corresponded so badly to them. Holy Spirit, give me the love of prayer and of all the virtues you want to see fructify in me. O Father of the poor, O dispenser of heavenly gifts, hear my humble prayer.

Second day Prayer for the gift of Fear
Holy Spirit, spirit of love and truth, adorable source of all perfection, I adore you and I thank you for all the benefits you have given me. How many times in the past I have upset you and driven you out of my heart! Forgive me!
Give me filial fear and let it penetrate me with a deep respect for God and the things of God. May filial fear make me avoid the smallest faults for fear of displeasing my Father in Heaven.

Third day Prayer for the gift of Piety
Holy Spirit, abyss of goodness and gentleness, I adore you and thank you for all the graces you have granted me, especially for having clothed me with the sublime dignity of a child of God. Unfortunately, I have not always lived in a way worthy of this great privilege. Deign Holy Spirit to send me the true spirit of the children of God: the spirit of Piety, which gives me, for God, feelings of filial love and gentle trust, and, for my neighbor, a tender and compassionate heart.

Day Four Prayer for the Gift of Science
Holy Spirit, God of light and love, I adore you and thank you for all your blessings, especially for having given me an intelligence to know you and a heart to love you. Awaken in me, Lord, the gift of Science; with it I will see in created things only the means to go to God. I will use them only to lead me to Him, and I will refrain from using them if they should lead me away from Him. Then will I be indifferent to wealth or poverty, honor or contempt, health or sickness, long life or short life; I will love and seek in all things only the lovely will of my Father.

Fifth day Prayer for the gift of Strength
Holy Spirit, Almighty God, who so wonderfully transformed the Apostles by making them, weak and timid as they were, so strong and fearless that no created power could ever shake them; here I am humbly bowing down before you, I who am such a weak creature.
O Holy Spirit, it is in thee alone that I hope, it is from thee alone that I await my salvation. Communicate to me, please, your gift of Strength that makes me invincible over Jesus, the rock that saves me. Then I will no longer fear my enemies, and you will give me the grace to defeat them completely and always.

Sixth day Prayer for the gift of Counsel
Holy Spirit, who, in your infinite love, wants to be my guide in the paths of this life, in order to lead me surely, I adore you and thank you for the precious advice you have given me up to this day. Unfortunately I have too often preferred to let myself be led by the angel of darkness, by my senses and my passions. Have mercy on me and forgive me!
Here I am, today, resolved to follow you everywhere, Holy Spirit, wherever it pleases you to lead me. May your gift of counsel lead me step by step, so that I may never stray from the path you have set for me.

Seventh day Prayer for the gift of Intelligence
Holy Spirit, who pleases you to shine your light on humble, upright and pure souls, while you refuse it to the proud. Oh, I beg you, by the merits of Jesus Christ and by the almighty intercession of your dear wife, the Virgin Mary, deign to forgive me all my sins, by detaching my heart entirely from evil earthly affections.
Let the heavenly rays of the gift of Intelligence shine upon my soul, in spite of my unworthiness, so that it may discover the hidden beauties of the truths of faith.

Eighth day Prayer for the gift of Wisdom
Holy Spirit, who, through your admirable gift of Wisdom, elevates souls to the highest holiness, uniting them closely to You. Today, enlightened by your divine light, I recognize my errors, I deplore them from the bottom of my heart and I sincerely hate them. Whatever my unworthiness, please send me divine Wisdom. He alone will teach me to taste only God and the things of God, to judge all things according to the relationship they have with Him.
God alone will be the object of all my sighs, of all my love. Yes, I will love Him, this one and only Good, this supreme and eternal Good.

Ninth day Prayer to Mary, beloved wife of the Holy Spirit
Mary, most worthy Spouse of the Holy Spirit and beloved Mother of my soul, you who, from the first moment of your existence, have been adorned with the gifts of the Holy Spirit and have made them bear fruit admirably through constant fidelity and ever-increasing love, deign to look with compassion on your child, so poor, so unworthy, prostrate here at your feet. I am resolved to give myself to God without reservation.
Mary, who through your ardent desires and fervent prayers once drew the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, pray for me too. By the merits of your seven sorrows, obtain for me the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, and the grace to correspond faithfully to them.
- Obtain for me the gift of Fear, that I may weep for the rest of my life for the sins I have committed, and henceforth avoid all that is displeasing to God.
- Obtain for me the gift of Piety, which penetrates me with tender trust and filial love towards the Heavenly Father; may he make me find, through his sweet anointing, the yoke of the Lord light and sweet.
- Obtain for me the gift of Science, which elevates me to God by means of creatures, and teach me the difficult art of using it or abstaining from it according to God's will.
- Obtain for me the gift of Strength, which makes me capable of overcoming all the temptations of the devil, of always fulfilling my duties perfectly and of praising every day of this life.
- Obtain for me the gift of Counsel, which makes me constantly choose the most suitable means and makes me discern, in difficult occasions, what I must do to please God.
- Obtain for me the gift of Intelligence, which makes me discover the splendor of the truths and mysteries of our holy religion.
- Obtain for me, finally, the gift of Wisdom, which makes me know true happiness, to pass sound judgment on everything, to taste God and His most holy will in everything.
O Faithful Virgin, may I never again lose these precious gifts; but may I, following your example, preserve them and make them bear fruit until death. Finally, O sweet Mother, may I have the happiness of being led by the Holy Spirit in this life, and may I be brought by Him into heaven to love and praise the adorable Holy Trinity forever, in union with you, to whom all honour and glory is given.

+ Final personal prayer.

Act of consecration to the Holy Spirit
In the presence of heaven and earth filled with your glory and kneeling before your divine majesty, I offer myself body and soul to you eternal Spirit of God. I adore the radiance of your purity, the unalterable integrity of your justice, and the power of your love. You are the strength and light of my soul; through you I live, think and act. May I never sin against you, nor oppose you in resisting grace!
Guide my thoughts; let me always hear your voice and obey your sweet inspirations. I cling to you, I give myself to you, and I beg your mercy to watch over my weakness.
Prostrate at the feet of Our Lord Jesus Christ, crucified, contemplating his wounds, full of confidence in his precious blood, adoring his open side and his broken heart, I beg you, adorable Spirit, support of my frailty, to preserve me from any fault, and if I fall, to grant me forgiveness.
Give me the grace, O Holy Spirit, Spirit of the Father and of the Son, to say to you always and everywhere: "Speak Lord, your servant is listening! »
Spirit of wisdom, presides over all my thoughts, words and deeds, from the present hour until the hour of my death.
Spirit of understanding, enlighten me, teach me.
Spirit of counsel, direct my inexperience.
Spirit of strength, strengthen my weakness.
Spirit of science, dispel my ignorance.
Spirit of piety, lead me to persevere in the right path.
Spirit of fear, deliver me from all evil.
Spirit of peace, give me your peace.
Divine Holy Spirit, make me faithful in the service of God.
Give me the strength to act, on all occasions, with your fruits: love, joy, peace, forbearance, helpfulness, kindness, trust, gentleness, and self-control.
Since you are my life, Holy Spirit, make me act according to your heart always!
Amen!

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