Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena Guide: How to Pray the 9-Day Prayer
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is one of the most beloved Marian devotions in the Catholic world. This guide explains who she is, what the icon means, and how to pray the nine-day novena step by step.
The Our Lady of Perpetual Help novena is prayed Wednesdays in many parishes — nine weeks or days asking Mary's intercession under the famous Byzantine icon. The Redemptorists popularized the devotion; the icon shows Christ clinging to his mother.
Who Is Our Lady of Perpetual Help?
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is one of the most beloved Marian icons in the Catholic world. The original icon, painted in the Byzantine style, depicts Mary holding the Child Jesus while two archangels — Michael and Gabriel — present the instruments of the Passion. The icon was entrusted to the Redemptorist Fathers in Rome in 1866 by Pope Pius IX, who asked them to "make her known throughout the world." Her feast day is June 27. The devotion is especially strong in the Philippines, Ireland, and the United States.
What Is a Novena?
A novena is a nine-day prayer, traditionally prayed in preparation for a feast day or in petition for a specific intention. The word comes from the Latin novem (nine). The Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena is traditionally prayed in the nine days before June 27, but can be prayed at any time.
Why Pray This Novena?
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is invoked for all kinds of needs — illness, family problems, financial difficulties, spiritual struggles, and any situation where we need a mother's help. The name itself is a promise: she is always ready to help, perpetually. Many Redemptorist parishes hold a weekly novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, which has been one of the most popular Catholic devotions in the United States for over a century.
How to Pray the Novena — Step by Step
- Choose your intention. Bring to Our Lady of Perpetual Help whatever you need most — healing, peace, guidance, or help for a loved one.
- Begin on any day. Many begin nine days before June 27 (her feast day). But any day is a good day to seek her help.
- Pray for nine consecutive days. Each day, pray the novena prayer once. Do not skip days.
- Attend the weekly novena at your parish. Many Redemptorist and other Catholic parishes hold a weekly novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, usually on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. Attending in community multiplies the grace.
- Pray the full novena online. The complete Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena — with the traditional prayer text for all nine days — is available at Catholic Bible Online. This free resource guides you through each day with the full prayer text.
Traditional Prayer to Our Lady of Perpetual Help
"O Mother of Perpetual Help, grant that I may ever invoke your most powerful name, which is the safeguard of the living and the salvation of the dying. O purest Mary, O sweetest Mary, let your name henceforth be ever on my lips. Delay not, O Blessed Lady, to help me whenever I call on you. Amen."
The Icon and Its Meaning
The icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is rich with symbolism. Mary holds the Child Jesus, who clings to her hand after seeing the instruments of his future Passion — the cross, the nails, and the lance — carried by the archangels Michael and Gabriel. The Child's sandal is slipping off, suggesting he ran to his mother in fear. Mary's gaze is directed outward — toward us — as if to say: "I am here. I will help you."
Ready to begin? The complete Our Lady of Perpetual Help Novena — with the full prayer text for all nine days — is available for free at Catholic Bible Online. You can pray it directly on the site, day by day, with no registration required. Our Lady of Perpetual Help, pray for us.