Novena to St Gemma

The novena to St Gemma Galgani is nine days of prayer asking the intercession of the young Tuscan mystic whom the Church calls the "Daughter of the Passion" — the virgin of Lucca who bore in her own flesh the wounds of the Crucified. It is prayed above all for purity of heart, for the conversion of sinners, for a holy acceptance of suffering, and, because of the illness that marked her short life, for healing of the body — most often for back pain and back injury, of which she is a favoured patron. Her feast falls on 11 April, and the nine days before it are the natural time to keep the novena; but it may be prayed at any season for any pressing need. Below is the full traditional novena, the short and the back-pain forms, her own prayer to obtain a grace, and the story of her life.

The full novena to St Gemma Galgani

The traditional novena is prayed once a day for nine days. Each day opens with the same act of adoration and the same petition to St Gemma; then a distinct meditation is added for the day, followed by the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be, the versicle, and the concluding prayer. Name your intention where the text invites it. If you are new to this form of prayer, our guide to what is a novena explains the nine days and how to keep them.

The daily opening (said every day)

O most divine Lord, we humbly prostrate ourselves before Thy infinite Majesty, and we adore Thee, and dedicate to Thy glory the devout prayers which we now present to Thee, as an act of devotion to Thy servant, St Gemma Galgani, whose intercession we are now imploring.

Most compassionate virgin, St Gemma, during thy short life on earth thou gavest a most beautiful example of angelic innocence and seraphic love, and wast found worthy to bear in thy flesh the marks of our Lord's Passion. Have pity on us who are so much in need of God's mercy, and obtain for us, through thy merits and intercession, the special favour which we now fervently implore. (Here name your request.)

The nine days

Day 1 — Love of God above all. Beloved gem of Christ, St Gemma, whose heart was all on fire for the love of God, teach us to love God with all our heart, mind, and soul, and to place Him fervently above all things. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 2 — Purity and holy virginity. O bright flower of heaven, St Gemma, mirror of purity, who guarded thy virginity as a treasure and offered it whole to thy Spouse, obtain for us the grace of purity and a firm defence against every temptation of the flesh. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 3 — Suffering for the conversion of sinners. Loving St Gemma, who offered thy sufferings for the salvation of poor sinners and loved thy neighbour as thyself, teach us to bear our own crosses for the good of souls and to love others for the love of God. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 4 — Sacrifice. St Gemma, who wast left an orphan while still young and learned early the meaning of sacrifice, teach us to give up ourselves and all we hold dear when God asks it, and to find in the cross the beginning of joy. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 5 — Acceptance of God's will. Faithful St Gemma, whose dearest desire — to enter religion — was denied thee, yet who bowed to the will of God without complaint, teach us to accept with peace the desires He leaves unfulfilled, saying always: Thy will be done. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 6 — Fervent love of God. St Gemma, seraph of love, whose whole being burned with longing for Jesus Crucified, kindle in our cold hearts something of that same fire, that we may love God above every earthly thing. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 7 — For the salvation of sinners. Compassionate St Gemma, who wept and prayed and did penance for the conversion of hardened sinners, plead now before the throne of mercy for all who are far from God, and for the souls dearest to our own hearts. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 8 — Sorrow for sin and penance. St Gemma, lover of penance, who chastised thy innocent body for the sins of others, obtain for us a true sorrow for our own sins, a hatred of all that offends God, and the spirit of penance while there is yet time. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

Day 9 — Her patronage and a holy death. Dearest St Gemma, our advocate and guide, who didst die a holy death in union with the Passion of thy Lord, take us under thy protection, direct us in the way of holiness, and assist us in the hour of our death, that with thee we may praise God for ever. Obtain for us this grace, and the favour we ask.

The daily close (said every day)

Our Father… Hail Mary… Glory be…

V. Pray for us, St Gemma,
R. that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray. O God, who didst fashion Thy servant St Gemma into a living likeness of Thy crucified Son, grant us through her intercession the favour that we humbly request, if it be for the good of our souls; through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

The short novena to St Gemma

Not everyone can keep the fuller form, and there is a well-loved short novena that many prefer: on each of the nine days, one simply prays the daily opening above — the adoration of God and the petition to St Gemma — followed by one Our Father, one Hail Mary, and one Glory Be, and the versicle "Pray for us, St Gemma…" This is the same devotion stripped to its heart, and it is perfectly sufficient. Name your intention each day and pray it at a fixed hour.

