apostolic constitutions – A Collection of Prayers

On the Lord’s Day

O Lord Almighty,
you have created the world by Christ,
and have commanded us to remember the Sabbath,
to rest from our works,
and to meditate on your Word.
We[1] have also appointed festivals that bring joy to our souls,
to remember that Wisdom, your only Son,
who submitted to be born of a woman for us.
He appeared in life,
and showed himself in his baptism.
He appeared as both God and man.
He suffered for us according to your will,
and died,
and rose again by your power.
To remember and proclaim this,
we solemnly celebrate the feast of the resurrection on the Lord’s Day,
and rejoice in him who has conquered death,
and has brought life and immortality to light. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

[1] Original: “Thou hast also appointed festivals”

An Evening Prayer

“O children, praise the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord.”
We praise you, we sing hymns to you,
we bless you, we glorify you,
O Lord and heavenly King,
almighty God and Father.
O Lord God, the Father of Christ
the immaculate Lamb,
you take away the sin of the world,
receive our prayer,
You are worthy of praise.
You are worthy of hymns.
You are worthy of glory,
God and Father, through your Son,
in the most holy Spirit,
forever and ever. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

Some of this prayer is derived from the Gloria in Excelsis.

For the Faithful

O Lord Almighty,
the Most High,
who dwells on high,
the Holy One,
who rests among the saints,
without beginning,
the Only Power.
By Christ you have given us the preaching of knowledge,
that we may confess your glory and your name,
which he has made known to us,
for our understanding.
Through him look down on this your flock,
and deliver it from all ignorance and wickedness,
and grant that we may fear you in earnest,
and love you with affection,
and have a due reverence of your glory.
Be gracious and merciful to us,
and listen to us when we pray to you.
Keep us,
that we may be steadfast and blameless,
and holy in body and spirit,
without spot or wrinkle,
or any other blemish,
but complete,
and none of us defective or imperfect.
You are our support,
our powerful God,
you are not influenced by people.
Help your people,
whom you have redeemed with the precious blood of your Christ.
Be their protector,
helper, provider, and guardian,
their strong wall of defense,
their bulwark and security.
For “none can snatch them out of your hand.”
There is no other God like you.
We rely on you.
“Sanctify us by your truth; your word is truth.” Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

An Evening Prayer

O God,
you are without beginning and without end,
Maker of the whole world by Christ,
and Provider of all,
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Lord of the Spirit,
and the King of intelligible and sensible beings.
You have made the day for the works of light,
and the night for the refreshment of our weakness.
“Yours is the day, yours also is the night.
You set the moon and sun in place,”
Now, O Lord,
Lover of mankind,
Fountain of all good,
mercifully accept our evening thanksgiving.
You have brought us through this day,
and have brought us to the beginning of the night.
Preserve us by your Christ.
Grant us a peaceful evening,
and a night free from sin,
and bring us to eternal life by your Christ;
through him be glory, honor, and worship
to you in the Holy Spirit forever. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

Thanks for Your Mercies

We give you thanks for all things,
O Lord Almighty,
that you have not taken away your mercies and your compassions from us.
In every succeeding generation you save, deliver, help, and protect.
You helped your people
in the days of Enosh and Enoch,
in the days of Moses and Joshua,
in the days of the judges,
in the days of Samuel and of Elijah and of the prophets,
in the days of David and of the kings,
in the days of Esther and Mordecai,
and in these last days
you have helped us
by your great High Priest, Jesus Christ your Son.
For he has delivered us from the sword,
and has freed us from famine,
and sustained us.
He has delivered us from sickness,
and preserved us from an evil tongue.
For all your blessings we give you thanks through Christ,
who has given us a clear voice to confess,
and a suitable tongue as an instrument to sing your praise,
and a proper taste,
and a suitable touch,
and a sight for contemplation,
and the hearing of sounds,
and the smelling of vapors,
and hands for work,
and feet for walking.
You have instructed us by your laws,
and improved us by your statutes.
Although you allow trouble for a while,
you have promised a resurrection.
Therefore, what life is sufficient,
what length of ages will be long enough,
for people to be thankful?
To do it worthily it is impossible,
but to do it according to our ability is good and right.
You have delivered us from error and ignorance.
You have sent Christ among us as a man,
being the only God.
You have made the Counselor to dwell within us.
You have set angels over us.
You have put the devil to shame.
You have brought us into being when we were not.
You take care of us when we were made.
You measure out life to us.
You give us food.
You have promised repentance.
Glory and worship be to you for all these things;
through Jesus Christ,
now and ever,
and through all ages. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

