Repeat the following Novena prayers every day for 9 consecutive days.

The Novena for the Spiritual Welfare of the Black American Community is a special time of prayer when people all over the world call to God through the intercession of Venerable Augustus Tolton, Servant of God, for the Spiritual Welfare of the Black American Community.

Begin each day with:

Say 1 Our Father...

Say 1 Apostle's Creed...

Say 3 Hail Mary...

Day 1

PRAY FOR THE SPIRITUAL ANCHORING OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY

O’ Father Augustus Tolton,
whose faith was grounded in Christ Jesus at an early age,
pray the same for all of the Black community in America,
so that together they might be unified in one faith,
one Lord, one Baptism, and God.
Pray Father Tolton for the Black community
to find and to love that same fullness of their faith
that you found through the Catholic Church,
and that Church would find a deeper fullness
of itself in that community.
Pray Father Tolton for the Holy Eucharist
to become the source and summit of Christian life
in the Black community and for that unique Presence of Christ Jesus
to work to conform all peoples
into His image before God the Father.

Amen.

Day 2

PRAY FOR THE MORAL FORMATION OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY

Pray O’ Father Augustus Tolton, teacher of truth,
for the moral formation of the youth
in the Black community in America.
Pray for their moral grounding
in the teachings of Christ our Lord,
so that they might be living witnesses of the Beatitudes.
Pray Father Tolton for a strengthening and fortification
of the Holy Spirit in the Black community
so that it might be guided and protected in all Truth,
and thereby able withstand all assaults by the Evil One.

Amen.

Day 3

PRAY FOR THE STABILITY AND STRENGTH OF MARRIAGES AND FAMILIES IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY

Strong families and marriages are the woven threads
that have always proved to be most beneficial
for all healthy societies.
Pray O’ Father Augustus Tolton that all husbands
will love their wives as Christ loved the Church
and love their wives as their own bodies.
Pray that each wife will embrace her role
as a type of Church in the household
and embrace her husband and children as members of her body.
Pray Father Tolton for the sanctity and dignity
of marriages in the Black community in America
and to the end of the sexual impurity and promiscuity
that has led to far too many fatherless homes.
Pray for the restoration
of true Christ-like masculinity for Black men,
and for women to look upon our Blessed Mother
as a beckon of faithfulness and womanhood.

Amen.

Day 4

PRAY FOR PEACE IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY

O’ Father Augustus Tolton, servant of Peace,
pray for an end of all forms of violence
and for an everlasting peace in the Black community in America.
Dear servant of the King of Peace,
violence against each other betrays our progress
and robs us of our future.
Pray then Father Tolton
that we all might know Christ Jesus
enough so that we will see Him in each other.
Pray then O’ Father Tolton
that in the pursuit of peace
we might go from seeing Jesus in each other,
to loving each other through Him,
and cooperating with all that grace
empowers us to bring the in-dwelling of Christ
more fully out of each other.
Pray Father Tolton for the reign of Peace throughout the world,
and even more especially in communities
that are harmed by persistent violence.

Amen.

Day 5

PRAY FOR GOOD EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY

The doors of opportunity in the world are open to all,
and are open even more fully to those who have been educated.
Pray O’ Father Augustus Tolton, teacher of children,
for the Holy Spirit’s gifts of wisdom,
understanding, and knowledge
to pour out abundantly over the Black community in America,
and that the schools and universities
that service these communities
will be blessed with the resources, staff,
and faculty they need to achieve their goals.
Pray for Catholic schools and universities’ fidelity
to the teachings of the Church,
and that they might open their doors to all,
especially to the poor and to the disadvantaged.

Amen.

Day 6

PRAY FOR GAINFUL ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY

O’ Father Augustus Tolton,
as we seek your intercession for the spiritual needs
of the Black community in America,
we also come to you dear servant of God
to ask for your prayers for their material needs.
Pray Father Tolton for those in the Black community
to have good economic opportunities in their community
to find gainful employment
or to start a business,
so that all might have the resources they need
to provide for themselves, their family, and their Church.
Pray Father Tolton that God might fill in all of us
the spirit of a cheerful giver
so that we might remember
that all that has been given to us we will,
in-return, give back.

Amen.

Day 7

PRAY FOR THE END OF ABORTION IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY

Far too much treasure of the Black community in America
has been lost through the tragedy of abortion.
Pray O’ Father Augustus Tolton,
for a quickening of the Holy Spirit in the Black community
so that its conscience will be awakened
to know that each child conceived belongs to God,
and that God has given each child a plan
and purpose for its life.
Pray for an end of sexual objectification,
adultery, and pre marital sex
that paves the way to compounded bad decisions.
Pray that medical professionals will learn to see
and recognize the beauty of all pre-natal children,
even those that may be born different than us.
Pray Father Tolton for all women and men
who have in some way participated in abortions
for their forgiveness and healing.
Pray for all pregnant women
to have all of the help and support that they need
to bring their child safely into the world,
so that it might have the opportunity to know,
love, and serve God in this life and in the next.

Amen.

Day 8

PRAY FOR MORE CATHOLIC EVANGELISTS TO THE BLACK COMMUNITY

O’ Father Augustus Tolton,
who always sought out new opportunities
to reach out to the community,
pray O’ faithful servant of God
for the Lord to send more faithful evangelists of the Gospel
into the Black communities in America.
Pray Father Tolton that the Lord might send us more like you
to point God’s children to the light
and love of Christ Jesus
through the lenses of the Catholic Church.
And pray Father Tolton
that wherever the faithful evangelist might go
that he or she will have the courage to speak
only what God has given them to say,
and that their words will fall upon fertile soil.

Amen.

Day 9

PRAY FOR MORE VOCATIONS TO THE PRIESTHOOD, DIACONATE, AND CONSECRATED LIFE FROM THE BLACK COMMUNITY

O’ Father Augustus Tolton intercede for us
and pray that as the Eternal Father sent you
that He will send more from the Black community in America
to serve God’s people as Priests, Deacons, and consecrated Religious.
Pray Father Tolton for the Church’s cup to overflow with blessings
from vocations of men and women responding to their call
to serve God’s children in love.

Amen.