Novena to the Holy Child Jesus before Christmas

To the adorable interior of the holy Infant—His spirit, designs, thoughts, and intentions.

ENTER into the sanctuary, the divine interior of the holy Infant Jesus, and learn to form yours according to it. All divine, noble, humble, simple, generous, recollected, and detached from the world, His every thought and intention are solely directed to His Father's glory. There you will find no idle thoughts and projects—no vanities or self-seeking—no suspicious thoughts contrary to charity.

Prayer.

ADORABLE interior of the Infant Jesus! I revere You from my heart. How do You confound our pride and human wisdom! Ah, teach me, divine Jesus, after Your example, to despise the world, and not to seek the eyes of others in my devotion. You, O my God! humbly conceal the treasures of grace and wisdom contained in Your divine mind, taking on Yourself the appearance of weakness, ignorance, and incapacity. Oh, heal my pride; remove my blindness and ignorance of interior things—dissipate my darkness—destroy my worldly notions—and render my thoughts, views, desires, and sentiments like to Yours. Amen

Each day say to Mary and Joseph:

O BLESSED parents of the Infant Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, if we came to solicit you to obtain for us worldly prosperity, joys, honors, and comforts, our sighs could never reach the cradle of a God, poor, humble even to annihilation, forgotten, suffering, weak, and lying in a manger; but these are not our desires or petitions. No; we humbly and earnestly implore you to beg for us, at the crib of your Infant Son, that, like Him, and as His true and faithful followers, we may love to live in true humility—disengagement from creatures—contempt of the world and its vanities—constant recollection of the holy presence of God—fervor and fidelity in all our duties—and in the practice of the tenderest charity to all persons. May we never blush at the humility of the crib, nor at the poverty and simplicity of Bethlehem. May we ever rejoice at our happy lot as true spouses of Jesus Christ: ever in tender charity look with a compassionate eye on those who live but for this world, and continually pray that all may come to bless, to praise, and to love the Saviour Who comes to redeem them.

To the Sacred Heart of the Infant Jesus.

THIS day adore the Sacred Heart of your Infant Saviour—that Heart so full of tenderness and charity, that Heart so pure and holy, the beloved retreat of all interior and faithful souls.

Prayer.

O BLESSED Heart of the Infant Jesus! I adore and love you as the center of all hearts, and humbly entreat you to give me grace henceforth to rest and repose in you, as in my true home. May you be my oratory, in which, and through which, I shall offer to the Eternal Father all my requests, that He may receive them more propitiously. May you be my school, wherein I may learn that celestial science so different from worldly wisdom—those pure principles which lead to the interior life. In fine, may you, O Sacred Heart! be my treasury, and may I find abundant riches in your poverty, love, suffering, and fidelity. Amen.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To the sacred mouth of the Infant Jesus.

THIS day adore, love, and reverence the sacred mouth of your Infant Saviour, which now keeps a profound silence; but which will soon be opened to announce the truths of life and salvation, to speak in your behalf to the Eternal Father, and which at the close of life will pronounce your final sentence.

Prayer.

O SACRED mouth of my Infant Saviour, I sincerely adore you. O blessed infantine lips! I love and venerate you. O sweet Jesus! how loudly does Your silence speak to my heart. Ah! attract me to love and practice this holy virtue, as far as my state permits, and let all my words be stamped with the seal of charity. O adorable, Incarnate Word of the Father! Eternal Wisdom silent in the womb of Your Virgin Mother, endow me with that spirit of sweetness, patience, and mildness, of which You are the Model. Teach me how to speak, and how to be silent. May this tongue, on which You so often repose in the Adorable Sacrament, rather cleave to my jaws than ever pronounce an unbecoming word; and may charity, humility, modesty, sweetness, prudence, and simplicity accompany all my words and expressions. Amen.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To the sacred hands of the Infant Jesus.

THIS day kiss in spirit those pure and liberal hands, now so weak, cold, and trembling, which will be one day instruments of so many great works, healing the sick, curing the blind, and which will, at length, be fastened with huge nails to the cross.

Prayer.

O MOST pure and generous hands of my Infant Saviour! I adore, revere, and love you. O innocent hands! which have been so often raised to heaven in our favor, may I imitate your charity and compassion for the poor and afflicted, in constantly praying for the salvation of my neighbors, as well as for my own. O blessed hands! pierced with huge nails, may I rather die than ever again (by sin) fasten you to the cross. O most holy Infant! grant me continually to hold fast Your blessed hands, that I may securely walk through the slippery paths of this life, always moving according to Your holy will, and with submission to my spiritual guides. Amen.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To the pure and benign eyes of the Infant Jesus.

