We all know we should pray. Jesus routinely spent time alone praying to God (Luke 22:39), and the disciples asked the Son of God how to pray to the Father (Luke 11:1). We are told never to stop praying (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Therefore, prayer is a central discipline in our relationship with God.
Saints and leaders over the centuries have also found prayer to be of significant importance. This St. Patrick’s Day, many Christians will post the famous prayer by St. Patrick, the great missionary. The prayer is also called the St. Patrick Breastplate Prayer. People may even pray this prayer as part of their devotional disciplines.
Most people only know a few lines of St. Patrick’s prayer—the stanza focusing on how completely Christ surrounds us. Simple and powerful, we can understand why we focus on this stanza. It is such a blessing. But what about the whole prayer? And where did it come from?
There are several English translations of this prayer. A primary alternate to the one listed below begins with “I bind myself …” instead of “I arise today…” The entire prayer is listed below:
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.
I arise today
Through the strength of Christ’s birth with His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion with His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection with His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.
I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In the obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In the predictions of prophets,
In the preaching of apostles,
In the faith of confessors,
In the innocence of holy virgins,
In the deeds of righteous men.
I arise today, through
The strength of heaven,
The light of the sun,
The radiance of the moon,
The splendor of fire,
The speed of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of the sea,
The stability of the earth,
The firmness of rock.
I arise today, through
God’s strength to pilot me,
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to save me
From snares of devils,
From the temptation of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and near.
I summon today
All these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel and merciless power
that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul;
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that there may come to me an abundance of reward.
St. Patrick's Breastplate: Divine Protection
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.
This famous prayer has a legend about its composition. According to the story, St. Patrick was trying to evangelize the King of Leogaire. Soldiers were about to ambush and attack the saint and those with him. Patrick wrote or spoke this prayer for God’s protection—hence the term “breastplate prayer,” like a breastplate in a suit of armor.
The story includes the answer to the prayer: Patrick and those with him appeared as deer and fawns to the soldiers waiting in ambush. Hence, the prayer is also called “Deer’s Cry.”
Scholars doubt whether Patrick actually wrote the prayer. St. Patrick lived around the fifth century, and the language within the prayer is more consistent with eighth-century Irish. As often occurs, a popular piece of writing or statement is attributed to a famous historical figure, so there is some disagreement about whether Patrick penned it.
Either way, Patrick’s name is associated with the prayer and will continue to be. Regardless of its authorship, it is a powerful prayer filled with allusions to biblical ideas and has given Christians encouragement and education for centuries.
St. Patrick is far from the only famous Christian figure in Irish history. St. Columba and St. Brigid were two of Patrick’s contemporaries who spread Christianity in Ireland, and all three are considered Ireland’s patron saints. Some excellent prayers are attributed to both of them.
Note: These prayers have been rephrased in modern English (“you” for “thou” and so on). Some contain references to traditions like predestination or praying to saints that readers in certain traditions may not agree with.
St. Columba’s Prayer for Loved Ones Far Away
St Colmcille,
Who suffered the pain and grief of exile,
watch over the children of Ireland,
scattered throughout the world.
Obtain for them solace and courage,
and keep them true to God
in every trial and temptation!
Amen.
The Prayer of St. Columba
Be a bright flame before me, O God
a guiding star above me.
Be a smooth path below me,
a kindly shepherd behind me
today, tonight, and forever.
Alone with none but you, my God
I journey on my way;
what need I fear when you are near,
O Lord of night and day?
More secure am I within your hand
than if a multitude did round me stand.
Amen.
A Prayer of St. Brigid of Kildare
O Jesus! Creator of Heaven and earth whom nothing can encompass or limit, You who enfold and hold all under Your loving power, remember the bitter pain You suffered when they nailed Your sacred hands and feet to the cross, by blow after blow with big blunt nails. Not finding You pitiable enough to satisfy their rage, they enlarged Your wounds. They added pain to pain and, with indescribable cruelty, stretched Your body on the cross, pulling You from all sides, dislocating Your limbs.
I beg of You, O Jesus, by the memory of the most loving suffering of the cross, grant me the grace to fear You and to love You. Amen.
