Prayers

	Here is a selection of general and specific prayers you may find helpful. If you have a favourite prayer, do e-mail it to the curate for possible inclusion.
	Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us; And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen. Lord's Prayer
	Hail Mary, full of grace, The Lord is with thee, Blessed art thou amongst 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. Angelus
	Max God bless you and keep you. May the Lord look over you, And the light of his countenance shine upon you. May he guard you from all harm and all danger, And walk beside you all the days of your life. Amen Traditional arr Max Findlay
	O God, who art the author of peace and lover of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom: Defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The Second Collect for Peace
	Into his joy, the Lord has received you, Virgin God-bearer, Mother of Christ. You have beheld the King in his beauty, Mary, daughter of Israel. You have made answer for the creation To the redeeming will of God. Light, fire and life, divine and immortal, Joined to our nature you have brought forth, That to the glory of God the Father Heaven and earth might be restored. Anthem to the Theotokos / Greek Orthodox Hymn
	May Christ give you rest in the land of the living And open for you the gates of paradise; May he receive you as a citizen of the Kingdom, And grant you forgiveness of your sins: For you were his friend. Orthodox funeral rite
	Our life is love, and peace, and tenderness; and bearing one with another, and forgiving one another, and not laying accusations one against another; but praying one for another, and helping one another up with a tender hand. Isaac Penington (1667)
	Deborah Glory to God, Source of all being, Eternal Word and Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, And shall be for ever. Amen. Benedictus / refrain
	Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen. The Third Collect for Aid against all Perils
	Forgiveness Lord, draw from our hearts the spring of forgiveness. Make your sunlight our own. In the spirit of Christ, help us to forgive others for being different; For not sharing our opinions; For loving others, but only liking us, Or not liking us at all. Help us to forgive Christ for being so good, And all whom life visits with blessings Greater than our own. Help us to be forgiven by all who find us Difficult, moody, overbearing or depressed. Help us to forgive ourselves and know ourselves Forgiven by surrender to you. Forgive what we have been; Establish what we shall become; And hold us in the strength of your love, Given to us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
	Peace Lord, we pray for peace, Not peace at any price, But peace at your price. Make us and all your children So rich with your love, Your generosity, Your justice, That we can afford To pay the cost of peace. Amen
	Dear Father in heaven, Let us be peacemakers More ready to call people friends than enemies More ready to trust than to mistrust More ready to love than to hate More ready to respect than to despise More ready to serve than to be served More ready to absorb evil than to pass it on. Dear Father in heaven Let us be more like Christ. Amen.
	Age Lord, I am old in body but young in spirit. Help me to accept with dignity and grace the limits of my body. Science assures me that from my twenties I begin to decline; Yet freed from passion to be deepened in love, I now find greater and deeper value in what I can appreciate and do. For you assure me everlastingly that my soul can expand into ever broader horizons as my trust grows in you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen
	Lord, I am glad that though I was young and smooth and now am old and wrinkled, my essential nature has not changed; and my need of you is as real as ever. As you empty this earthen vessel, fill me with your transcendent life, your flowing spirit and your eternal love, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen
	For those who have been bereaved Lord Jesus Christ, Crucified and risen, Your presence was precious to Mary and the disciples. Bring comfort to all who have been Bereaved of people they loved, And especially …………… Help them to see That in clinging to the dead, they lose them, But in letting them go They open themselves And their loved ones To the fullness of life eternal Where all are one in your love, Now and evermore, Amen
	For the sick Eternal Father, Bring comfort to all who are sick Especially …………………… Be with them in their hopes, Support them in their anxieties and pain. Give them sure confidence In your unfailing presence, And in your unchanging love, Though Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen