St. Isabel of France Novena
Contents
Show HideSt. Isabel of France was a princess, the daughter of King Louis VIII of France. She was also the sister of St. Louis. She lived in the 1200s.
St. Isabel of France consecrated herself to God and renounced her worldly status. You can use this novena to seek intercession from this holy woman in your life!
About St. Isabel of France
St. Isabel of France was born in 1225 to King Louis VIII and his wife, Blanche of Castile. When Isabel was two years old, King Louis VIII died.
During Isabel’s childhood, her mother oversaw Isabel’s education. She was educated in Latin and was very fond of reading. She also learned to embroider and loved to work on priestly vestments.
As a child, Isabel grew in devotion and piety. She requested a spiritual director, and the Franciscans helped her to grow to greater devotion. She was recognized as being very virtuous.
Because of political issues and a treaty, Isabel was betrothed to another noble from the time of her childhood. Despite this, Isabel refused to marry because she wished to consecrate her virginity to God. She was later pressed to accept another marriage invitation, but she remained firm in her plan of lifelong virginity.
Isabel wanted to establish a convent for the Poor Clare order. Her brother, King Louis IX, acquired land for this convent near Paris. The construction of the convent began in 1256 and was completed in about three years.
Isabel had a Franciscan compile a rule for her convent, based on the rule of the Order of St. Clare. Pope Alexander IV approved the rule, and the monastery was named the Monastery of the Humility of the Blessed Virgin.
Though Isabel never entered the convent herself, she lived out its rule in her own home. She refused to become abbess of the monastery and instead retained her wealth, through which she supported the monastery.
Isabel was not satisfied with the convent’s first rule and had a revised rule submitted to Pope Urban IV, who approved it.
The new rule’s differences were only minor changes to outward practices. Some other Poor Clare convents adopted the new rule of Isabel’s convent. Pope Urban IV gave the title “Sorores Minores Inclusae” (which means Enclosed Sisters Minor) to these nuns, to emphasize their connection to the Friars Minor.
Isabel spent the rest of her life in prayer, virtuous practices, and mortification. She died in 1270, and she was buried in the convent church. Her body was exhumed nine days after her death, and it was found that her body had not begun decaying at all. After this, many miracles occurred at the site of her grave.
Isabel’s convent was later suppressed during the French Revolution, and it was eventually destroyed.
St. Isabel of France’s Feast Day: February 26th
Why Pray the St. Isabel of France Novena?
St. Isabel of France is the patron saint of the sick. You can seek her intercession if you are sick, or you can ask her to pray for someone you know who is sick.
St. Isabel of France is also a great saint to seek prayers from if you are discerning a vocation to the consecrated life, since she was determined to consecrate herself to God as a virgin from the time she was a young woman.
Additionally, you can ask St. Isabel of France to intercede for any religious sisters you know, since she established a convent and lived out its rule.
You can pray the St. Isabel of France Novena for any intention!
St. Isabel of France Novena Prayers
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 1
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the virtue she showed in her life from the time she was a young girl.
St. Isabel of France, you were known to be pious and virtuous by others at court during your childhood. Though you were surrounded by the worldly concerns of courtly life, you were eager to dedicate your life to God.
Please bring my petitions before God Whom you served so eagerly!
You grew in devotion and piety as you got older. You longed to devote yourself entirely to God as a consecrated virgin.
Pray for me, that I may grow in virtue each day of my life. Pray that I may be as eager to devote myself to God as you were.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 2
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the love of You she showed in her eagerness to have a close relationship with You.
St. Isabel of France, you were a pious and devout child despite the worldly concerns that surrounded you. You requested a spiritual director to assist you in your spiritual life when you were very young.
Please bring my petitions before the throne of God!
You retained some Franciscan priests as your personal confessors. Through their assistance, you grew more closely united to God.
Pray for me, that I may be as eager as you were to grow to a close relationship with God. Pray that I may be given the assistance I need to have an intimate relationship with God.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 3
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the devotion to You she showed in her desire to consecrate her virginity to You.
