St. Francis Xavier Prayer and the Novena of Grace

St. Francis Xavier (1506–1552), one of the first Jesuits, carried the Gospel to India, Southeast Asia and Japan and is the patron of the Catholic missions. For nearly four hundred years Catholics have prayed to him in the Novena of Grace, nine days of prayer that end on March 12, the anniversary of his canonization, or on the eve of his feast, December 3. Below is the traditional Novena of Grace prayer, how and when to pray it, prayers for missionaries and for those far from God, Scripture that shaped his life, and his story.

The Novena of Grace prayer

The prayer of the Novena of Grace, in the translation of The Raccolta (1910), where it appears with an indulgence granted by Pope St. Pius X in 1904:

Great St. Francis, well beloved and full of charity, with thee I reverently adore the divine Majesty; and since I specially rejoice in the singular gifts of grace, bestowed on thee in life, and of glory after death, I give thanks to God, and beg of thee, with all the affections of my heart, that by thy powerful intercession thou mayest obtain for me above all things the grace to live a holy life and die a holy death. Moreover, I beg of thee to obtain for me (here insert some special spiritual or temporal favour); but if what I ask does not tend to the glory of God and the greater good of my soul, do thou, I beseech thee, obtain for me what will more certainly attain these ends. Amen.

How to pray the Novena of Grace

Pray the Novena of Grace prayer above once each day for nine days, naming your request.
Add an Our Father, a Hail Mary and a Glory Be. Many add a short reflection on the day’s theme below.
If possible, go to confession and receive Holy Communion during the novena.

When to pray it: traditionally from March 4 to March 12, ending on the anniversary of his canonization, or from November 24 to December 2, ending on the eve of his feast. In 2026 the Advent novena runs from Tuesday, November 24, to Wednesday, December 2, and the feast is Thursday, December 3. The Raccolta notes that the novena may be made at other times of the year too.

The origin of the novena: in 1633 a young Jesuit in Naples, Father Marcello Mastrilli, was gravely injured when a heavy hammer fell on his head. As he lay dying he vowed to go to the missions if he recovered, and he reported that St. Francis Xavier appeared to him and healed him. He went to Japan, where he was martyred in 1637. The devotion he spread became known as the Novena of Grace because of the many graces people received through it.

Themes for the nine days

“What doth it profit a man?” The question that turned Francis’s ambition toward God.
Companions in the Lord. His friendship with St. Ignatius and the first Jesuits. Pray for your friends.
Sent. He set sail for India on his thirty-fifth birthday. Pray for missionaries.
The poor and the children. He walked through the villages ringing a bell to call children to learn their prayers. Pray for catechists and children.
The sick. He spent nights in the hospitals of Goa. Pray for the sick.
Courage. He faced shipwreck, illness and danger. Pray for courage in your own trials.
Japan. He brought the Gospel to Japan, where the faith survived in secret for centuries. Pray for persecuted Christians.
Longing for China. He died within sight of the land he hoped to reach. Pray for those who have never heard of Christ.
A holy death. Pray for the grace “to live a holy life and die a holy death.”

A prayer for missionaries

Written for this page:

St. Francis Xavier, tireless messenger of the Gospel,
pray for all missionaries, priests, religious and lay people
who leave home to make Christ known.
Give them courage, health and joy,
protect them in danger,
and make their words and lives a light for all who meet them. Amen.

A prayer for those far from God

St. Francis Xavier, you longed for every person to know the love of Jesus.
I entrust to you (name), who has drifted away from faith.
Ask the Lord to touch his (her) heart,
and help me to witness by patience, kindness and prayer. Amen.

This prayer was written for this page. St. Francis Xavier also composed a prayer for the conversion of unbelievers, which The Raccolta includes among its indulgenced prayers.

Scripture for St. Francis Xavier

St. Ignatius of Loyola is said to have repeated these words to Francis when they were students in Paris until they changed his life:

For what doth it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his own soul? Or what exchange shall a man give for his soul?

The command he obeyed:

And he said to them: Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, and that preacheth peace: of him that sheweth forth good, that preacheth salvation, that saith to Sion: Thy God shall reign!

The life of St. Francis Xavier

Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta was born on April 7, 1506, at the castle of Javier in the kingdom of Navarre, in northern Spain. In 1525 he went to study at the University of Paris, where he shared a room with Peter Faber and, later, with an older Basque student, Ignatius of Loyola. Francis, gifted and ambitious, at first resisted Ignatius, but he eventually made the Spiritual Exercises and gave his life to God. On August 15, 1534, at Montmartre, he was one of the seven companions who made the vows from which the Society of Jesus was born.

In 1540 King John III of Portugal asked for missionaries for his territories in Asia, and Ignatius sent Francis. He sailed from Lisbon on April 7, 1541, and reached Goa, in India, in May 1542. For ten years he travelled tirelessly: among the pearl fishers of southern India, in Malacca and the Moluccas, and in Japan, where he arrived in 1549. He taught the catechism, baptized many thousands, cared for the sick in hospitals and wrote letters to Europe that inspired a generation of missionaries.

His last hope was to bring the Gospel to China. In 1552 he reached the island of Shangchuan, off the Chinese coast, but fell ill with fever and died there on December 3, 1552, aged forty-six. His body was later taken to Goa, where it rests in the Basilica of Bom Jesus. He was canonized on March 12, 1622, by Pope Gregory XV, together with Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, Philip Neri and Isidore the Farmer. Pope Pius XI named him patron of the missions, together with St. Thérèse of Lisieux.

Feast day and patronage

Feast day: December 3.
Patron of: the Catholic missions (with St. Thérèse of Lisieux), missionaries, India, Japan, the Far East and navigators.
Symbols: a crucifix, a flaming heart, a bell, and a crab holding a crucifix, after the legend that a crab returned the crucifix he lost at sea.

Frequently asked questions

Why is it called the Novena of Grace?

Because of the many graces people received through it, beginning with the healing that Father Marcello Mastrilli attributed to St. Francis Xavier in 1633.

When do you pray the Novena of Grace?

From March 4 to 12, ending on the anniversary of his canonization, or from November 24 to December 2, before his feast. It may also be prayed at other times.

What is St. Francis Xavier the patron saint of?

The missions and missionaries, and the countries where he preached, especially India and Japan.

Where is St. Francis Xavier buried?

In the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa, India. His right arm, with which he baptized, is kept in the Church of the Gesù in Rome.

More novenas and prayers

Texts and sources

Novena of Grace prayer: The Raccolta, or Collection of Indulgenced Prayers and Good Works (London: Burns and Oates, 1910), no. 390, public domain (archive.org).
Scripture: Matthew 16:26; Mark 16:15; Isaias (Isaiah) 52:7, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
The other prayers and the daily themes were written for this page.