Novena to St Raphael the Archangel

A novena to St Raphael the Archangel is a nine-day prayer to the angel whom God sent to heal blind Tobias, to deliver Sara, and to guide the younger Tobias safely home and into a holy marriage (Book of Tobias). We pray the St Raphael novena chiefly for healing of body and soul, for protection on a journey, and for a worthy spouse and happy meetings — the very gifts he carried in Scripture. Below is the nine-day structure and a traditional novena prayer the reader may pray daily.

What This Novena Is

A novena is simply nine days of prayer for a single intention, modelled on the nine days the Apostles and our Lady spent in prayer between the Ascension and Pentecost. We treat its meaning and its rules in what is a novena, as we do the beads of a chaplet; here we apply that pattern to the one archangel whom the Church names as healer and guide. The novena St Raphael archangel devotion has no single fixed text imposed on the faithful; it is a frame of prayer built around his Scriptural office. What matters is the perseverance of nine days and the trust that the angel who bore the prayers of Tobias and Sara "in the sight of the glory of the most high God" (Tobias 3:24-25) still bears ours.

We know Raphael only from one book, and we do not embroider beyond it. His whole history — his journey with the young Tobias under the name Azarias, the binding of the demon, the curing of the father's blindness, the marriage with Sara — we have set out in St Raphael the Archangel. The novena draws each of its intentions straight from that history.

The Intentions We Bring to St Raphael

The patronage of St Raphael grows out of his deeds, not out of legend, and so do the intentions of his novena.

Healing of body and soul. His name means God has healed, and his mission was to heal: the blindness of the elder Tobias, the affliction of Sara, the wound of a whole household. "The holy angel of the Lord, Raphael, was sent to heal them both" (Tobias 3:25). The faithful therefore bring him sickness — their own and that of those they love — and ask first for the healing of the soul, then of the body "if it be for our greater good." He is the patron of the sick and of those who tend them.

Safe travel. Raphael walked the long road from Ninive into Media beside a young man who did not know his guide was an angel, kept him from the river's danger, and brought him home unharmed (Tobias 5-6, 11). The pilgrim, the traveller, and the wayfarer have long claimed him as their own. As we ask the protection of the Guardian Angel for every soul, so we ask Raphael's particular guard over every journey.

A holy meeting and a worthy spouse. It was Raphael who brought Tobias to Sara, delivered her from the demon, and taught the young couple to begin their marriage in prayer rather than in passion: "Take the virgin with the fear of the Lord... For they who in such manner receive matrimony, as to shut out God from themselves... over them the devil hath power" (Tobias 6:16-18). For this he is honoured as patron of happy meetings, of the betrothed, and of a good and God-fearing spouse. Those discerning marriage, or seeking the person God wills for them, have long made this novena their own; we treat the sacrament itself in Catholic marriage. Where two souls are joined under God's eye and not the demon's, Raphael's work is renewed.

How to Pray the Novena to St Raphael the Archangel

Pray it on nine consecutive days. Many keep the nine days closing on his feast, 24 October, beginning therefore on the sixteenth; but the novena may be prayed at any time of need — before a journey, before a wedding, in sickness, or while seeking a spouse. Each day name your one intention plainly, and keep to it the whole nine days.

A simple and traditional order for each day:

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Opening invocation (each day):
Glorious Archangel Saint Raphael, great prince of the heavenly court, illustrious by thy gifts of wisdom and grace; guide of those who journey by land or sea, consoler of the afflicted, and refuge of sinners: I beg thee, assist me in all my needs and in all the sufferings of this life, as thou didst assist the young Tobias on his travels.

