Prayers to Saint Expedite
Speak plainly, as to a friend you respect deeply. Tell him exactly what you need, and tell him what you will give in return.
The Classic Prayer
Prayer to Saint Expedite for Urgent Help
Saint Expedite, you lay in rest.
I come to you and ask that this wish be granted.
(Here, clearly express what you want, and ask him to find a way to get it to you.)
Expedite now what I ask of you.
Expedite now what I want of you, this very second.
Don’t waste another day.
Grant me what I ask for.
I know your power, I know you because of your work.
I know you can help me.
Do this for me and I will spread your name with love and honor
so that it will be invoked again and again.
Expedite this wish with speed, love, honor, and goodness.
Glory to you, Saint Expedite!
As you recite this prayer, light a red candle to Saint Expedite and set a glass of water beside it. Recite daily until your request is granted — then give him his due (see below), and tell someone how he helped you.
How to Petition Him, Step by Step
- Be sure of your need. Petition Saint Expedite only for what you truly need — not for what would merely be nice. He is the saint of urgency; come to him when time is short and the matter is serious.
- Begin on a Wednesday if you can — Wednesday is his traditional day. His feast day, April 19, is the most powerful day of all.
- Prepare his altar. Light a red candle (a glass-encased vigil candle is traditional) and place a clear glass of water beside it. Red flowers honor him. If you have his image or statue, set it where you can see it.
- Write your petition. On a plain piece of paper, write exactly what you need — be specific: the amount, the date, the outcome. Fold the paper toward you and place it under the candle.
- Strike your bargain. Say the prayer above aloud, and promise him his payment: a slice of pound cake, red flowers, a glass of red wine — and your public thanks. Do not pay him before the work is done. His wages come after delivery.
- Pray daily until he answers. Keep the candle burning (safely) and repeat the prayer each day. Do not stop before you see the result.
- When he grants it, pay him — and proclaim it. Give him the pound cake (in New Orleans, devotees insist on Sara Lee), pour the water as an offering, set out fresh flowers — and tell someone how Saint Expedite helped you. Tradition is firm on this point: if you do not thank him publicly, he may take back the favor, and then some.
The Nine-Day Novena
Pray one day’s meditation each day for nine days — beginning on a Wednesday if possible — followed each day by the Classic Prayer above. Light your red candle on the first day and keep it burning safely through the nine days.
For the Urgent Need Before You
Name your need out loud, plainly and without embarrassment. Saint Expedite is the patron of matters that cannot wait — bring him the thing with the deadline, the bill, the crisis. He crushed delay itself underfoot; he will not tell you to wait.
For Your Family
Place your household under his swift protection. Pray for the roof over their heads, the food on their table, and every member by name who is struggling. A centurion guarded his own — ask him to guard yours.
For Health and Strength
For the sickbed and the waiting room, for test results and recoveries. Ask for speed where speed matters most — the swift diagnosis, the quick healing, the strong body.
For Work and Provision
For the job that must come through, the deal that must close, the wages that must stretch. Merchants and workers have called on him for centuries when livelihoods hung on timing.
For Protection from Harm
He was a soldier; ask the soldier’s saint to stand guard. Pray for safe travel, for protection from injustice, for the quick turning-aside of whatever threatens you or those you love.
In Thanksgiving for Favors Already Granted
Pause the asking and remember. Count the times he has already answered — the miracles you can name and the quiet ones you almost missed. Gratitude is part of the bargain, and it pleases him.
For the Impossible Cause
Bring him the thing you have almost given up on — the door that has been closed the longest. His name means the one who makes a way. Ask boldly; he respects boldness.
For Others Who Are Waiting
Pray today not for yourself but for someone else in urgent need. Visit the petition wall and add your prayers to a stranger’s intention. The saint who hurries to the desperate honors those who hurry to each other.
Thanksgiving and the Promise
End as the prayer itself ends: with the promise. “Do this for me and I will spread your name with love and honor, so that it will be invoked again and again.” Vow your public thanks now, in advance — and when he delivers, keep the vow. Leave your testimony on the tribute wall for all to see.