Tuesday is the day to petition St. Martha the Dominator, the patron saint of housewives and service people! Also known as Santa Marta Dominadora, she is the dragon-slaying, snake-charming badass sister of Mary Magdalene and Lazarus (the one who rose from the dead!) who can help petitioners gain the upper hand in relationships and at work through domination.
saint martha prayer in english
Often, when we hear the word “domination” – in any context – we assume it’s a person with power controlling someone with less power but this can also happen in reverse. When someone from a position of oppression or victimization gains power over their oppressor or abuser they gain the ability to dominate that person or situation in an act of self-defense.
Dragon-slaying, you say? YES. Martha witnessed Jesus raising her brother Lazarus from the dead, and was present during Jesus’s own resurrection. Afterwards, she moved to Europe to help spread the word of the lord. In France, Martha came to the town of Tarascon in the provence region and found the townspeople plagued by a dragon known as the Tarasque. With nothing but a cross and holy water, Martha rebuked the beast in the name of the lord, tied her scarf around it’s neck, and walked it around town to show that it was no longer a threat. European images of Martha often depict her walking the dragon on a leash like a pet.
What is a Novena?
The word novena is taken from “novem,” the Latin word for nine. A novena is made up of nine days of prayer and meditation usually to ask God for special prayer requests or petitions. Novenas are often used to ask specific saints to pray for us. The Saint Jude Novena, for example, is prayed to ask Saint Jude to intercede on behalf of a request that seems especially dire.
Novenas are an ancient tradition that goes back to the days of the Apostles. Jesus told His disciples to pray together after His ascension into heaven, so they went to an upper room along with the Blessed Virgin Mary, (Acts 1:14) and joined constantly in prayer for nine days. These nine days of constant prayer by the Apostles at the direction of Jesus led up to Pentecost. This is when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples as “tongues of fire” (Acts 2:1-4). This pattern of 9 days of prayer is the basis the novenas we pray today.
Thus, the novena is an imitation of the Lord’s command to the Apostles when they prayed for 9 days in anticipation of the coming of the Holy Spirit.
How do I pray a Novena?
If you sign up here, we will send you the announcement for each novena, a reminder, and the daily prayers for the 9 days of the novena. We will also send you an e-mail on the feast day or last day of the novena, as well as share answered prayers with you from other people in the community.
All you need to do is to say the daily prayers with a sincere heart. It is not necessary to pray at the same time every day (although you can), or to fast, or to pray the rosary in addition to the novena; however, you can still do all of these things in addition to praying, but they are not required. If they are, we will tell you in our e-mails.
Novenas should not be seen as magical incantations that guarantee desired results. God controls the universe and we certainly do not control God. He is not a genie in a bottle, but rather He is a loving Father in heaven. This means that whatever good intentions we pray for, we must accept the fact that God knows what’s best for us, whether we understand His divine intention or not. “Thy will be done” is the proper posture of all Christian prayer. Any so-called novena prayer circulating around that contains guaranteed results, and threatening misfortune for those who fail to devote themselves to it is merely a chain-letter; these should be ignored.
Nonetheless, Jesus reminds us in the Gospel to be persistent in prayer and a novena is a great aid in doing just that!
What if I miss a day?
That’s okay, it happens! If you a miss a day, you can do one of a few things…
You can either: 1) skip the day you missed altogether, 2) say two of the daily prayers in one day to catch up, or 3) say the prayer of the day you missed and just be one day behind everybody else.
It’s up to you, and whatever you choose to do is okay. There are no “rules” and there are no “consequences.” God is forgiving and merciful!
Should I have the same intention for all 9 days or should I have a different intention for each day?
You can do either one 🙂 What matters most is how you come to the Lord with that intention — with a sincere heart that is open to God’s will.
In African Traditional Religions like Lucumi and Hoodoo, Santa Marta’s dragon is replaced by a pair of tamed serpents, which were important spiritual beings in the Dahomey kingdom of Africa where many people were taken for the Atlantic Slave Trade. In this incarnation, Marta is often beseeched for matters of love and relationships like bringing back a straying lover or forcing an abusive partner out of your life; and issues at work like a domineering coworker or exploitative employer. She can be petitioned in the most dire of circumstances, and though she won’t bestow great wealth, she’ll get you the money you need to get by when things are bad.
Santa Marta candles and oils are my go-to recommendation for people leaving abusive homes or relationships and looking to add spiritual energy to their plan. Likewise for those with serious trouble at work due to a coworker, immediate boss, or employer exploiting them and their labour. As the patron of housewives, she is often called on by women to help them dominate or gain the upper hand over men, but as long as you are NOT the abuser in the situation and you present offerings when asking for her aid 9 tuesdays in a row, she will consider helping you.
Santa Marta is what’s known as a “hot” saint, meaning that petitioning her without leaving offerings almost always guarantees your magic will fail. Luckily, Martha’s offerings are not extravagant or rare! Her favourite is sweet breads like pound cake, but also like perfume, white wine, white flowers, and clean water. Once your request is granted it’s also customary to make a donation to charity or church in your community.
Over 9 consecutive Tuesdays, light a St. Martha candle or a green candle dressed with St. Martha oil at your altar. Pray to the Saint and ask for help with your specific issue, and leave an offering for her. On the 9th tuesday she’s said to help with your situation, or even intercede in some other way that’s more appropriate. If your situation is longer-lasting, or if you feel a stronger connection to St. Martha, you can continue burning candles to her on Tuesdays and offering whatever you can.
In St. Martha, Joseph Duvalier gives the following prayer you can use while petitioning the saint:
O glorious Saint Martha,
I have recourse to your protection and aid,
And as proof of my affection and faith
I promise faithfully to complete this novena.
Comfort me in my difficulties
And intercede for my family
With your intimate friend, our savior,
That we may always hold God in our hearts
And be provided for in our necessities.
I beg your supplications
Especially in behalf of the favor
I ask of you in this novena.
(mention your request).
I ask you, Saint Martha,
By your intercession to help me
In overcoming all my difficulties
And to teach me to become great
In the Kingdom of Heaven
By becoming as humble as you
In this world. Amen.