The daily prayer:
Saint Raphael, angel of health, of safe travel, and of holy meeting, thou who didst bear the prayers of Tobias and of Sara before the throne of God, present now my prayer also: (here name your intention). Because thou art the medicine of God, heal my soul of its many infirmities and my body of the ills that afflict it, if it be for my greater good. Because thou wast the faithful companion of the road, guard me upon every journey of body and of soul, and bring me home. And because thou didst join Tobias and Sara in the fear of the Lord, obtain for me to receive whatever God wills, and those whom God wills, in that same holy fear. I ask above all for purity of soul, which fitted thee to be the angel of health, and the grace to walk always in the presence of God.

Closing each day:
O God, who didst give blessed Raphael the Archangel to thy servant Tobias for a companion on the way, grant to us thy servants that we may ever be protected by his guardianship and strengthened by his help. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Saint Raphael, healer of God, pray for us, and guide us home.
(One Our Father, one Hail Mary, one Glory be.)

The short cry at the end serves well on its own for the road or the sickbed: Saint Raphael, healer of God, pray for us, and guide us home. Pray the same intention with the same words for all nine days, and do not measure the angel's answer by your own foresight — Raphael brought Tobias home by a path he never planned.

The St Raphael Novena for Healing

Because his name means God has healed and his Scriptural mission was to heal, the healing novena is the most prayed form of this devotion. The sick, and those who keep vigil over them, bring him the affliction of body and the affliction of soul together — and the older prayers always ask for the soul's healing first, then the body's "if it be for our greater good." Raphael cured the blindness of the elder Tobias not by his own power but as the instrument of God's mercy: "The holy angel of the Lord, Raphael, was sent to heal them both" (Tobias 3:25). This is no charm against illness; it is a plea, made in submission to God's will, to the angel He appointed as His medicine. (We treat the difference between true devotion and superstition in what is a novena.)

A prayer to St Raphael for healing, to be said each of the nine days with the sick person or intention named:

Glorious Saint Raphael, medicine of God, who wast sent to heal the blindness of Tobias and the affliction of Sara, look with pity upon (name), now bowed down by sickness. Thou who art the angel of health, obtain from God, the Author of life and the Healer of every wound, the cure of soul and of body, if it be for His glory and our salvation. Heal first whatever in us is wounded by sin; then, as the Lord wills, lift the burden of pain and disease, and teach us to bear what is not lifted with patience, for the love of Him who bore the Cross. Saint Raphael, healer of God, pray for us, and guide us home. Amen.

End each day with one Our Father, one Hail Mary, and one Glory Be.

The St Raphael Novena for Marriage and a Holy Spouse

It was Raphael who brought the young Tobias to Sara, freed her from the demon Asmodeus, and taught the couple to begin their marriage in prayer and continence rather than passion (Tobias 6:16-18; 8:4-9). For this reason those discerning marriage, those seeking the spouse God wills for them, and the betrothed preparing for the sacrament have long prayed his novena. It is not a request for a particular person of our choosing, but for the person and the path God wills — and for the grace to receive marriage "with the fear of the Lord." We treat the sacrament itself in Catholic marriage.

A prayer to St Raphael for a holy spouse, said each of the nine days:

Saint Raphael, who didst lead Tobias to Sara and join them in holy and chaste wedlock under the eye of God, be thou my guide. If it be God's will that I marry, lead me to the one He has chosen, as thou didst lead Tobias, and keep my heart pure and my hopes obedient until that day. Drive far from me, as thou didst from Sara's house, every spirit that would shut God out of love. And whether I am called to marriage or to another state, obtain for me to receive whatever God wills, and those whom God wills, in that same holy fear. Saint Raphael, angel of holy meetings, pray for us, and guide us home. Amen.

Close with one Our Father, one Hail Mary, and one Glory Be.

Raphael Among the Named Archangels

We do not invoke Raphael alone. The Church names three angels in the canon of Scripture, each with his office (Tobias 12:15). St Michael is the prince of the heavenly host, the warrior against the dragon; his guard we have set out in the prayer to St Michael. St Gabriel is the angel of the Annunciation, the bearer of God's good tidings; his history we keep in St Gabriel the Archangel. And St Raphael is the healer and the guide. Michael strikes, Gabriel announces, Raphael heals — three ministries of the one divine mercy. A novena to one of them naturally leads the soul toward the others, for they stand together before the same throne.