An Evening Prayer

Save us, O God,
and raise us up by your Christ.
Let us stand up, and beg for the mercies of the Lord,
and his compassions,
for the angel of peace,
for whatever is good and profitable,
for a Christian departure out of this life,
an evening and a night of peace,
and free from sin,
that the course of our life may be blameless.
Let us dedicate ourselves and one another to the living God,
through his Christ. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

For the First-Fruits

We give thanks to you,
Lord Almighty,
Creator of the whole world,
Preserver of all,
through your only Son Jesus Christ our Lord,
for the first-fruits which are offered to you,
not because we must, but as we are able.
For who can worthily give you thanks
for all you have given?
You are the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob,
and of all the saints.
You made all things fruitful by your Word,
and commanded the earth to bring forth various fruits
for our food and our enjoyment.
You have given your lesser creatures
grass to those that eat grass,
and to some meat, to others seeds,
but to us grain, as good and proper food,
and many other things—
some for our needs,
some for our health,
and some for our pleasure.
For all of these,
you are worthy of exalted hymns of praise
for your blessings through Christ,
through him be glory, honor, and worship to you,
in the Holy Spirit, forever. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

The Thanksgiving for the Morning

O God,
the God of spirits and of all flesh,
you are beyond compare,
and stand in need of nothing.
You have given the sun rule over the day,
and the moon and the stars rule over the night,
look down on us with gracious eyes,
and receive our morning thanksgivings,
and have mercy on us.
We have not “spread out our hands to a strange God;”
for there is not among us any new God
but you the eternal God.
You are without end.
You have given us our being through Christ,
and given us our well-being through him.
Through him also give us eternal life;
with him be glory, and honor,
and worship to you and to the Holy Spirit forever. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

A Morning Prayer

O God,
you are faithful and true,
you “have mercy on thousands and ten thousands
of those who love you,”
you love the humble
and protect of the needy who lack all things,
for all things are subject to you.
Look down on this your people,
who bow their heads to you,
and bless them with spiritual blessing.
“Keep them as the apple of your eye,”
preserve them in piety and righteousness,
and give them eternal life in Christ Jesus your beloved Son,
with him be glory, honor, and worship to you and to the Holy Spirit,
now and always, and forever and ever. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953

After the Holy Communion

We thank you, O God and Father of Jesus our Savior,
for your holy name,
which you have made to dwell among us;
and that knowledge
of faith, love, and immortality which you have given us
through your Son Jesus.
O Almighty Lord,
God of the universe,
by your Son
you have created the world,
and all that is in it.
You have planted your law in our souls,
and prepared things to provide for our needs.
O God of our holy and blameless fathers,
Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob,
your faithful servants,
God powerful, faithful and true,
you are faithful to all your promises.
You sent Jesus your Christ to live with men on earth as a man,
when he was God the Word,
and man to take away error by the roots.
For his sake, remember this, your holy Church,
which you have purchased with the precious blood of your Christ,
and deliver it from all evil,
and perfect it in your love and your truth,
and gather us all together into your kingdom which you have prepared.
Let this your kingdom come. Amen.

Source: Apostolic Constitutions

Source of this version: Freely modified from Prayers of the Early Church, edited by J. Manning Potts, 1953