Prayer

The Catechism clearly defines prayer as a “vital and personal relationship with the living and true God” (CCC, no. 2558). Prayer is Christian “insofar as it is communion with Christ” (CCC, no. 2565), and a “covenant relationship between God and man in Christ” (CCC, no. 2564).

“Prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God” (St. John Damascene, CCC 2559).

Please feel free to come to this webpage to read and pray along with these prayers. We’ll add more prayers as time goes by and hopefully you see your favorites.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever.
Amen.

Glory to God – Old Translation

Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to His people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
Almighty God and Father,
we worship You, we give You thanks,
we praise You for Your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ,
only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
You take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
You are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For You alone are the Holy One,
You alone are the Lord,
You alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of the Father.
Amen.

Glory to God – New Translation

Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of good will. [c.f. Lk 2:14]
We praise you,
we bless you,
we adore you,
we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.
Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world,
receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.

Confiteor

I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God

Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel

St. Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou,
O Prince of the heavenly hosts,
by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan,
and all the evil spirits,
who prowl about the world
seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.

Prayer for Faithful Departed

O God, the Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful,
grant to the souls of Thy servants
departed the remission of their sins, that,
through pious supplications,
they may obtain the pardon
which they have always desired.
Who livest and reignest with God the Father,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
world without end.
Amen.

The Precious Blood of Jesus

Eternal Father,
I offer Thee the most precious blood
of Thy Divine Son, Jesus,
in union with the Masses said throughout the world today,
for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory,
for sinners everywhere,
for sinners in the universal Church,
those in my own home and within my family.
Amen

Respect Life Prayer

O God, our Creator,
all life is in your hands
from conception until death.
Help us to cherish each person
and to reverence the awesome privilege
of our share in creation.
Bless all those who
defend the rights of the unborn,
the handicapped, the victims of abuse,
terrorism and war, the homeless,
those on death row, and the aged.
Enlighten and be merciful
toward those who fail to love,
and give each of us the wisdom and peace
that we need so that all may know
your Holy truth about the sacredness of life.
Let freedom be tempered with
responsibility, integrity, justice and love.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord.
Amen

A Prayer for Life

Father and maker of all,
you adorn all creation
with splendor and beauty,
and fashion human lives
in your image and likeness.
Awaken in every heart
reverence for the work of your hands,
and renew among your people
a readiness to nurture and sustain
your precious gift of life.

Grant this through our Lord
Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in
the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God forever and ever.
Amen

Morning Offering

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day
for all the intentions of your Sacred Heart,
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world,
for the salvation of souls, the reparation of sins, the reunion of all Christians,
and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father this month.
Amen.

Written in 1844 by Fr. François-Xavier Gautrelet

Prayer for the New Evangelization

Heavenly Father,

Pour forth your Holy Spirit to inspire me with these words from Holy Scripture.

Stir in my soul the desire to renew my faith and deepen my relationship with your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ so that I might truly believe in and live the Good News.

Open my heart to hear the Gospel and grant me the confidence to proclaim the Good News to others.

Pour out your Spirit, so that I might be strengthened to go forth and witness to the Gospel in my everyday life through my words and actions.

In moments of hesitation, remind me:

If not me, then who will proclaim the Gospel?

If not now, then when will the Gospel be proclaimed?

If not the truth of the Gospel, then what shall I proclaim?

God, our Father, I pray that through the Holy Spirit I might hear the call of the New Evangelization to deepen my faith, grow in confidence to proclaim the Gospel and boldly witness to the saving grace of your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

A Prayer for True Friendship

Jesus, loving companion of Your children,
You have extended Your friendship to all.
You opened Your arms without discrimination,
Offering Your warmth to those seeking comfort.
Endow me with the virtue of such a friendship,
To know, love and trust all on an equal basis;
To share my patronizing without favorism,
And to be pleasant towards the destitute.
Fashion my heart to reflect Your qualities,
Those befitting of a cordial association.
Jesus, You showed me the way to true friendship:
Blessed is Your amazing and warm Person!
Amen

Peace of Heart

Almighty and Eternal God,
Give me, I beseech You,
the great gift of inward peace.
Command the winds and storms
of my unruly passions.
Subdue, by Your grace,
my proneness to love
created things too much.
Give me a love of suffering for Your sake.
make me forbearing and kind to others,
that I may avoid quarrels and contentions.
And teach me constantly to seek after
and to acquire that perfect resignation
to Your Holy Will
which alone brings interior peace.
Amen.