A 3-day novena to St Gemma Galgani

A 3-day novena is a shorter form of the same devotion, kept over three days rather than nine — often prayed in urgent need, or as a triduum immediately before her feast on 11 April. There is no separate three-day text: you pray the daily opening and close above, once a day for three days, naming your intention. Nine days remains the traditional and fuller measure; the three-day triduum is a devout and legitimate abbreviation.

The novena to St Gemma for back pain

Of all the requests brought to St Gemma, the one for relief from back pain and back injury is among the most frequent, and it is not arbitrary. In the last months of her life St Gemma suffered from tuberculosis of the spine (Pott's disease), borne with heroic patience in union with the Passion. For this reason the faithful have long invoked her as a patron of those who suffer in the back and spine, and of the sick generally. To pray the novena for this intention, keep the full nine days above and, at the petition, name your need plainly:

St Gemma, who didst bear the pains of thy own body without complaint and in union with the wounds of Jesus, obtain for me, if it be God's will, relief from this pain of the back and spine, and above all the grace to carry what remains as thou didst — patiently, and for love. Amen.

Ask for healing, but ask first for the strength to suffer well; St Gemma will obtain the one or the other, whichever is better for the soul. For another sure intercessor in bodily sickness, many join to this the novena to St Peregrine, patron of the sick, and the Five Wounds chaplet, which honours the very wounds St Gemma bore.

St Gemma's own prayer to obtain a grace

Besides the novena, St Gemma left a short prayer of her own — a prayer of gratitude and confident asking that she herself used, and that the faithful pray to this day when they need a particular favour:

Behold me at Thy most holy feet, O dear Jesus, to manifest to Thee my gratitude for the continual favours which Thou hast bestowed upon me, and still wishest to bestow upon me. As many times as I have invoked Thee, O Jesus, Thou hast made me content; I have often had recourse to Thee, and Thou hast always consoled me. Yet one more grace I desire of Thee, O my God, if it would be pleasing to Thee — (here mention your request). If Thou wert not omnipotent, I would not make this request. O Jesus, have pity on me. May Thy most holy will be done in all things. Amen.

The novena to St Gemma for purity

Because St Gemma guarded her virginity as her chief earthly treasure, she is a powerful patron against temptations of the flesh, and the novena is often prayed for the grace of purity — for oneself, for the young, or for a soul caught in an old sin. Keep the nine days above, weighting the second day's meditation, and add her short prayer for purity:

O bright flower of heaven, St Gemma, mirror of purity and penance, obtain for us the grace of purity and help us against all temptations of the flesh. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

St Gemma and Padre Pio

Some search for a "St Gemma Galgani and Padre Pio novena," and it is worth knowing why the two names are joined. Both were stigmatists — souls who bore the visible wounds of Christ — and Padre Pio, who came a generation after her, held a deep devotion to St Gemma and is said to have desired her canonization. There is no single official novena addressed to the two together, but it is entirely fitting to invoke them side by side, as two witnesses to the Passion in the flesh: St Gemma for the graces above, and Padre Pio as a more recent intercessor. Pray the novena as given here, and commend your intention to Padre Pio as well.

How to pray this novena

A novena is not measured by its length but by the faith of the soul that prays it. Keep these few things:

• Choose your dates. To end on her feast, begin on 2 April and pray through 10 April, or count the ninth day on the feast itself, 11 April. Otherwise, begin whenever your need is pressing and pray nine days running.
• Pray at a fixed hour, once each day, and do not break the chain if you can help it.
• Name one clear intention and carry it through all nine days.
• Join it to the Mass or the Rosary where you can, and add a small penance — St Gemma would ask for that.
• Ask in submission. End every day with Thy will be done. The novena that is answered is the one that leaves the outcome to God.

There is no need for a printed sheet: the full text above is the complete devotion, and may be copied and kept beside you for the nine days, or prayed from your phone in the Iter Fidei app with a reminder each day.

Who is St Gemma Galgani?

St Gemma Galgani was born on 12 March 1878 at Camigliano, near Lucca in Tuscany, the fifth of eight children of a prosperous pharmacist, Enrico Galgani. The family soon moved into the city of Lucca. Grace marked her early: she made her First Communion with unusual fervour and longed even as a girl to belong wholly to God. But suffering marked her sooner still. Her mother died when Gemma was seven; then, one by one, brothers; and when she was nineteen her father died too, leaving the family ruined and Gemma, the eldest daughter, to shoulder the household in poverty.