St. Isabel of France, you were a devout and pious child. From a young age, you determined to devote yourself entirely to God by consecrating yourself to Him as a virgin.
Please bring my petitions before God Whom you longed to serve so wholeheartedly!
Your family arranged a marriage for you from the time you were very young. Despite the pressures to marry, you held fast to your vocation to the consecrated life and remained a virgin out of love for God.
Pray for me, that I may be as eager to devote myself to God as you were. Pray that I may never waver in my commitment to God.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 4
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the virtue she showed in holding fast to her vocation as a consecrated virgin, despite great pressure to marry.
St. Isabel of France, you were betrothed to be married from the time you were a young child. Despite the expectations that you would be married, you firmly resolved to answer God’s call to be a consecrated virgin.
Please bring my petitions before God with Whom you wished to be so intimately united!
Your family and others tried to persuade you to marry. You were later given another marriage proposal as well, but you continued to hold fast to God’s call in your life.
Pray for me, that I may have the fortitude to do what God calls me to do, no matter how difficult it might be. Pray that I may never waver in my desire to serve God wholeheartedly.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 5
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the love of You she showed in choosing to establish a Franciscan convent.
St. Isabel of France, you felt called by God to consecrate yourself to Him in lifelong virginity. As you lived out this call, you worked to establish a Poor Clare convent so that others might serve Him in this way.
Please bring my petitions before God Whom you served so wholeheartedly!
You worked hard to bring about the establishment of this Poor Clare convent. Though you never took religious vows yourself, you lived out the convent’s rule and supported the convent through your wealth.
Pray for me, that I may be as devoted to serving God as you were. Pray that I may never waver in my desire to be fully united to God.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 6
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the virtue she showed in her deep spirit of poverty.
St. Isabel of France, you were born to a family of the highest rank. Though you could have led a luxurious lifestyle, you chose instead to live simply and to devote your life to God.
Please bring my petitions before God Whom you served so devotedly!
You established a convent for Poor Clares, and you gave of your own wealth to support it for many years. You spent your life living simply in prayer, virtuous acts, and mortification.
Pray for me, that I may grow in a holy spirit of detachment from worldly riches. Pray that I may always place heavenly riches over earthly wealth.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 7
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the love of You she showed in the humility she lived out.
St. Isabel of France, you were born with great political and worldly power. Despite this, you chose to humbly serve God as a consecrated virgin.
Please bring my petitions before God Whom you served so humbly!
You worked to establish a convent for Poor Clares and to have a new rule written for the nuns to follow. When the new rule was approved by the Pope, he gave your convent the title Enclosed Sisters Minor, as St. Francis named his order the Friars Minor to emphasize humility.
Pray for me, that I may grow in the spirit of humility in my life. Pray that I may always do all I can to serve God humbly in my life.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 8
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the devotion to You she showed in choosing to live penitentially.
St. Isabel of France, you were born the daughter of a king and spent your childhood at court. Despite the worldly riches that must have surrounded you, you chose to cast off worldly things for the sake of your vocation.
Please continue to bring my petitions before the throne of God!
As a consecrated virgin, you lived out the rule of the convent you established. You spent the rest of your life in prayer, virtuous practices, and mortification.
Pray for me, that I may grow in a spirit of holy penance in my life. Pray that I may become more devoted to God each day.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Isabel of France Novena - Day 9
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we thank You for giving us St. Isabel of France as an example of holiness. Help us to imitate the love of You she showed by her life of service to You and Your Church.
St. Isabel of France, you could have married and lived a comfortable life at court. Instead, you chose to devote your life to God as a consecrated virgin.
Please bring my petitions before God Whom you served with such devotion!
As you lived out your vocation of virginity, you established a convent. You lived out the rule of this convent and supported the convent through your own wealth.
Pray for me, that I may always be a devoted servant of God and His Church. Pray that I may never waver in my commitment to God and His Church.
Please also pray for (mention your intentions here).
St. Isabel of France, pray for us!
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.