The novena to St Raphael belongs to the wider treasury of the Church's Catholic devotions and Catholic prayers. It is a small school of trust: nine days of asking the same thing, in the same words, of an angel who has shown what he can do.

When the Nine Days Are Over

Raphael revealed himself to Tobias only at the end, when the healing was done and the road was walked: "It is time therefore that I return to him that sent me: but bless ye God, and publish all his wonderful works" (Tobias 12:20). So the novena ends not in our getting, but in our blessing. Whether the thing asked is granted as we wished or in a way we did not foresee, the angel's charge is the same — to bless God and to confess his works. Pray the nine days; then give thanks, for the guide who walked unseen beside a young man on a long road walks beside the faithful still.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is St Raphael the Archangel?

St Raphael is one of the three archangels named in Scripture, who revealed himself as "one of the seven, who stand before the Lord" (Tobias 12:15). His name means God has healed. In the Book of Tobias he is sent by God, under the name Azarias, to guide the young Tobias on his journey, to bind the demon, to deliver Sara, to obtain a holy marriage, and to cure the blindness of the elder Tobias. From these deeds the Church honours him as the angel of healing, of safe travel, and of holy meetings and marriage. His full history is set out in St Raphael the Archangel.

What is the novena to St Raphael prayed for?

It is prayed chiefly for the three gifts he carried in Scripture: the healing of body and soul, protection on a journey, and a worthy spouse or a holy meeting. The sick, those who travel, and those discerning marriage have long made this novena their own. As with every novena, the intention is named plainly and kept the same across all nine days, and the petition is brought in submission to God's will.

How do you pray the novena to St Raphael?

Pray it on nine consecutive days, naming one intention and holding to it throughout. Each day, after the Sign of the Cross, say the opening invocation to St Raphael, the daily prayer with your intention named, and the closing collect, ending with an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be. Many keep the nine days closing on his feast, 24 October, but the novena may be prayed at any time of need — before a journey, a wedding, or in sickness.

Is there a St Raphael novena for healing?

Yes — the healing novena is the most common form, since Raphael's very name means God has healed and his Scriptural office was to cure. It is prayed on nine consecutive days for the sick, naming the person or affliction, and asking first for the healing of the soul and then of the body "if it be for our greater good." A short healing prayer is given above. It is a petition made in submission to God's will, never a charm or a guarantee of cure.

Can the novena to St Raphael be prayed for marriage?

Yes. Because Raphael led Tobias to Sara and joined them in a holy, God-fearing marriage (Tobias 6-8), those seeking a worthy spouse, discerning marriage, or preparing for the sacrament have long prayed his novena. The petition is not for a person of our own choosing but for the spouse and the path God wills, and for the grace to receive marriage in His fear. A prayer for a holy spouse is given above.

Is there a 9-day St Raphael novena PDF or printable?

The nine-day structure, the daily prayers, and the healing and marriage prayers above contain everything needed to pray the full novena — they can be printed from this page directly. We do not impose a single fixed text on the faithful, since the Church prescribes none; the novena is a frame built around Raphael's Scriptural office. The Iter Fidei app also carries the prayer in Latin and your own language with audio, so it may be prayed without any printout.

The Iter Fidei app carries the novenas, chaplets, litanies and prayers in Latin and your own language, with audio. Download it here.

Sources. Holy Bible, Douay-Rheims, Book of Tobias (esp. 3:24-25; 5-6; 6:16-18; 11; 12:15-20). Alban Butler, Lives of the Saints, "St Raphael the Archangel," 24 October. Roman Missal and Roman Breviary, Feast of St Raphael the Archangel (24 October), collect Deus, qui beatum Raphaelem Archangelum.