Prayer for Peace

O Lord Jesus Christ, Who said to Your Apostles:
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you,”
regard not my sins but the faith of Your Church,
and deign to give her peace and unity according to Your Will:
Who live and reign, God, world without end.
Amen.

A Prayer for Friends and Benefactors

O God, bountiful in forgiving,
and lovingly desirous of man’s salvation,
we humbly beseech Thy mercy in behalf of our friends,
relations and benefactors,
who have passed from this world, that,
through the intercession of Blessed Mary ever Virgin
and all the Saints,
Thou wouldst permit them to come
to the full participation of everlasting happiness.
Through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

A Mariage Prayer

Lord, help us to remember when we first met
and the strong love that grew between us.
To work that love into practical things
so nothing can divide us.
We ask for words both kind and loving,
and for hearts always ready
to ask for forgiveness
as well as to forgive.

Dear Lord, we put our marriage
into Your hands.
Amen

Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace,
the LORD is with thee,
blessed are you among all women
and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus,
Holy Mary, mother of God,
pray for us sinners
now and in the hour of our death.
Amen

The Angelus

The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary:
And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of
our death. Amen.

Behold the handmaid of the Lord: May it be it done unto me according to Thy word.

Hail Mary . . .

And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us.

Hail Mary . . .

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God: That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray:

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord.
Amen.

Regina Coeli

Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia. / For He whom you did merit to bear, alleluia.

Has risen, as he said, alleluia. / Pray for us to God, alleluia.

Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia. / For the Lord has truly risen, alleluia.

Let us pray. O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may obtain the joys of everlasting life. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Memorare

REMEMBER, O most gracious Virgin Mary,
that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection,
implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided.
Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother;
to thee do I come; before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful.
O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions,
but in thy mercy hear and answer me.
Amen.

Hail, holy Queen (Salve, Regina)

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To thee to we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn, then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, Who by the working of the Holy Spirit didst prepare both body and soul of the glorious Virgin Mother, Mary, that she might deserve to be made a worthy dwelling for Thy Son, grant that we who rejoice in her memory, may, by her loving intercession, be delivered from present evils and from lasting death, through the same Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Come Holy Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.

V. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray. O God, Who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit,
grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise, and ever to rejoice in His consolation.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

O Holy Spirit,
beloved of my soul, I adore You.
Enlighten me,
guide me,
strengthen me,
console me.
Tell me what I should do;
give me Your orders.
I promise to submit myself to all that You desire of me
and to accept all that You permit to happen to me.
Let me only know Your Will.
Amen.

Act of Contrition

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.
Amen.

Act of Faith

O my God, I firmly believe that you are one God in three divine Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; I believe that your divine Son became man and died for our sins, and that he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because you revealed them, who can neither deceive nor be deceived.
Amen.

Act of Hope

O my God, relying on Your almighty power and infinite mercy and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Your grace and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer.
Amen.

Act of Love

O my God, I love you above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because you are all good and worthy of all my love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of you. I forgive all who have injured me and I ask pardon of all whom I have injured.
Amen.

Adoration Prayer

My Lord Jesus Christ,
I believe that You are really here in this Sacrament.
Night and day You remain here compassionate and loving.
You call, You wait for,
You welcome everyone who comes to visit You.
I thank You, Jesus my Divine Redeemer
for coming upon the earth for our sake
and for instituting the Adorable Sacrament of the Holy
Eucharist
in order to remain with us until the end of the world.
I thank You for hiding beneath the Eucharistic species
Your infinite majesty and beauty,
which Your Angels delight to behold,
so that I might have courage to approach the throne of
Your mercy.
I thank You dear Jesus,
for having become the priceless Victim,
to merit for me the fullness of heavenly favors.
Awaken in me such confidence in You
that their fullness may descend ever more fruitfully upon
my soul.
I thank You for offering Yourself
in thanksgiving to God for all His benefits,
spiritual and temporal
which He has bestowed on me.
Grant me grace and perseverance in your faithful service.
Amen.