Novena for Life
In preparation for the Fall 2023
40 Days for Life Campaign
Day 1 – September 18
Prayer to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Eternal God, You have revealed Yourself as the Father of all Life. We praise You for the
Fatherly care which You extend to all creation, and especially to us, made in Your image and
likeness. Father, extend Your hand of protection to those threatened by abortion, and save
them from its destructive power. Give Your strength to all fathers, that they may never give in
to the fears that may tempt them to facilitate abortions.
Lord Jesus, open my eyes to your presence in the life of every child. Open my heart to joy in
the birth of every child, a birth that reflects the joy of your own birth in Bethlehem. As you
shared life in the womb of Mary, so now send your protection upon every child still in the
womb and grant to their mothers the strength and joy that comes from welcoming the gift of
life.
Come Holy Spirit, Creator of all things...You who breathed over the waters at the dawn of
creation and brought forth all living beings --Come! Come and breathe on our world again,
immersed as it is in the Culture of Death! Come, O Lord and Giver of Life! Defeat the works of
death in our midst, that abortion may no longer stain our land. We know that no matter how
strong the forces of death may be, we can still find in You the endless source of life. Renew
that life in each of us and make us worthy apostles of the Culture of Life in our day! Amen.
Day 2 - September 19
For our nation
God Our Father, giver of life, we entrust the United States of America to your loving care. You
are the rock on which this nation was founded. You alone are the true source of our cherished
rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Reclaim this land for Your glory and dwell
among your people. Send your Spirit to touch the hearts of our nation’s leaders. Open their
minds to the great worth of human life and the responsibilities that accompany human
freedom. Remind your people that true happiness is rooted in seeking and doing your will and
your will is to always choose life. Lord, we pray that our nation repents of the millions of lives
lost to abortion and we pray for your mercy for according to your word: “Then if my people
who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from
their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” (2
Chronicles 7:14)
Day 3 – September 20
For elected officials
Heavenly Father, we pray for our elected officials. As you revealed in your Word, “there is no
authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Rom 13:1).
Help them to realize that their authority comes from you and they have a solemn duty to
uphold justice for all and to protect the most vulnerable among us, including the unborn. Give
them an appreciation for the Natural Law, the law that you established, and which is written in
every person’s heart. We pray for those who are blinded by political power or allegiance to a
political party, that the scales are removed from their eyes that they may be motivated by the
common good rather than their personal gain. We pray most of all that they recognize the
dignity of every unborn child and that they deserve to be protected as much as any other
human being. We thank you for those elected officials who are fighting for the right to life of
every unborn child. Give them courage and strength to continue the fight and support and
encouragement from those they represent.
Day 4 – September 21
Prayer for our courts and judges
Lord God, we thank you today for the gift of our nation. You alone rule the world with justice.
Yet you place in our hands the solemn duty of participating in the shaping of our government.
We pray today for our President and Senators who have the responsibility of placing judges on
our courts. Please protect this process from all obstruction. Please send us men and women
of wisdom, who respect Your law of Life. Please send us judges with humility, who seek Your
truth and not their own opinions and protect them from the forces of evil. Lord, give all of us
the courage we need to do what is right and to serve you, the Judge of all, with fidelity. We
ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen!
Day 5 – September 22
For the Church
Lord Jesus Christ, you established your Church to be a light unto the world and promised that
the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. Yet we see the forces of evil working both
externally and from within the Church to diminish its light. Lord, we pray that your Holy Spirit
inspire each member of the Church to ask themselves if they could be doing more for the
cause of life and to spur them to greater prayer and action on behalf of the unborn. Raise up
powerful witnesses to the Gospel of Life within the Church so that our culture may be
transformed and that someday abortion will be considered unthinkable.
Day 6 – September 23
For clergy
Lord, we thank you for our clergy and the sacrifices that they make to minister to those in their
congregations. We know the pressures on them are many, not the least of which is the desire
to be liked by the people entrusted to their spiritual care. Lord, we pray that they may have
the courage to speak the truth about the unpopular topic of abortion. May their love of their
people and concern for their souls outweigh their fear of controversy. We pray especially for
our bishops who are faced with so many distractions, that they realize the urgency and priority
that must be placed on protecting the unborn who are sacrificed by the thousands every day in
our country by the horror of abortion. May your Holy Spirit make them strong heralds of the
Gospel of Life to their flocks in both word and example so that the church may be awakened
and become a powerful force in building a Culture of Life. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Day 7 – September 24
Prayer for pregnancy centers
Lord, we thank You for Your grace in allowing pregnancy centers to operate in our area. We
pray that you protect them from all persecution from the enemies of life including vandals,
dishonest journalists, and unjust politicians. We beg Your blessings upon all supporters of
these centers, upon all who help in any way, and especially upon all those who come to the
centers for help. We ask You to influence these women to choose life for their babies. We ask
you to enlighten the counselors on how to individually help and advise each woman who
comes to these centers. Lord, we trust You with our lives and with the lives of our family
members. We put into Your hands all those who come to these centers looking for help. May
Your holy will be forever done and may all we do give You glory. Amen.
Day 8 – September 25
Prayer for the 40 DFL Campaign
Lord, we ask for the strength, courage, wisdom, determination and stamina to carry out this 40
Days for Life Campaign according to Your will. We pray that people from this community may
be inspired to come to the vigil site as prayerful witnesses to the Gospel of Life. We pray that
people will be inspired to engage in sacrificial fasting so that demonic forces of death may be
driven from our community. Guide us, we pray, as we go forth and proclaim Your truth,
always doing so with a spirit of love and compassion, as was demonstrated to us by Your Son,
Jesus Christ. In His name we pray, amen.
Day 9 – September 26
Prayer of personal commitment
Lord God, I thank you today for the gift of my life, and for the lives of all my brothers and
sisters. I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion, yet I rejoice that you
have conquered death by the Resurrection of Your Son. I am ready to do my part in ending
abortion. Today I commit myself never to be silent, never to be passive, and never to be
forgetful of the unborn. I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement, and never to
stop defending life until all my brothers and sisters are protected, and our nation once again
becomes a nation with liberty and justice not just for some, but for all, through Christ our Lord.
Amen!
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