The Saint Patrick Novena

The Saint Patrick Novena is a nine-day Catholic prayer through the intercession of Saint Patrick, the fifth-century missionary bishop who brought the Catholic faith to Ireland and is one of the most beloved Catholic saints of the Western tradition. The novena is prayed for missionary courage, for the conversion of Ireland and the wider Catholic world, and for personal protection through the Lorica (Breastplate) prayer attributed to Patrick.

Origin and historical development

Saint Patrick was born around 385 in Roman Britain, captured by Irish raiders at sixteen, escaped after six years of slavery, was ordained a bishop, and returned to Ireland as a missionary, where he served until his death around 461. He left two principal Catholic writings: the Confessio (his spiritual autobiography) and the Epistola ad Coroticum (a letter against a British warlord who had killed his Irish Christian converts).

The novena form draws from Patrick's own writings and the medieval Catholic prayer-tradition of the Lorica Sancti Patricii, a long protective prayer attributed to Patrick and preserved in the Liber Hymnorum (eleventh century).

Structure of the novena

Each day of the novena attends to one aspect of Patrick's life and Catholic witness: his captivity, his escape, his missionary call, his return to Ireland, the kindling of the Paschal fire at Tara, the catechesis of the Trinity through the shamrock, the Lorica prayer, his fidelity in old age, and his missionary patronage of the modern Catholic Church.

When the novena is prayed

The traditional dates of the novena are March 8 through March 16, ending on the eve of the Solemnity of Saint Patrick on March 17. The novena may also be prayed at any time of year for personal intentions involving missionary work, conversion, or protection.

Theological foundation

The novena rests on the Catholic doctrine of the Communion of Saints and on the singular Catholic patrimony of Ireland and the Irish diaspora. For the related Catholic teaching on saint patronage, see What is a patron saint?.

Pairing with other prayers

The novena pairs naturally with the Lorica Sancti Patricii (the Breastplate prayer), the Holy Rosary, and the Apostles' Creed (Patrick's catechetical reference). For related missionary novenas, see the Saint Therese Novena (patroness of the missions).

Sources

Saint Patrick's Confessio and Epistola ad Coroticum are the principal primary sources. Modern critical biography: Daniel Conneely, St Patrick's Letters: A Study of Their Theological Dimension (Cistercian Publications, 1993).