Act of Faith

My God, I believe in you and in all the your Church teaches,
because you have said it, and your word is true.

Amen.

Anima Christi (1)

Soul of Christ, sanctify me, Body of Christ, save me
Blood of Christ, inebriate me Water from Christ’s side wash me
Passion of Christ, strengthen me
O good Jesus, hear me
Within thy wounds hide me suffer me not to be separated from Thee from the malicious enemy defend me. In the hour of my death call me
And bid me come to Thee that I may praise Thee with Thy saints and with Thy angels forever and ever.

Amen.

Anima Christi (2)  Pope John XXII (translated by Blessed John Henry Newman)

Soul of Christ, be my sanctification,
Body of Christ, be my salvation,
Blood of Christ, fill my veins
Water from the side of Christ, wash out my stains.
May Christ’s Passion strengthen me,
O good Jesus, hear me.
In thy wounds I fain would hide,
Never to be parted from thy side.
Guard me when my foes assail me,
Call me when my life shall fail me.
Command me then to come to thee.
That I for all eternity
With thy saints may praise thee.

Amen.

Be with Me Today, O Lord (by John Henry Newman)

May all I do today begin with you, O Lord.
Plant dreams and hopes within my soul,
revive my tired spirit:
be with me today.May all I do today continue with your help, O Lord.
Be at my side and walk with me:
Be my support today. May all I do today reach far and wide, O Lord.
My thoughts, my work, my life:
make them blessings for your kingdom;
let them go beyond today,O God Today is new unlike any other day,
for God makes each day different.
Today God’s everyday grace falls on my soul like abundant seed,
though I may hardly see it.Today is one of those days Jesus promised to be with me,
a companion on my journey,
And my life today, if I trust him,
has consequences unseen.
My life has a purpose.”I have a mission…
“I am a link in a chain,
a bond of connection between persons.
God has not created me for naught…
Therefore I will trust him.
Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away.
God does nothing in vain.”He knows what he is about.”

Amen.

Holy Light Prayer (from the Liturgy of the Hours)

Lord God,
in your wisdom you created us;
by your providence you rule us;
penetrate our inmost being with your holy light,
so that our way of life may always be one of faithful service to you.
Through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Lead, Kindly Light

(“The Pillar of Cloud”, John Henry Cardinal Newman; last verse Edward Bickersteth, Bishop of Exeter)

Lead, Kindly Light, amidst th’encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that Thou
Shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path; but now
Lead Thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will. Remember not past years!

So long Thy power hath blest me, sure it still
Will lead me on.
O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone,
And with the morn those angel faces smile,
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile!

Meantime, along the narrow rugged path,
Thyself hast trod,
Lead, Saviour, lead me home in childlike faith,
Home to my God.
To rest forever after earthly strife
In the calm light of everlasting life.

O My Lord Jesus (John Henry Newman)

O my Lord Jesus,
low as I am in Your all-holy sight, I am strong in You,
strong through Your Immaculate Mother, through Your saints
and thus I can do much for the Church, for the world, for all I love.

Amen.

Prayer of St Augustine

Eternal God, You are the light of the minds that know you,
the joy of the hearts that love you,
and the strength of the wills that serve you;
grant us so to know you, that we may truly serve you,
whom to serve is prefect freedom, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Prayer of St Ignatius of Layola

Take Lord and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding and my entire will;
all that I have and possess.
You have given it all to me:
to you, O Lord, I return it.
All is yours;
do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and grace,
for this is enough for me.
Our one desire and choice in life should be this:
I want and I choose what better leads to God deepening his life in me.

Prayer of St Teresa of Avila (2)

Let nothing disturb you,
Nothing affright you;
All things are passing,
God never changes.
Patient endurance
Attains to all things;
Who God possesses
In nothing is wanting;
Alone God suffices.

Prayer of St. Thomas Merton

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.

Nor do I really know myself,
and the fact that I think I am following your will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.
And I hope that I have that desire in all that I am doing.

I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire,
and I know that if I do this
you will lead me by the right road
though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore I will trust you always
though I may need to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd there is nothing I shall want.

Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose.

Near restful waters he leads me, to revive my drooping spirit.

He guides me along the right path; he is true to his name.

If I should walk in the valley of darkness no evil will I fear.

You are there with your crook and your staff; with these you give me comfort.

You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes.

My head you have anointed with oil; my cup is overflowing.

Surely goodness and kindness shall follow mw all the days of my life.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

Amen.

Soul of Christ Prayer (14th Century)

Soul of Christ
A 14th Century prayer used by St Ignatius
Soul of Christ, sanctify me.
Body of Christ, save me.
Blood of Christ, inebriate me.
Water from Christ’s side, wash me.
Passion of Christ, strengthen me.
O good Jesus, hear me.
Within your wounds hide me.
Let me not be separated from you.
From the enemy defend me,
At my death call me
And bid me, come to you
That with your saints I may praise you
For ever and ever.

Amen.

Suscipe (St. Ignatius of Loyola)

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All I have and call my own.
You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.

The Mission of My Life (by John Henry Newman)

God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next.

I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good; I shall do His work. I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it if I do but keep His commandments.

Therefore, I will trust Him, whatever I am, I can never be thrown away.

If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him, in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him. If I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him.

He does nothing in vain. He knows what He is about. He may take away my friends. He may throw me among strangers. He may make me feel desolate, make my spirits sink, hide my future from me. Still, He knows what He is about.

Amen.

When short of time to pray

After General Lord Jacob Astley (1579-1652), before the battle of Edgehill

O Lord, you know how busy today I must be,
If I should forget you, do not forget me.

For Christ’s sake. Amen.

You are Christ

(Attr. St Augustine of Hippo, 4th Century)

You are Christ, my Holy Father, my Tender God, my Great King, my Good Shepherd, my Only Master, my Best Helper, my Most Beautiful and my Beloved, my Living Bread, my Priest Forever, my Leader to my Country, my True Light, my Holy Sweetness, my Straight Way, my Excellent Wisdom, my Pure Simplicity, my Peaceful Harmony, my Entire Protection, my Good Portion, my Everlasting Salvation.

Christ Jesus, Sweet Lord, why have I ever loved, why in my whole life have I ever desired anything except You, Jesus my God? Where was I when I was not in spirit with You? Now, from this time forth, do you, all my desires, grow hot, and flow out upon the Lord Jesus: run… you have been tardy until now; hasten where you are going; seek Whom you are seeking. O, Jesus may he who loves You not be an anathema; may he who loves You not be filled with bitterness.

O, Sweet Jesus, may every good feeling that is fitted for Your praise, love You, delight in You, adore You! God of my heart, and my Portion, Christ Jesus, may my heart faint away in spirit, and may You be my Life within me! May the live coal of Your Love grow hot within my spirit and break forth into a perfect fire; may it burn incessantly on the altar of my heart; may it glow in my innermost being; may it blaze in hidden recesses of my soul; and in the days of my consummation may I be found consummated with You!

Amen.