Amazing Grace Novena Continues To Work Miracles, Worshippers Say

You can’t see the changes. The double spires of St. Aloysius Church pierce the sky just as they always have for the 68 years the Novena of Grace has been celebrated here.

The old wooden pews creak a little, and there have been a few cosmetic alterations in the sanctuary in keeping with the updates of Vatican II. But essentially the building remains what it was when built by the Society of Jesus - a haven, a sanctuary, a place to know something of God.

“Changes do happen here - BIG ones,” said one long-time parishioner, “but they happen inside your heart. It really is amazing.”

The hope of change draws more than 2,000 people a day to this church for the Novena of Grace, which begins today and continues through March 12.

In a tradition that dates from the 17th century, people of all faiths and all degrees of faith gather yearly in Jesuit parishes all over the world to pray intensely for help from God.

It began in 1633, when a priest lay near death from a head injury. He had a vision of the great missionary Jesuit, St. Francis Xavier, and was cured by him. In enthusiastic thanksgiving, the priest spread the word of his miraculous recovery and promoted the annual celebration of a novena to ask blessings from God through the intercession of St. Francis.

The word “novena” comes from Latin for “nine,” the number of days in a row spent in prayer.

“This is a special time of blessing, of giftedness,” said Sister Mary Garvin “and a special time of connection with God and things spiritual.” Garvin, who helped lead the novena two years ago, is one of the few women recently invited to preside.

The experience brings people back year after year.

“What happens to you?” asked Madeline Gorman, a veteran of all 68 Novenas of Grace at St. Al’s. “There’s an extreme peace and contentment.

“I feel the same way at every one, every year.”

Gorman’s only regret is that she can no longer climb up the stairs to the choir loft for the service. She said she stopped climbing “just about when I hit 80.”

She recalled that when she was a girl she stepped on a nail, and her doctor recommended amputating the infected foot. “I prayed at the Novena, and it healed up on the eighth day.”

Over the years, Gorman has witnessed other healings, including a reversal of blindness. “I think it’s marvelous when you can speak to St. Francis and ask him for advice, and then within a short time - maybe the same day - to get an answer,” she said.

Self-described “old-timer” Jesse Sacco also has attended most of the novenas. She credits St. Francis with strengthening her marriage, healing her back and facilitating her adoption of two daughters. “Those prayers are going to be answered sooner or later,” said Sacco, “and the answers are not what you expect sometimes.”

Sister Garvin noted that this kind of prayer requires courage, honesty and openness to accept the answers. “People pray for spiritual and physical healing - perhaps reconciliation within families, a deeper sense of one’s self and one’s goals in life,” she explained.

“It’s hard to acknowledge our interdependence, that we need things, and (that we) aren’t the source of all in ourselves,” Garvin said. “God works through people, and this applies within our community of faith.”

What exactly is this amazing grace?

“The word ‘grace’ means ‘gift,”’ said Father Armand Nigro, SJ, professor of theology at Gonzaga University. Nigro has presided at seven Novenas in Northwest parishes, including four in Spokane.

“Sanctified grace is like a divine blood transfusion. It is the greatest of all graces - the gift of God’s spirit Itself enabling us to participate in eternal life,” said the priest. “‘Grace’ also means any favors of God that He gives.”

People who feel that their petitions have been answered are encouraged to write notes of thanksgiving during the Novena. Some are read at each service.

Nigro said that documented miracles led to the Catholic Church’s canonization of Francis Xavier in 1622. The saint’s interventions appear to be in character with his earthly behavior. “Francis was a great communicator who even set the catechism to music for children to sing,” Nigro said.

The missionary was one of the original seven Jesuits. He learned the customs and language of the people wherever he preached - and brought Christianity to India and Japan. He is honored as the patron of missionaries, seafarers and tourists.

Church history says that Francis baptized more than 30,000 people, yet saw himself as a failure. “He is a great living lesson that we are called only to give it our best shot,” Nigro said, “and to leave the accounting for fruitfulness and success to God.

“Our life is successful if we don’t lose heart, don’t stop loving if we are rejected, don’t stop forgiving, and don’t stop communicating the Good News.”

This year’s Novena of Grace is led by a brother and sister team who will preach on the theme, “Families: Called to Holiness.” Co-leaders Cissy McLane and Gene Delmore, SJ, have extensive training in theology, marriage encounter, pastoral work and theology - and they come from a large family. “Gene and I are from a family of 11 kids,” said McLane, “and we value what we learned there.”

Married and the mother of two grown children, McLane said “family” also embraces the community life her Jesuit brother lives. “In our day and age, ‘family’ is hard to define and includes the nuclear family, the single-parent family, the extended family and others who live in a committed relationship with one another and do it out of a sense of being called to love.”

One of last year’s presenters, Paul Janowiak, SJ, was impressed by the spectrum and numbers of people who attended the services. “This is one of the most amazing spiritual events in the Northwest in the sense that for all these years there are still thousands of people coming every day with a real longing for an experience of God - not just alone, but together,” said Janowiak, who is completing his doctorate in theology at Berkeley.

The Latin inscription over the entrance to St. Aloysius Church reads “Domus Dei - Porta Coeli,” which translates to “House of God - Gate of Heaven.”

“Even skeptics experience something wonderful at the novena,” said the young cleric, “The doors are always open. You just have to be open to change.”

MEMO: This is a sidebar that apppearedw ith the story: Novena information The Novena of Grace at St. Aloysius Church, 330 E. Boone on the Gonzaga University campus, begins today and runs through March 12. Services are at 12:15 p.m., 3:30 p.m. (with Benediction), and 5:15 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. The last two include Mass. Each service concludes with a blessing with the relic of St. Francis Xavier. The sacraments of reconciliation and the anointing of the sick also are offered.