O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
O Rex gloriae, Domine virtutum, qui triumphator hodie super omnes caelos ascendisti, ne derelinquas nos orphanos: sed mitte promissum Patris in nos, Spiritum veritatis. Alleluia.
↻Turn your device to see the Latin original
Preface of the Ascension
Through your dearly beloved Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who after his most glorious resurrection appeared to his Apostles, and in their sight ascended into heaven to prepare a place for us; that where he is, there we might also ascend, and reign with him in glory.
Draft — AI-assisted research under editorial review.
A collect composed by Thomas Cranmer for the first Book of Common Prayer (1549), fashioned from a beloved medieval chant sung at Vespers on Ascension Day – the same antiphon the Venerable Bede was singing on his deathbed in 735.