Do you say this quick but vital prayer after saying grace?
When you say grace before meals -- and before eating or drinking at other times -- do you also say a very important prayer along with it?
My parents always had us kids join them in doing so. First we all prayed, "Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ Our Lord, Amen."
And then we all prayed this vital prayer: "May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen." And to that we added a Hail, Mary.
The reason I'm mentioning this is that so many Catholics I know do not say that prayer and seem to have never heard of it. Yet Catholics used to say it regularly, and the saints have always told us that it is essential for us to pray for the souls in Purgatory.
After all, if you and I are in Purgatory someday, and who knows how soon that could be, we will be very grateful to anyone who prays for us.
So if you haven't been praying for the faithful departed when you say grace, now is a great time to start. Amen!
My parents always had us kids join them in doing so. First we all prayed, "Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ Our Lord, Amen."
And then we all prayed this vital prayer: "May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen." And to that we added a Hail, Mary.
The reason I'm mentioning this is that so many Catholics I know do not say that prayer and seem to have never heard of it. Yet Catholics used to say it regularly, and the saints have always told us that it is essential for us to pray for the souls in Purgatory.
After all, if you and I are in Purgatory someday, and who knows how soon that could be, we will be very grateful to anyone who prays for us.
So if you haven't been praying for the faithful departed when you say grace, now is a great time to start. Amen!
posted by Quintero at 3:08 PM
6 Comments:
this quick prayer was only used in my household growing up in the prayer after meals, but excluded in the prayer before meals.
The traditional before meal prayer is: "Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ Our Lord, Amen."
The traditional after meal prayer is: "We give Thee thanks, Almighty God, for all Thy benefits, Who reignest forever and ever. May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen."
Like you, in our family when I was growing up (sand still do), we said a Hail Mary after the before meal prayer.
Ray
Great post. We say grace every night but I have to admit we do not add the prayer for the souls. Thanks for the reminder!
God Bless.
Thank you for bringing this up, Quintero. I hadn't realized this was a common practice. I'll be sure to have my family incorporate these prayers when we say the grace before meals.
Our post-meal prayer is:
We give thee thanks O Lord, who livest and reignest forever. Amen.
May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.
:)
-Cathy
Dear Everyone,
Good for you for adding the prayer to your grace before or after meals. It's fun to think of how many family prayers per year that is for the souls in Purgatory!
Yes, I should have explained that the "May the souls of the faithful departed" prayer is part of "Grace after Meals" but that our family always said it before meals.
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