Saint James the Great
Saint James the Great died a martyr for his faith and to spread the Good News around him. As the first pilgrim in Spain, he walked the roads to evangelize to and convert the peoples. He is also the patron of the pilgrims of Compostela. So let us pray with him this beautiful novena so that he will bring us his strength and his wisdom, so that with him, we will take the path of the Lord.
Daily Prayers
The Apostles’ Creed
Prayer to the Holy Spirit
“Breathe upon me, Holy Spirit, that my mind may be holy. Work in me, Holy Spirit, so that my work can be holy. Draw my heart to you, Holy Spirit, so that I may love all that is holy. Give me strength, Holy Spirit, so that I can defend all that is holy. Protect me, Holy Spirit, so that I can always be holy.” See, we are all pilgrims of Emmaus, we are all men who toil in the evening darkness, tired of doubts after the wicked days. We are all cowardly hearts, too. Come on our way, burn the heart of us too. Come in with us and sit at our fire. And that exulting with triumphal joy, in our turn, we would rise to leap to reveal joy to every man in the world in Love forever until our last breath. I have to listen to your word, I have to let myself be shaken by your love. Constantly tempted to live quietly, you ask me to risk my life, like Abraham, in an act of faith. Constantly tempted to settle me, you ask me to walk in hope
to you the highest summit, in the glory of the Father. Created out of love, to love, do, Lord, that I walk, that I ascend, from the heights, to you, with all my life, with all my brothers, with all creation, in daring and adoration. Jesus, give us good road and good weather. May, in the company of Saint James, your disciple, we be able to reach happily the place we want to reach and, in the end, the port of eternal salvation. Make sure that amidst all the vicissitudes of this journey that is this life, we are always under your protection and assistance. ”
1 Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be
Day One - The Call
“Saint James, you were called by our Lord to follow him, when he passed along the Sea of Galilee. Ah! how many times have I not only been called myself, but have I been solicited by his grace to lead a more orderly and more Christian life, and have I always strongly resisted the repeated invitations of my God to follow only my evil inclinations and the perverse maxims of a world as corrupt as it is spoiled. Therefore, from now on, always docile in listening to the voice of my God and his holy inspirations, let me detach myself from the affection that I have for the vanity of earthly things, and let me no longer have a taste except for the eternal goods and the delights of Heaven. Take your boat, God is calling you to go to other shores, take your boat, and then go, where the Spirit is leading you. Go, on new roads, go further than the horizon, God calls you to love. Be a sign of the gospel, to give the breath of God to those who seek his presence, to those who seek the light.”
Day two - The Disciple
“O Saint James, support us in the dangers and lighten our steps; Be for us a shadow against the sun, a cloak against the rain and the cold; Be the stick that avoids falls and the harbor that welcomes the shipwrecked; So that, guided by you, we may certainly reach our goal, and return home safe and sound.”
Day Three - The Witness
“Saint James, as a reward for your fidelity to correspond to the graces of the divine Master, you were called by him to participate in the extraordinary privilege of contemplating, with Saint Peter and Saint John, His holy humanity glorified on the Tabor, although you were still clothed in your mortal flesh. Ah! with how many graces have I been filled on behalf of this divine Savior without any merit of mine. With these graces, I should be a great saint, and I am only a rebellious sinner by the detestable abuse I have always made of it. Obtain, therefore, that I make such good use of the gifts of the Lord that I deserve to receive even greater ones; and that, by my fidelity to correspond to his graces until death, I arrive at the happiness of enjoying, with you, my God and heaven. Sing and walk and witness to the mercy of God: what does it mean, walk?
Advance, advance in the good. “There are some, “said the apostle,” who progress in evil.” You, you advance and you walk, but advance in the good, advance in the right faith, advance in the pure life. Without straying, without retreating, without trampling, sing and walk, and testify to the mercy of God!”