A Final Prayer from St. Brigid
O Jesus!
Mirror of eternal splendor, remember the sadness You experienced, when contemplating in the light of Your divinity, the predestination of those who the merits of Your sacred passion would save. You did see, at the same time, the great multitude of people who would be damned for their sins. You complained bitterly of those hopeless, lost, and unfortunate sinners.
Through the abyss of compassion and pity, and especially through the goodness You displayed to the good thief when You said to him: “This day, you will be with me in Paradise,” I beg of You, O Sweet Jesus, that at the hour of my death, You will show me mercy.
Amen.
Here are some contemporary prayers you can say for different needs and occasions. Each is based on a Scripture verse, which is listed for reference.
1. Praise (Matthew 6:9-13)
Father, we praise you, for you alone are holy, righteous, and good. We lift your name as the all-powerful God and creator of all things. Lord of Lords and King of Kings, you alone are worthy of all honor and worship. Amen.
2. Thankfulness (Philippians 4:6)
Father, we give you thanks. First, for your love, which redeems and seeks to save the lost. Thank you for your salvation, your deliverance from the world, the flesh, and the devil, translating us into your eternal Kingdom through the death and resurrection of your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for your mercy and grace, the forgiveness of our past, and the power to follow you by the incredible gift of your indwelling Spirit. Amen.
3. Visible Faith (Romans 1:8)
Father, give us the gift of a visible faith. Impart to us the belief that changes how we live and act. Give us the kind of faith that reveals Christ and your love to others. Amen.
4. Secure Hope (Colossians 1:5)
Father, thank you for a secure hope, an inheritance in your Kingdom as your sons and daughters. Thank you for teaching and disciplining us to reign with you forever in your presence. And we thank you for giving us a more secure reward in heaven as we act from the revelation of heaven. Amen.
5. Abounding Love (2 Thessalonians 1:3)
Father, with a visible faith and a secure hope, help us to abound in love to one another, giving generously of our hearts and our very lives to see others enter and thrive in eternal life, both in this life and the next in the fullness of the Kingdom. Help us to love others as you have loved us, completely and without hesitation. Amen.
6. Grace in Christ (1 Corinthians 1:4)
Father, thank you for the grace, the power of God, to follow you. This is only found in the person of your eternal Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Help us remember you are our only source for all that is good and true, and live by that reality in staying radically close to you, in all things and every situation. Amen.
7. Pray to God of the Harvest (Matthew 9:38-39)
Father, we pray to you, the God of the Harvest. The fields are white and ready. We ask you to send workers unto the world to harvest souls with the gift of repentance unto faith in Christ, to be reconciled unto you in wonderful and complete intimacy. Amen.
8. Prayer for Pure Religion (James 1:27)
Father, help us to reject religion that only cleans the outside with some sort of shallow show, yet the inside remains dirty and unclean. Give us the heart to reach out to the poor, the orphan, and the widow. Give us the strength to stop and help those in need instead of passing them by for a religious duty. Help us be a friend to the broken and marginalized in your name. Amen.
9. Filled with Fruits of Righteousness by Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:11)
Father, fill us with the fruit of righteousness, rooted in the person of Christ Jesus, growing from our relationship with you. Help us to overflow with abundant eternal life to reach others in real, powerful, and practical ways. Keep us living by the Law of Spirit and Life that escapes sin and death, gives us purpose, and fills us with strength and hope to endure until the end. Amen.
10. Rooted and Grounded in Love (Ephesians 3:17-18)
Father, keep us rooted and grounded in your love, never wavering or wandering from your great love for us. Help us to understand how wide, how long, how high, and how deep is the love of Christ, a love and understanding that passes knowledge, an experience we enjoy and can share with all people. Amen.
Further Reading:
What Can We Learn from the Life of St. Patrick?
The Celtic Missionaries of Ireland
Ireland’s Author-Evangelist Adamnan
Patrick: From Slave to Missionary
Death of Ireland’s St. Colman Ela
What Is St. Patrick’s Day All About?
Patrick: Making of a Missionary
Photo Credit: Unsplash/K. Mitch Hodge
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