Commontide

Preparation for Personal Prayer

Holy Spirit, breath of God and fire of love, I cannot pray without your aid: Kindle in me the fire of your love, and illumine me with your light; that with a steadfast will and holy thoughts I may approach the Father in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ my Lord, who reigns with you and the Father in eternal union. Amen.

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Commontide
Collect
Prayers

Collect of the Supplication

The Supplication — the Officiant prays

Look mercifully, O Father, on our infirmities; and, for the glory of your Name, rescue us from all those evils we now endure; and grant that in all our troubles we may put our whole trust and confidence in your mercy, serving you in holiness and purity of life, to your honor and glory; through our only Mediator and Advocate, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Found in the Prayer Book

  • Great LitanyThe Great Litany

Provenance

Cranmer, 1544

Draft — AI-assisted research under editorial review.

The closing prayer of the Great Litany, attached since Thomas Cranmer's first English litany of 1544. It asks God to look upon human weakness and grant steady trust in his mercy amid affliction. The ACNA BCP 2019 version makes a subtle but significant shift: where the historic form confesses our troubles are "most justly deserved," the newer wording asks God to "rescue us from all those evils we now endure."