A Collection of Prayers

Give Us Grace and Faith While We Await the Resurrection

Almighty God,
through the death of your Son
you have destroyed the power of sin and death
and through his resurrection
have restored innocence and eternal life
so that we would be redeemed
from the power of the devil.
Through the same power of the Resurrection,
raise our mortal bodies
when you awaken the dead.
Grant us your grace
that we may steadfastly believe this
with all our hearts,
and await the joyful resurrection of our bodies
with all your blessed ones;
through the same Jesus Christ,
your Son, our Lord.
Amen.

This prayer is from Prayers from the Evangelical-Lutheran Heritage, available from Amazon.com, and also available for Amazon Kindle. It is a collection of prayers from the history of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church from Luther to Loehe. The collection includes prayers by Johannes Bugenhagen, Georg C. Dieffenbach, Veit Dietrich, Matthias Flacius, Wilhelm Loehe, Martin Luther, Philip Melanchthon, Joachim Mynsinger, Johann G. Olearius, Johann Jacob Rambach, and the early agendas and prayer books of the Austrian, Brunswick, Hamburg, Lueneberg, Norwegian, Nuremberg, Pomeranian, Riga, Russian, Saxon, Schleswig-Holstein, and Swedish Evangelical-Lutheran churches.

At the Death of a Christian Brother or Sister

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O Lord God, Lord of life and death,
you turn man to dust and say,
“Return, O children of men,”
we give you thanks for all the mercies
which during his life you bestowed
on this our beloved brother, now fallen asleep.
Especially do we praise you
for having brought him to the knowledge
of your dear Son Jesus Christ.
Comfort the survivors
with your everlasting comfort,
and cheer them with the sweet hope
of a blessed reunion in heaven.
Grant to the lifeless body
rest in the bosom of the earth,
and hereafter, together with us all,
a joyful resurrection to life everlasting.
Teach us all to number our days
that we may apply our hearts to wisdom,
and finally be saved;
through Jesus Christ, your beloved Son,
our Lord and Savior. Amen.

Source: Liturgy and Agenda (1921), p. 134

prayer for the dead in middle ages

prayers for the dead

May We Pursue Your Promises without Stumbling

Almighty and eternal God,
it is by your gifts alone
that your faithful people perform
true and praiseworthy service.
Grant that we may pursue your promises without stumbling;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

Source: Leonine Sacramentary, 6th-7th Century, Historic Collect for the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity

This translation is licensed by Paul C. Stratman under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for permission for any commercial use.

After One Has Departed in the Lord

Thanks and praise be rendered now and forevermore
to Christ Jesus, Lord of glory and Prince of life,
for having so graciously delivered this sainted brother,
and received his soul into his holy hands.
We pray him to reunite the soul with the body
in heavenly brightness on the last day,
and to grant to us a godly walk
and an equally happy departure
at the time appointed of God.
Restore, O Lord, all distressed hearts with sweet comfort
and keep all of us always in your grace
for the sake of your eternal mercy and goodness.
Amen, O most holy and exalted Trinity. Amen! Amen!

Source: Modified from The Abridged Treasury of Prayers: An Epitome from the Larger Gebets-Schatz, 1906, #64

Give Us Strength

Lord,
give your people strength
to withstand the temptations of the devil,
that with pure hearts and minds
we follow you, the only God;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

Source: Gelasian Sacramentary, 8th Century, Historic Collect for the Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity

This translation is licensed by Paul C. Stratman under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for permission for any commercial use.

May Our Fruit Endure to Eternal Life

O Lord of the harvest,
grant that those you call to serve in your holy Church
may always abound in your work,
and that the fruit of their labors
may endure to eternal life;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Source: Freely modified from Mozarabic Collects, ed. Rev. Chas. R. Hale, New York, 1881, p. 48 #1 (Ember Days in Autumn)

May We Ask for and Receive What Pleases You

O Lord,
let your merciful ears be open
to the prayers of your humble servants.
Teach us to ask for what pleases you,
that we may receive what we ask for;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

Source: Gelasian Sacramentary, 8th Century, Historic Collect for the Ninth Sunday after Trinity

This translation is licensed by Paul C. Stratman under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for permission for any commercial use.

Two Prayers for the Dying

Almighty, eternal God, heavenly Father,
comfort and strengthen this your servant
and save him through your goodness.
Deliver him from all anguish and distress,
release him in your grace,
and take him to yourself in your kingdom;
through Jesus Christ your dear Son,
our only Lord Savior and Redeemer.
Amen.

Almighty, eternal God,
have compassion on the anxious sighs
and groanings of this dying person.
Receive him into your kingdom
that you have mercifully prepared for him
and all believers from the beginning of the world.
Graciously release him, O Lord,
and comfort him eternally with the elect;
through your dear Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Source: Modified from The Abridged Treasury of Prayers: An Epitome from the Larger Gebets-Schatz, 1906, #63

prayer for the dead in middle ages

prayers for the dead

A Prayer for a Dying Person

O almighty and merciful God,
you are our rod and staff in the shadow of death.
We pray, visit this sick person,
his body and soul,
with your mercy,
and graciously to forgive all his sins.
Take the sacrifice of the innocent death
of Jesus Christ your dear Son
as payment for his transgressions
since he was baptized in Christ’s name
and cleansed by Christ’s blood.
Deliver him from bodily pains or shorten them.
Sustain him against the accusations of conscience
and all attacks of the wicked one
that he may fight a good fight and overcome.
Grant him a blessed departure for the life everlasting.
Send your holy angels
that they escort him to the gathering
of the elect in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen.

Source: The Abridged Treasury of Prayers: An Epitome from the Larger Gebets-Schatz, 1906, #61

“you are our rod and staff in the shadow of death” is a reference to Psalm 23:4

“Take the sacrifice of the innocent death of Jesus Christ your dear Son as payment for his transgressions” is a reference to Isaiah 53:5

“Sustain him against the accusations of conscience and all attacks of the wicked one” may be a reference to Ephesians 6:16

“that he may fight a good fight and overcome” is a reference to 1 Timothy 6:12

“Send your holy angels” is a reference to Luke 16:22

prayer for the dead in middle ages

prayers for the dead

Increase in Us Faith, Hope, and Love

Almighty and eternal God,
increase in us faith, hope, and love.
Lead us to love what you command
so that we may obtain what you promise;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

Source: Leonine Sacramentary, 6th-7th Century, Historic Collect for the Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity

This translation is licensed by Paul C. Stratman under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for permission for any commercial use.