Traditional Prayers in Thanksgiving

IN ENGLISH & LATIN

Prayers in thanksgiving to the glory, majesty and tender mercies of God; and all the benefits He hast bestowed upon us and His Church. Recommended for the very end of the day.

WE adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee;
Because by Thy holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

ADORÁMUS Te, Christe, et benedícimus te;
Quia per sanctam Crucem tuam redemísti mundum.

(Trad. indulgence: 10 years if the Apostles’ Creed is added in devotion to our Lord’s Passion & Death)

•••••

The Te Deum (Ambrosian Hymn)

WE PRAISE Thee, O God: we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord.
Thee, the Father everlasting, all the earth doth worship.
To Thee all angels; to Thee the Heavens and all the Powers:
To Thee the Cherubim and Seraphim continually cry:

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Sabaoth.
Heaven and earth art full of the majesty of Thy glory.

Thee, the glorious choir of the Apostles,
Thee, the admirable company of Prophets,
Thee, the white-robed army of Martyrs, praise.
Thee, the holy Church throughout the world doth acknowledge:

The Father of infinite Majesty;
Thy adorable, true, and only Son;
Also, the Holy Ghost, the Comforter.

Thou, O Christ, art the King of glory,
Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.

When Thou didst take upon Thee to deliver man,
Thou didst not disdain the Virgin’s womb.
Having overcome the sting of death,
Thou didst open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right hand of God, in the glory of the Father.
We believe that Thou shalt come to be our Judge.
We therefore pray Thee to help Thy servants,
whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Precious Blood.
Make them to be numbered with Thy saints in glory everlasting.

℣. Save Thy people, O Lord, and bless Thy inheritance.
℟. Govern them, and raise them up forever.

℣. Every day we bless Thee.
℟. And we praise Thy Name; yea, forever and ever.

℣. Vouchsafe, O Lord, this day, to keep us from sin.
℟. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℣. Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, for we have hoped in Thee.
℟. O Lord, in Thee I have hoped; let me never be put to shame. Amen.

(On occasions of solemn thanksgiving the following prayers are added)

℣. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, the God of our fathers.
℟. And worthy to be praised, and glorious forever.

℣. Let us bless the Father and the Son, with the Holy Ghost.
℟. Let us praise and magnify Him for ever.

℣. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, in the firmament of heaven.
℟. And worthy to be praised, and glorious, and exalted for ever.

℣. Bless the Lord, O my soul.
℟. And forget not all His benefits.

℣. O Lord, hear my prayer.
℟. And let my cry come unto Thee.

℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with thy spirit.

Let us pray.
O GOD, of Whose mercies there is no number, and of Whose goodness the treasure is infinite: we render thanks to Thy most gracious Majesty for the gifts Thou hast bestowed upon us, always beseeching Thy clemency; that as Thou grantest the petitions of them that ask Thee, Thou wilt not forsake them, but wilt prepare them for the greater rewards that still await them. Through Christ our Lord.

(Trad. indulgence: 5 years when recited devoutly, giving thanks to God for blessings received; 10 years when assisting in the public singing of this hymn in a church, which is typically sung during or after Mass, on the last day of the year, or plenary with the addition of Confession, Communion and prayers for the intentions of the Holy Father.)

 

•••••

The Benedictus

(The Canticle of Zechariah, at the birth of St. John the Baptist)

BLESSED be the Lord God of Israel: for He hath visited and wrought redemption for His people.
And hath raised up an horn of salvation to us: in the house of His servant David.
As He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets; who have been from the beginning.
That He would save us from our enemies: and from the hand of all that hate us.
To perform mercy to our fathers: and to remember His holy covenant.
The oath which He swore to Abraham our father: that He would grant to us:
That being delivered from the hands of our enemies: we might serve Him without fear,
In holiness and justice before Him, all the days of our life.
And thou, child, shalt be called the Prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways.
To give knowledge of salvation to His people: for the remission of their sins.
Through the tender mercy of God: in which the dayspring from on high hath visited us.
To enlighten them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death: to direct our feet into the way of peace.

Glory be…

(Poetic rendering of St. Luke 1: 68-79)

 

•••••

The Gloria

(The Greater Doxology)

GLORY be to God on high, and on earth peace to men of good will. We praise Thee, we bless Thee, we adore Thee, we glorify Thee. We give Thee thanks for Thy great glory. O Lord God, King of Heaven, God the Father almighty. O Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son. O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, Thou Who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Thou Who takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. Thou Who sittest at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For Thou alone art holy, Thou alone art Lord, Thou alone art most high, O Jesus Christ, with the Holy Ghost, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

 

•••••

Hail to Thee! True Body Sprung

HAIL to Thee! True Body, sprung
From the Virgin Mary’s womb!
The same that on the cross was hung,
And bore for man the bitter doom.

Thou, Whose side was pierced and flow’d
Both with Water and with Blood;
Suffer us to taste of Thee,
In our life’s last agony. 

Son of Mary, Jesu blest!
Sweetest, gentlest, holiest!

(Pope Innocent VI, attrib.)

 

•••••

Psalm 116

Laudate Dominum. Alleluia.

O PRAISE the Lord, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people.
For his mercy is confirmed upon us:
and the truth of the Lord remaineth for ever.

Glory be…

 

•••••

Psalm 102

Benedic, anima. Thanksgiving to God for his mercies.
For David himself.

BLESS the Lord, O my soul: and let all that is within me bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and never forget all he hath done for thee. Who forgiveth all thy iniquities: who healeth all thy diseases. Who redeemeth thy life from destruction: who crowneth thee with mercy and compassion. Who satisfieth thy desire with good things: thy youth shall be renewed like the eagle’s.

The Lord doth mercies, and judgment for all that suffer wrong. He hath made his ways known to Moses: his wills to the children of Israel. The Lord is compassionate and merciful: longsuffering and plenteous in mercy. He will not always be angry: nor will he threaten for ever. He hath not dealt with us according to our sins: nor rewarded us according to our .iniquities.

For according to the height of the heaven above the earth: he hath strengthened his mercy towards them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our iniquities from us. As a father hath compassion on his children, so hath the Lord compassion on them that fear him: For he knoweth our frame. He remembereth that we are dust: Man’s days are as grass, as the flower of the field so shall he flourish. 

For the spirit shall pass in him, and he shall not be: and he shall know his place no more. But the mercy of the Lord is from eternity and unto eternity upon them that fear him: And his justice unto children’s children, To such as keep his covenant, And are mindful of his commandments to do them. The Lord hath prepared his throne in heaven: and his kingdom shall rule over all. Bless the Lord, all ye his angels: you that are mighty in strength, and execute his word, hearkening to the voice of his orders. 

Bless the Lord, all ye his hosts: you ministers of his that do his will. Bless the Lord, all his works: in every place of his dominion, O my soul, bless thou the Lord.

Glory be…

Blessed be God.

N.B. Traditionally, recitation of this beautiful psalm of thanksgiving was suggested after Confession; it is also a wonderful manner in which to conclude one’s morning prayers.