Praying a 54-Day Rosary Novena

Elena LaVictoire discovered the 54-Day-Rosary Novena in a quest to pray for a friend battling the return of a cancer diagnosis. 

“The cancer is back.” 

I looked at my phone in disbelief. My friend had beaten cancer a few years back. She was active, still working, and living her best life with her family. But there was this little pain in her body that she couldn’t shake with Tylenol or physical therapy. And now we knew why. 

My friend is my age. We’ve known each other for decades. How could something like this possibly happen to her? To us? We had each other’s backs. We could always talk to each other. Even if we hadn’t touched base in years, we always picked up right where we left off. Our relationship is one of the biggest treasures of my life.  

My friend is also a strong and devout Christian. Although we don’t share a Catholic faith, I have learned so much from her example and her walk with Christ. And she has prayed for me many times. The prayers she has composed and sent me in simple texts have had the power of a blessing and the beauty of poetry.  

So, it occurred to me that this next medical battle might be more than just physical. There is probably a spiritual component, too. That would have to be addressed head-on. In my search for the best spiritual battle plan for my friend, I came across the 54-Day Rosary Novena. 

What Is the 54-Day Rosary Novena? 

Of course, I pray the Rosary, and I am familiar with different novenas. But I had never heard of the 54-Day Rosary Novena.  

This devotion started in 1884. A young girl named Fortuna Agrelli was experiencing great physical suffering. Her devout family had just recently finished a novena of nine Rosaries for her when the Blessed Mother appeared to her in the company of Baby Jesus, Saint Dominic and Saint Catherine of Sienna. Mary encouraged the young girl to pray three novenas for special intention, and then three more novenas in thanksgiving. After the long novena was completed, Fortuna was healed. That is how the 54-Day Novena began. It started to spread.  

If you do the math, that’s six full novenas of 9 days each. The first three are prayers of petition for a particular cause. The second three novenas are prayers of thanksgiving. The prayers are prayed even if the answer to the prayer hasn't been granted yet. This requires a little faith on our part that God will answer the prayers.  

While the Rosary and the Mysteries are basically similar to the usual Rosary, there are a few differences. The novena always starts with the Joyful Mysteries, regardless of what day of the week it is. If you are beginning the novena on a Friday, you pray the Joyful Mysteries instead of the Sorrowful. The second day is the Luminous, then the Sorrowful, and finally the Glorious. 

It's best to dedicate this novena to one intention throughout. My intention would be to pray for my friend every day of the Novena and dedicate the rosary to her healing.  

Some additional prayers differ slightly from the regular Rosary. On the Hallow App, the Rosary starts with Hail Mary. Several online versions also begin that way before moving on to the novena’s opening prayer.  

After each mystery, there is also a request for the person saying the prayer! For example, after the first Joyful Mystery, you petition for the virtue of humility.  

Where to Find the 54-Day Rosary Novena 

I liked saying the novena with the Hallow App, except that they do not include the Luminous Mysteries. The app also doesn't include the Fatima Prayer. However, you have the option of reading the prayers as you pray them, and there is a tracker so you can see what day you are on. 

The 54-Day Rosary Novena, a new book by Catholic Mom editor Barb Szyszkiewicz (published by Our Sunday Visitor), has a nice background on the Novena, all the Mysteries including the Luminous Mysteries, and all the other prayers needed for the Rosary Novena in addition to a prayer tracker. 

The Result 

A few weeks after I began praying the 54-Day Rosary Novena, my friend texted me. I was afraid to open the text at first. I did not know what to expect. But I did. The news was amazing. Her nagging pain, which had been getting worse and worse, was now almost gone. Her scans were better, and she was very hopeful. Praise be to God. 

It has not been a linear improvement. Recently, she had another rough patch and a setback. But I continued the prayers of thanksgiving because our prayers are never wasted. A few days later, the situation improved. Now I’m thinking of going for another 54 days until she is entirely without pain and back to her everyday life.  

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Copyright 2025 Elena LaVictoire
Images: (top, bottom) copyright 2025 Elena LaVictoire; (center) Canva