Her own health broke. She was struck by a painful disease of the spine and by other grave illnesses, and was given up by the doctors. She attributed her sudden and complete recovery to the intercession of the Venerable Gabriel Possenti — St Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows, the young Passionist who became her heavenly friend and model — and to a novena to the Sacred Heart. From then her life became an extraordinary imitation of the Passion of Christ. On 8 June 1899, at the age of twenty-one, she received the stigmata, the wounds of the Crucified appearing in her hands, feet, and side; they returned week by week, from Thursday evening to Friday afternoon, through much of her remaining life. She spoke, her directors testified, with her guardian angel, with Our Lady, and with the saints, and lived in near-constant union with the sufferings of Jesus.

Her dearest wish was to enter the cloister as a Passionist nun, but her poor health closed every door — the great sacrifice of her life, accepted without bitterness. She was taken in by the devout Giannini family of Lucca, and guided by the Passionist Father Germano Ruoppolo and by her confessor, Monsignor Volpi. Consumed at last by tuberculosis, she died on Holy Saturday, 11 April 1903, at the age of twenty-five, having asked to be left to suffer in silence in union with her crucified Lord. The Church, after careful examination, beatified her in 1933 under Pope Pius XI and canonized her on 2 May 1940 under Pope Pius XII — a saint of the traditional calendar, given to the Church as a burning witness that the Cross is the way of love. Her relics rest in the sanctuary of St Gemma beside the Passionist monastery at Lucca.

She is honoured as the patron of students and of pharmacists (after her father's trade), of those who have lost their parents, of those who suffer in the back and spine and of the sick, of those tormented by headaches, and of all who struggle for purity of heart. For her Passionist companions in prayer, see the novena to St Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows, her heavenly friend, and the novena to Our Lady of Sorrows, the Mother whose sorrows the Passionists keep; and among the young saints of the Cross, the novena to St Thérèse of Lisieux, her near contemporary.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was St Gemma Galgani?

She was a young Italian laywoman and mystic (1878–1903) of Lucca in Tuscany, called the "Daughter of the Passion" for her extraordinary imitation of the sufferings of Christ. She received the stigmata at twenty-one, longed to be a Passionist nun but was refused for ill health, and died at twenty-five. She was canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1940.

What is St Gemma the patron saint of?

St Gemma is invoked as the patron of students, of pharmacists, of those who have lost their parents, of the sick — especially those who suffer in the back and spine — of sufferers from headaches, and of all who seek purity of heart. She is also a favoured intercessor for the conversion of sinners.

When is the novena to St Gemma prayed?

It may be prayed at any time of year for any need. The traditional time is the nine days leading to her feast, so as to end on or just before 11 April: begin on 2 April and pray through the feast.

Why is St Gemma invoked for back pain?

Because in her last illness she suffered acutely from a disease of the spine, borne with heroic patience in union with the Passion. The faithful have long asked her intercession for relief from back pain and back injury, and for the grace to carry such suffering well.

Is there a short or a 3-day novena to St Gemma?

Yes. The short novena prays only the daily opening and the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be each of the nine days. A 3-day novena, or triduum, keeps the same prayers over three days rather than nine — a legitimate abbreviation for urgent need, though nine days remains the fuller and traditional measure.

Is there a PDF of the St Gemma novena?

The complete text is given in full on this page — the daily opening, the nine days, and the concluding prayer — so you need no separate printout; you may copy it to keep beside you, or pray it in the Iter Fidei app with a daily reminder and audio.

Was St Gemma Galgani canonized?

Yes. She was beatified by Pope Pius XI on 14 May 1933 and canonized by Pope Pius XII on 2 May 1940. She is honoured on the traditional calendar, her feast kept on 11 April, the day of her death.

The Iter Fidei app carries this novena to St Gemma day by day, with reminders and audio, in Latin and your own language, alongside the chaplets, litanies and prayers of the Church. Download it here.

Sources. The traditional novena to St Gemma Galgani and her prayer to obtain a grace, as carried in Catholic prayer-books; the life of St Gemma from the biography of her director, Ven. Germano Ruoppolo, C.P.; her beatification by Pope Pius XI (1933) and canonization by Pope Pius XII (2 May 1940); Holy Scripture, and the Church's teaching on the invocation of the Saints (Catechism of St Pius X).