My God, you are always new, even though you are most ancient. You alone are my food for eternity. I am to live forever; not for a time—and I have no power over my being. I must live on, with intellect and consciousness forever, despite myself. Without you, eternity would be another name for eternal misery. In you alone I have something to sustain me forever; you alone are the food of my soul. You alone are inexhaustible, and you always offer me something new to know, something new to love. And so, for eternity I will ever be like a little child starting to learn the basics of your infinite Divine nature. For you yourself are the seat and center of all good, and the only substance in this universe of shadows, and the heaven in which blessed spirits live and rejoice. Amen.
Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801–1890), revised from Prayers Ancient and Modern.
Prayers Ancient Made Modern (annotated) is available in print and on Amazon Kindle through Amazon.com.
Based on Prayers Ancient and Modern originally selected and arranged by Mary Wilder Tileston, 1897. Now in public domain.
This edition, Prayers Ancient Made Modern, revised by Paul C. Stratman, copyright © 2024. All rights reserved.
Reprinted from Prayers Ancient Made Modern, copyright © 2024 Paul C. Stratman.
A Collection of Prayers 