THIS day adore and love the pure and benignant eyes of your Infant Saviour, those eyes which beam purity, love, and sweetness; those eyes which have wrought such wonders in souls; those eyes, in fine, which have shed over our miseries abundant tears. O may they impart to us the grace of true contrition for our sins, and compassion for the miseries of others.

Prayer.

O MOST pure and benignant eyes of our Infant Saviour! Eyes beaming love, tenderness, and compassion for us, wretched sinners! Eyes ever intent upon all our works and ways, watching over us with unceasing care, we honor and revere you. O grant me, dear Jesus, in honor of the purity and sanctity of Your holy eyes, carefully to guard mine, to look on and consider but You, and what may lead to Your love and service. "Turn away from me all vanities," take from me the spirit of curiosity, so opposed to the spirit of the Gospel, and grant that I may live under Your all-seeing eye with all possible respect, modesty, and love, continually remembering Your holy presence, and ever lamenting my past and present infidelities with greater love and regret Amen

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To the sacred feet of our Infant Jesus.

THIS day adore those sacred feet, bound for your love in swathing bands, to teach you to love holy obedience, submission to the divine law, and to all the duties of your state.

Prayer.

O MOST holy feet of my Infant Saviour! I adore, love, and venerate you with my whole heart, and embrace you in spirit: especially those parts destined to be pierced on the cross by your executioners. O give me grace to walk faithfully and constantly in the paths of your counsels and commandments, continually exhorting me to greater sanctity and perfection. May I, with your grace, steadily advance in your sacred footsteps, in true contempt of all worldly vanities, in hatred and aversion for worldly maxims, in a faithful discharge of my duties to you, my neighbor, and myself; in a patient endurance of the faults of others, and in profound humility of heart and conduct. Thus shall I be ever in security, for they who follow you walk not in darkness.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To the precious blood of the Infant Jesus.

THIS day adore the precious blood of our Infant Saviour, flowing through His sacred veins, and one day to be poured out on Calvary, for the remission of our sins.

Prayer.

O MOST pure and precious blood of my Infant Saviour! drawn by the Holy Ghost from the virginal veins of your immaculate Mother. O saving blood! shed for our redemption on Calvary, and daily offered on our altars in the adorable sacrifice, our nourishment and strength in the Holy Eucharist, I adore, love, and venerate you, and humbly pray that you may abundantly flow on me, and on all poor sinners, on all my friends, relatives, benefactors, and enemies. May I receive the happy fruits of such a blessing with love, gratitude, and compunction, especially at the holy Mass, and in the Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist. Through these sacred channels may you constantly flow, to nourish my soul to everlasting life, and to impart to me that purity, innocence, love, and fervor of which you are the source and preservative. Amen.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To honor the poverty, obedience, etc., of the Infant Jesus

THIS day adore and try to imitate the blessed Infant, as the true model of that perfection to which all Religious are bound to aspire; and renew your sacred engagements at the feet of your Infant Saviour with increased fervor.

Prayer.

O MOST holy Infant Jesus! my King, my Master, and Saviour! I adore You in this state of poverty, suffering, and submission, and humbly beg grace to observe faithfully the solemn vows by which I bound myself to renounce the world, with its pomps—the flesh, with its vices—the devil, with his temptations—to lead a life of innocence, prayer, sincere humility, and ardent love of God and my neighbor. O dearest Jesus! may my only treasure henceforth be Your grace—my only pleasure Your service and love—and my only desire the accomplishment of your most holy will. O grant that I may always fulfil it. Amen.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)

To adore and welcome the Infant Saviour, just coming into the world.

THIS day adore, love, bless, praise, and welcome the little Saviour, Who comes to redeem you—prepare Him a cradle in your hearts, and do not imitate the unfeeling inhabitants of Bethlehem.

Prayer.

ALL hail! most lovely, most holy, most amiable Infant Jesus, King of my soul! Ah! blessed be the hour in which Your holy Mother will give You to me as my ransom. O most beautiful above the children of men! give me grace to prepare to receive you worthily on the glorious feast of Your nativity. Give me a heart all glowing with holy desires, love, gratitude, and ardent zeal, to correspond with the designs which bring You on earth. Give me the true spirit of Your holy nativity, a spirit of humility, silence, detachment, docility, meekness, and true and ardent charity. Give me grace daily to advance in devotion to Your blessed Infancy, and faithfully to persevere in the discharge of all my duties, in spite of the allurements of Satan, or the railleries of the world. Bless me then, divine Infant, as You blessed the humble and simple shepherds watching over their flocks; and let me ever remember, that it is to the humble, simple, and faithful You most willingly communicate Your choicest gifts. Amen.

(Prayer as first day, to Mary and Joseph.)