Best Catholic novenas for protection
The Catholic Church has cultivated specific devotions for the protection of the soul from evil, the defense of the household, and the safety of the family in the face of physical, moral, and spiritual threats. The three principal Catholic novenas for these intentions are featured below: to Saint Michael the Archangel, to Saint Joseph, and to Saint Christopher.
If you need to start a novena today: begin with the Saint Michael the Archangel Novena, the Catholic devotion most associated with protection from spiritual evil and defense of the household.
The Saint Michael the Archangel Novena
For: spiritual protection, defense against evil, and the courage to do God's will
Saint Michael the Archangel is the universal Catholic patron of spiritual warfare and the defender of the Church against the powers of evil. The Catholic tradition has held since the patristic age that Michael is the leader of the heavenly armies who cast Lucifer out of heaven (Revelation 12:7-9). Pope Leo XIII composed the famous Saint Michael Prayer ('Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle...') in 1886 after a vision of the spiritual struggle ahead for the Catholic Church. The Saint Michael Novena is the principal Catholic devotion for protection from evil, for spiritual warfare, and for the defense of the household against external malice.
When to pray it: When the household faces a specific spiritual threat, when discerning the presence of evil influence, on the feast of Saint Michael (September 29), or whenever the Catholic recognizes the need for explicit spiritual defense.
The St Joseph Novena
For: the protection and intercession of Saint Joseph for family, employment, holy death, and the needs of the Universal Church
Saint Joseph is the head of the Holy Family and the protector of the household. Pope Leo XIII's encyclical Quamquam Pluries (1889) consecrated the universal Catholic Church to the protection of Saint Joseph specifically as the defender against the spiritual and moral threats of the modern age. The Saint Joseph Novena is the traditional Catholic prayer for the protection of the family unit: the marriage bond, the moral safety of children, and the integrity of the home as a Catholic domestic church.
When to pray it: When the family faces a specific external threat (financial, moral, relational), on the two feasts of Saint Joseph (March 19 and May 1), or as a perpetual devotion of the household.
The Saint Christopher Novena
For: obtaining the protection of Saint Christopher on travelers, motorists, and those facing storms
Saint Christopher is the universal Catholic patron of travelers and those facing physical danger in transit. The Saint Christopher Novena is prayed for protection during journeys, deployments, missionary assignments, and seasons of significant relocation. Many Catholics pray it alongside the Saint Michael Novena when the protection sought is both physical and spiritual.
When to pray it: Before a significant journey, deployment, or any season of significant external exposure.
The Catholic theology of spiritual protection
Catholic doctrine teaches the real existence of spiritual evil. The Catechism of the Catholic Church affirms the existence of fallen angels (paragraphs 391-395) and the activity of the devil in history. Catholic spiritual writers across the tradition (Saint Athanasius, Saint Augustine, Saint Thomas Aquinas, the desert fathers, the great mystics of the Catholic counter-reformation) have consistently taught that the Christian life involves real spiritual struggle.
The Catholic response to this teaching is the prayer of protection, rooted in the Sacrament of Baptism (which is itself an exorcism, as the baptismal liturgy makes explicit) and the daily disciplines of the Catholic life: the Sign of the Cross, the morning offering, the daily rosary, the frequent reception of the sacraments. The novenas of protection are the explicit and intensified prayer for specific seasons of struggle.
The Saint Michael Prayer at the end of Mass
From 1886 until the liturgical reforms of the mid-twentieth century, the Saint Michael Prayer composed by Pope Leo XIII was prayed after every Low Mass throughout the universal Catholic Church. The practice fell into general disuse after the Second Vatican Council but has been restored in many parishes since the late twentieth century, often at the explicit recommendation of the local Catholic bishop.
Catholics may legitimately pray the Saint Michael Prayer privately at the end of Mass even where the parish does not pray it corporately. Pope Saint John Paul II explicitly recommended the revival of the practice in a 1994 Regina Caeli address.
Pairing protection novenas with the sacraments
Catholic prayer for protection is most fruitful when the soul is in a state of grace. The Sacrament of Penance, frequent reception of the Eucharist, and the use of Catholic sacramentals (the Saint Benedict medal, the brown scapular, blessed holy water, the Crucifix in the home) are the ordinary Catholic means of spiritual defense. The novenas of protection are the intensified prayer within this broader sacramental life.
Frequently asked questions
Is praying the Saint Michael Novena Catholic exorcism?
No. Exorcism in the strict canonical sense is a sacramental of the Catholic Church performed by an ordained priest with the permission of the local bishop. The Saint Michael Novena is a lay devotion of prayer for protection, not a rite of exorcism. The novena is fully appropriate for any Catholic to pray and does not require special permission.
What is the Saint Michael Prayer of Pope Leo XIII?
It is the short prayer composed by Pope Leo XIII in 1886 after a reported vision of the spiritual conflict ahead for the Catholic Church: 'Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits, who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.' Pope Leo XIII originally directed it to be prayed after every Low Mass; many Catholics continue to pray it at the end of Mass today.
When should a Catholic seek formal exorcism rather than novena prayer?
Cases of suspected demonic oppression or possession should be brought to the local Catholic priest, who in turn consults the diocesan bishop. Novena prayer is the ordinary Catholic devotion for protection and is appropriate in every normal case of spiritual struggle. Genuine extraordinary demonic activity is rare, and the discernment of it is reserved to the Catholic priesthood.
Can I pray for protection of someone else without their knowledge?
Yes. The Catholic doctrine of intercessory prayer holds that prayers for another's protection are received by God for that person's benefit regardless of whether they know they are being prayed for. Catholic parents commonly pray the Saint Michael Novena for the protection of children whose spiritual situation worries them.
Related Catholic prayers for protection
Beyond these three novenas, several Catholic prayers are traditionally prayed for protection: the Sign of the Cross made at the start and end of every day; the Anima Christi with its line "From the malignant enemy defend me"; the Memorare as the prayer of confidence in Marian protection. The Holy Rosary itself is the principal Catholic prayer of spiritual defense, prayed daily by Catholics across the centuries as the great prayer of the household.