Exaltation of the Holy Cross Novena

Daily Prayer

Jesus, your love for your Father brought you to the cross. We are gathered before this magnificent symbol of our faith to recall the events of Calvary and to thank you for your great sacrifice.

Your cross is our life. Your death brought us salvation. As we ponder on the meaning of your death, we ask you to send us the Holy Spirit that we may be able to accept the truth that without sacrifice, we can never be your disciples.

Give us the courage to believe that our major challenge in life is the acceptance of suffering and death. You have glorified our suffering and death with your suffering, dying, and rising from the dead. Inspire us to believe that without the cross, there is no glory. Amen.

Day One

Daily Prayer

Jesus, you carried your cross through the streets of Jerusalem, with your head bloodied by the crown of thorns. Your enemies laughed at you, and your friends abandoned you. You carried the cross, the sins of humanity, on your shoulders and in the silence of your sufferings, we are reborn.

Jesus, you taught us that we should also carry others’ sins. We see this in mothers who stand helpless at the abuses of their children, or their husbands. They suffer in silence, yet their sufferings save and redeem their loved ones.

Teach us, O Lord, to accept situations that we cannot change and carry them as you carried your cross through the streets of Jerusalem. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)

Day Two

Daily Prayer

Jesus, you fell three times while carrying your cross. You were exhausted by the tortures and the lack of sleep, and your executioners had to ask the help of Simon the Cyrene to help you carry the cross. You were nearly dead when you reached Calvary.

Simon of Cyrene was the luckiest person on earth because he helped you carry your cross. Make us remember, dear Jesus, in our moments of suffering and trials, that we, too, help carry your cross, and that it is an honor to suffer and die with you.

Give us hearts that easily respond to the sufferings around us, believing that when we help the needy and the abandoned, we are actually serving you. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)


Day Three

Daily Prayer

Jesus, you manifested your power through your miracles, but in carrying the cross, you showed that God preferred to be powerless than to be powerful. You did this to show your oneness with the powerless of the earth. You took the side of the helpless because you want to shame the arrogant and the powerful.

May we, Lord, in our relationship with our brothers and sisters, avoid domineering attitudes, and instead, be of service to them. May the glory of your cross help us understand that hearts can never be conquered through imposition or arrogance but through disinterested service.

Make us servants to one another and may self-giving characterize our relationship. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)


Day Four

Daily Prayer

Jesus, when you were hung on the cross, you were in control of the situation unfolding before you. You forgave those who were laughing at you and asked your beloved disciple to take care of your mother.

You welcomed the good thief into paradise. You continued to be compassionate and serve others fully. You did not allow pain to control you. Give us the special grace not to be desperate in our moments of sufferings. Enable us to bear pain with courage and dignity, not allowing ourselves to be the center of attraction, but able even in the midst of pain, to be of help and service to others. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)


Day Five

Daily Prayer

Jesus, you hung on the cross of three hours and your executioners insulted you, saying that you cannot save yourself and others. You could have used your powers but preferred to keep silent and bear with much patience the insults of your enemies.

Teach us the virtue of patience as we bear the insults and harsh words of people who don’t like us. Inspire us to respond with silence and give us the grace that we may be able to pray for them. In this way, through our patience, we help you redeem our troubled world. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)

Day Six

Daily Prayer

Jesus, your mother and other women surrounded you while you were dying on the cross. Your mother nonetheless accepted this agony, believing that this was part of the divine plan, that God had the power to draw something good from this terrible experience of failure.

Your mother’s faith in you and what you can do inspire us. We face similar situations of failure and suffering, and we pray that you are with us, so that we can face with courage our trials and hardships, believing through you, we can draw something good from these experiences. Strengthen our faith as we live through the difficulties and uncertainties of this life. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)

Day Seven

Daily Prayer

Jesus, you refused to drink the vinegar given to you by the soldiers. We know that these soldiers wanted to alleviate your sufferings because this drink lessens the pain, acting as anesthesia.

You refused to drink vinegar because you wanted to feel the pain throughout the time you hung on the cross. You did not want to lessen your sacrifice. Help us, O Lord, to bear the pains of everyday life. Let us savor our sufferings so that we may be able to live your cross. Inspire us not to run away from pain and sufferings, but to accept and experience them as proof of our love for you. Help us live our pains. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)

Day Eight

Daily Prayer

Jesus, you broke the circle of death through the cross. You are the first born from the dead because you are the only one who came back alive after dying. You cross reveals that suffering borne in your name would lead us to life.

Teach us then to accept our infirmities and sufferings, uniting them to your passion and death on the cross. Give us the grace to believe that you are able to draw something good from evil situations. You are a powerful God because even in worst situations, you can draw something good. May your cross remind us of your great powers. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)

Day Nine

Daily Prayer

Jesus, your cross manifested your decision to always do the Father’s will. You Father asked you to reveal to us the face of God, a mission which you succeeded to do.

That God you revealed shines so resplendently on the cross. It is a God who loves because he is pure love. In the cross, you gave everything – your life and you have nothing more to give us. By your giving, we have become rich.

May our veneration of your cross enable us to live the challenge of love, that we, too, may learn to trust, to understand, and to forgive, and that we may remove from our hearts, hatred, mistrust, and resentment and be like God who is one hundred percent good.

May your cross lead us to life and communion with our brothers and sisters. Amen.

Through your Holy Cross, save us. (3x) Glory Be. (3x)