Opening Prayers/Prayers of Adoration on The Trinity
We pray to God the Father, God the Son,
And to God the Holy Spirit,
Whose infinite greatness
Enfolds the whole world,
In Persons three and one,
In essence simple and triune,
Suspending the earth above the waters,
Hanging the upper air with stars,
That he may be favorable to us, a group of sinners,
Who righteously justifies all who sin,
Who ever-living lives.
May God be blessed for ages. Amen.
Let it be so. Let it be so.
Eloe, Sabaoth, Ya, Adonai,
Eli Eli Lama Sabacthani.
Modernized and adapted for Corporate Worship by Stuart Strachan Jr., Taken from “The Prayers of Moucan”, in Celtic Spirituality (Series: Classics of Western Spiritiuality) Trans., Oliver Davies, Paulist Press, 2000.
Almighty and everlasting God, you have given us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity and in the power of the divine majesty to worship the Unity: keep us steadfast in this faith, that we may evermore be defended from all adversities; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Most exalted Trinity, divinity above all knowledge, whose goodness passes understanding, who guides Christians to divine wisdom; direct our way to the summit of your mystical oracles, most incomprehensible, most lucid and most exalted, where the simple and pure and unchangeable mysteries of theology are revealed in the darkness, clearer than light; a darkness that shines brighter than light, that invisibly and intangibly illuminates with splendours of inconceivable beauty the soul that sees not. Let this be my prayer.
Denys (Dionysius) the pseudo-Areopagite
Fire of the Spirit, life of the lives of creatures,
spiral of sanctity, bond of all natures,
glow of charity, lights of clarity, taste
of sweetness to sinners, be with us and hear us.
Composer of all things, light of all the risen,
key of salvation, release from the dark prison,
hope of all unions, scope of chastities, joy
in the glory, strong honor, be with us and hear us.
Amen.
Hildegard von Bingen, Prayer to the Holy Spirit
Heavenly Father, blessed Son, eternal Spirit,
We adore you as one Being, one Essence,
one God in three distinct Persons,
for bringing sinners to the knowledge of you and your kingdom.
O Father, you have loved us and sent Jesus to redeem us;
O Jesus, you have loved us and taken on our nature,
You who shed your own own blood to wash away our sins,
Who worked righteousness to cover our unworthiness;
O Holy Spirit, you have loved use and entered our hearts,
implanted there eternal life,
revealed to us the glories of Jesus.
Three Persons and one God, we bless and praise you,
for love so unmerited, so unspeakable, so wondrous,
so mighty to save the lost and raise them to glory.
O Father, we thank you that in fullness of grace
You have given me to Jesus,
to be his sheep, jewel, portion;
O Jesus, we thank you that in fullness of grace
You have accepted, supported, bound us;
O Holy Spirit, we thank you that in fullness of grace
You have exhibited Jesus as our salvation,
implanted faith within us,
subdued our stubborn hearts,
made us one with him forever.
O Father, you are enthroned to hear our prayers,
O Jesus, your hand is outstretched to take our petitions,
O Holy Spirit, you are willing to help our sufferings,
to show us our need, to supply words, to pray within us,
to strengthen us that we do not faint in our supplication.
O Triune God, who commanded the universe,
You have commanded us to ask for those things
that concerns your kingdom and our souls.
Let us live and pray as one baptized into the threefold Name.
Taken from The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, ed. Arthur Bennett (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1975), 3. Language modernized for corporate worship by Stuart Strachan Jr.
God our Father,
Lord our Shepherd,
Spirit of the Living God,
One in Three … and Three in One:
We praise You our Creator, Savior, and Provider.
By Your grace, we lack nothing.
You feed us in body and in soul.
You give us rest when we are weary.
You direct us on ways that are good and right.
You go with us through the dark times
so we will not walk them alone.
You protect us in Your goodness
with Your strength.
You spread before us
a banquet in the wilderness
and a feast in the face of whoever
and whatever threatens us.
You pour over us Your oils
of cleansing grace, of healing, and of gladness.
And no matter where we have wandered,
You open wide Your arms wide to welcome us home.
That is why we praise You;
That is why we love You;
That is why we are here to worship You today,
our God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
the One in Three and the Three in One. AMEN.