Why Do Catholics ...?
How did novenas develop in the Church?
"A novena is a form of public or private devotional practice that is said over a period of nine consecutive days; or, by extension, over a period of nine weeks, in which one day a week is set aside for the devotions," EWTN.com states.
"The general observance of novenas is actually fairly modern, coming into popularity in the 17th century. The scriptural foundation for the novena is found in the nine days of preparation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the apostles for the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 1:13)."
See our special novena pull-out feature in this section of the paper.
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