Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Novena Church)

Marian Advocation of Singapore (National)
Recognized by the Church

St. Alphonsus Church, popularly known as "Novena Church," belongs to the Redemptorists, who arrived in Singapore in 1935. The first church dedicated to Our Lady of Perpetual Help on Thomson Road was inaugurated in 1950; the current church, enlarged and restored, was reopened in 2017. The popular Saturday novena devotion began in 1949 and grew to become widespread, even giving its name to the area and the "Novena" subway station.

Main data

Origin and history

St. Alphonsus Church, popularly known as "Novena Church," belongs to the Redemptorists, who arrived in Singapore in 1935. The first church dedicated to Our Lady of Perpetual Help on Thomson Road was inaugurated in 1950; the current church, enlarged and restored, was reopened in 2017. The popular Saturday novena devotion began in 1949 and grew to become widespread, even giving its name to the area and the "Novena" subway station.

The image and the sanctuary

The church, located at 300 Thomson Road, is dedicated to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, whose venerated icon is the focus of devotion. It is a major Marian center in the city, considered a landmark church of Singapore. While there is no official decree declaring it a Marian shrine, practice and diocesan recognition have established it as such.

Sponsorship and coronation

There is no record of a canonical coronation or civil patronage. The devotion is fully approved and promoted by the Archdiocese of Singapore, served by the Redemptorists.

Party and devotion

The feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is celebrated on June 27th with a solemn annual novena. Multiple novena sessions are held every Saturday, during which the faithful present letters of petition and thanksgiving; the weekly attendance has been estimated at thousands of people, including many non-Catholics. The favors recounted in the letters (healings, reconciliations, and assistance in employment) belong to popular piety, without canonical pronouncement on miracles.

Link to the Rosary

Devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help is intertwined with the recitation of the rosary in Redemptorist Marian piety. The massive Saturday novena is the most characteristic expression of this filial trust in the Virgin Mary, one of the largest manifestations of regular popular piety in Singapore.