veit dietrich – Page 6 – A Collection of Prayers

Forgive Us Our Sins, that We May Praise and Glorify You

Jesus Christ, Son of the living God,
you gave us your holy Word
and have generously provided for all our bodily needs.
We are unworthy of all these mercies
and have rather deserved punishment.
But forgive us our sins as you forgave Peter,
and prosper and bless us in our different callings
that by your strength we may be sustained and defended,
now and forever
and so praise and glorify you eternally;
you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one true God, now and forever.

Source: Veit Dietrich, d. 1549, Trinity 5

This revision/translation of The Collects of Veit Dietrich 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.

Give Us Confidence in Your Mercy, and Teach Us to Be Merciful

Lord God, heavenly Father,
you are merciful
and through Christ you promised us
that you will neither judge nor condemn us,
but graciously forgive us all our sins
and abundantly provide for all our needs of body and soul.
By your Holy Spirit
establish in our hearts a confident faith in your mercy
and teach us also to be merciful to our neighbor,
that we may not judge or condemn others,
but willingly forgive all people,
and judging only ourselves,
lead blessed lives in your fear;
through your dear Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one true God, now and forever.

Source: Veit Dietrich, d. 1549, Trinity 4

Awaken Our Hearts by Your Holy Spirit

Lord God, heavenly Father,
we give you thanks
that through your holy Word
you have called us to your great supper of eternal life.
Awaken our hearts by your Holy Spirit,
that we may not hear your Word and produce no fruit,
but that we may prepare ourselves rightly for your heavenly banquet
and not allow ourselves to be hindered by any worldly care;
through your beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one true God, now and forever. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich, d. 1549, Trinity 2

Holy Cross Day

On September 14, some Christians observe Holy Cross Day. In the Roman Church the day’s focus is on the finding of the relics of the original cross. Among Lutherans the focus is on the words of Jesus, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). Here is an extended collect and a blessing with the focus on cross bearing by Veit Dietrich, a student of Martin Luther.

Lord God, heavenly Father,
in your fatherly and infinite wisdom
you place your children on earth under the cross
and we endure many troubles.
Through these you guard us against sins
and lead us to believe, hope and pray.
Have mercy on us,
and hear our prayers in every affliction and need,
and send us your gracious help
so that we may know your grace and fatherly goodness,
and praise and glorify you with all your saints in eternity,
for you, with your Son and the Holy Spirit alone are the eternal God. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich, Summaria christlicher lehr, Epiphany 4, 1548. Prayers from the Evangelical Lutheran Heritage, #223.

May the almighty and gracious God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
forgive us all our sins,
help us to live in daily repentance,
and grant that whatever crosses he sends
serve to lead us to despise and avoid what is evil
and love and practice what is good,
until we depart this life and enter eternal life. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich / Franziskus Vierling, Votum (a reflective prayer or blessing) on Hebrews 12:1-17, from the Altenberger Bibel. Prayers from the Evangelical Lutheran Heritage, #224.

Let the Light of Your Gospel Shine on Us

O merciful and eternal God, heavenly Father, we thank you for revealing to us the glory of your Son and letting the light of your gospel shine on us. Guide us by this light that we may walk diligently as Christians in all good works, always be strengthened by your grace and conduct our lives in all godliness; through your beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one true God, now and forever. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich

Source of this version: Freely modified from The Lutheran Hymnary, 1913,http://olcc.us/liturgical-resources/collects-veit-dietrich/ (Epiphany 6)

You Have Sown the Seed of Your Word

Lord God, heavenly Father, we thank you that you have sown the good seed of your holy Word in our hearts. By your Holy Spirit cause this seed to grow and bring forth fruit, and defend us from the enemy, that he may not sow weeds there. Keep us from worldly security, help us in all temptations and give us at last eternal salvation; through your beloved Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one true God, now and forever. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich

Source of this version: Freely modified from The Lutheran Hymnary, 1913,http://olcc.us/liturgical-resources/collects-veit-dietrich/ (Epiphany 5)

The Presentation of Our Lord (February 2)

The Presentation of Our Lord is observed on February 2, and remembers how the baby Jesus was presented at the temple when he was forty days old. This ancient church festival is also called The Purification of the Virgin Mary and Candlemas. The event is recorded in Luke 2:25-38. This prayer for the Presentation by Veit Dietrich quotes Simeon’s song.

Lord God, heavenly Father,
you prepared your Son to be our Savior,
that he should be the light for the gentiles
and the glory of your people Israel.
Enlighten our hearts
that we may know your grace
and fatherly will toward us in Christ,
and that we may have your protection
against sin, damnation and Satan,
through Christ,
and in him be forever blessed.
Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich

St. Titus, Pastor and Confessor

St. Titus, Pastor and Confessor

January 26

Titus was an early Christian missionary and Church leader, a companion and disciple of Paul the Apostle, mentioned in several of the Pauline epistles including the Epistle to Titus. He is believed to be a Gentile converted to Christianity by Paul and, according to tradition, he was consecrated as Bishop of the Island of Crete. He is commemorated on January 26.

Almighty and eternal God,
we thank you for the knowledge of your dear Son.
Since Satan fights against us at all times
and seeks to keep such knowledge away from us,
govern and guide us by your Holy Spirit
so that we remain in this knowledge and are forever blessed,
through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich (Prayer for St. Peter and St. Paul, Apostles, June 29)

The Conversion of St. Paul

Lord God, heavenly Father,
you graciously called St. Paul
from being a sinful persecutor
to be a follower and a faithful witness.
Give us your grace
so that we may take to heart your Word and warning
and have humble sorrow over our sins
and receive forgiveness,
and find comfort in your grace and mercy
through Christ alone,
and be blessed forever.
Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich

Source of this version: Freely modified from Summaria Christlicher Lehr, Veit Dietrich, 1548.

We Have Your Word, Grant that We May Trust

Lord God, heavenly Father, in your special love and mercy you gave us your Son who became fully human and died on the cross for us. Pour your Holy Spirit into our hearts that we may put all our trust in him, just as the Centurion believed that Christ would help his sick servant, may we be assured of the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life. We have your Word: ‘Whoever believes in me will never see death.’ Dear Father in heaven, grant that we may believe with no doubts in our hearts, and remain in the faith until our last hour. Amen.

Source: Veit Dietrich

Source of this version: Freely modified from Summaria Christlicher Lehr, Veit Dietrich, 1548 (Epiphany 3)