Day Four - The Brother
“Lord, you always walk by our side, even when we don't realize it. You guide us along the road, where the glory of the Most High is revealed. Give us prompt hands to help, put in our mouth word and smile of kindness. Strengthen our feet, for the road is still long ahead of us. Everyone sometimes feels like a lonely traveler to discover that you particularly love us. Help us to discover that it is only by making the journey together that we will join you. Lord, we are your people on the way. Be our guide and our shepherd. Amen”
Day Five - Mary
“Dear children, on the feast of the protector of your parish, I invite you to imitate the life of the saints. May they be for you an example and an incentive to the life of holiness. Let prayer be for you like the air you breathe and not a burden. Little children, God will reveal his love to you and you will experience the joy of being my loved ones. God will bless you and give you an abundance of grace. Thank you for answering my call.” (Medjugorje, 25 July 2007)
“Dear children, today I rejoice with your patron saint and I invite you to be open to the will of God so that faith grows in you and, through you, in the people you meet in your daily life. Little children, pray until prayer becomes joy for you. Seek help from your holy protectors to grow in love for God. Thank you for answering my call.” (Medjugorje, 25 July 2002)
Day Six - The Mission
“Lord Jesus, remember that little house over there in Emmaus, and the end of the road that leads to it when you come from the highway. Remember those whom one evening you approached there, remember their downcast hearts, remember your words that burned them, remember the fire in the hearth by which you sat, and from which they rose transformed, and from which they departed to the prowess of love. Look at us.”
Day 7 - The Martyr
“Lord Jesus, you have made such a long journey from the Father, to come and pitch your tent among us. You were born at the chance of a journey, and ran all the roads, that of exile, that of pilgrimages, that of preaching. Pull me out of my selfishness and comfort, make me a confident pilgrim. Lord Jesus, you have so often taken the way to the mountain, to find silence, to find the Father; to teach your apostles, to proclaim the beatitudes; to offer your sacrifice, to send your apostles, and to return to the Father; draw me up, make me a pilgrim full of love.”
Day Eight - Sharing
“Saint James, like the prophet Elijah, you burned with holy zeal for honor
of your divine Master and the truth of his Gospel.
You preached, with apostolic freedom, in Judea, Samaria and Spain, the new faith, without fear of the malice of the perfidious Synagogue or the cruelty of the barbarian Herod, until you were the first of the apostles to sign it with your blood and crown it with your glorious death. Grant that in these unfortunate times, when such perverse unbelief reigns, and when evil shows itself in a triumphant way, not only will I put my happiness to profess the Catholic faith loudly and defend it against the ungodly, but also that I will glory, on every occasion, to be a faithful and generous disciple of the Savior, to the point of suffering for him the cruelest torments and even death. It is grace, O great apostle, that I beg you to obtain for me through your powerful intercession, so that I may recognize that it will truly be to your intercession that I will owe my eternal salvation.”
Day Nine - Humility
“May we descend on the road of our earthly pilgrimage, the blessing of God: may this road always be pleasant. May the wind always blow on our shoulders, may the sun come to warm our face, and the rain falls gently on our head.
Until we return home, God keep us in your hands.
Lord, we too experience fatigue and the temptation to stop, to abandon the road.
Go, pilgrim, continue your quest; go your way, let nothing stop you. Take your share of sunshine and your share of dust; awake heart, forget the ephemeral.
Everything is nothing: nothing is true but love. Don't attach your heart to what's going on. Do not say: I have succeeded, I am paid for my trouble. Do not rest in your works: they will judge you. Keep the word in your heart: this is your treasure. Everything is nothing: nothing is true but love. Go, pilgrim, continue your quest; go your way, let nothing stop you. I will walk under the sun too heavy, in the pouring rain or in the tornado. As I walk, the sun will warm my heart of stone. The rain will make my deserts a garden. By wearing out my shoes, I will wear out my habits. I will walk and my walk will be done. I would go less to the end of the road than to the end of myself. I will be a pilgrim. I will not only go on a trip. I myself will become a journey, a pilgrimage. Go, pilgrim, continue your quest; go your way, let nothing stop you.”
Continue your prayer to Saint James with Hozana!
Continue your prayer with Hozana!
Perhaps thanks to Saint James, you will embark on the beautiful adventure of pilgrimage! You can also start by making an inner pilgrimage, in prayer, on your way with God.
