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Prayer Called St Francis

Prayer of Saint Francis is a Christian prayer for peace, often attributed to Francis of Assisi. In fact, this prayer appears for the first time in 1912. It's a French priest, Esther Bouquerel, who publishes the December 1912 issue of its journal The Bell. It presents itself as an anonymous text, entitled "Beautiful Prayer to do during Mass, as shown by Christian Renoux in his book on the history of this prayer.

It is attributed to St. Francis of Assisi in 1927 by pacifists French Protestants.

The text never knew a very wide circulation before arrival in the United States in 1936. During WWII, Americans, including Cardinal Spellman , the broadcast to millions of copies. Some say its global success is due to U.S. Senator Tom Connally, who would have read in 1945 at the podium at the San Francisco conference that he creates the UN , the city of San Francisco have been placed since its creation by Spaniards under the patronage of the saint. This act is now one of the most famous prayers.

There are now nearly 100 different French versions of the text, and more from English versions. She was set to music by over a hundred different composers United States alone. It was cited by dozens of personalities including Mother Teresa , Pope John Paul II , the Princess of Wales and Dom Helder Camara , and commented on by several authors, Lanza del Vasto and Leonardo Boff. It is built into the Twelve Steps Program of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Versions of the text

The original version of this prayer is as follows:

Beautiful prayer to do during Mass

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred let me sow love.

Where there is injury, let me sow pardon.

Where there is discord, let me sow union.

Where yal'erreur, let me sow truth.

Where there is doubt, let me sow faith.

Where there is despair, let me sow hope.

Where there is darkness, let me put your light.

Where there is sadness, I may bring joy.

O Master, I do not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love, for it is in giving that we receive is in s' forgetting that is, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

The Bell, No. 12, December 1912, p. 285.

The most common English translation is:

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;

Where There IS hatred, let me sow love;

Where There IS injury, pardon;

WHERE There Is Doubt, Faith;

Where There IS despair, hope;

Where There Is Darkness, light;

Where There IS and sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

Grant That I May Not So Much To Be consoled did seek to console;

To Be Understood, have to Understand;

to be loved, as to love;

For It Is In Giving That We Receive,

it is in. That we are pardoned pardoning,

and It Is in dying That we are born to Eternal Life.

Bibliography

Christian Renoux, prayer for peace attributed to St. Francis, an enigma, Paris, Editions Franciscan, Paris, 2001
Christian Renoux, La preghiera attribuita per la pace in San Francesco, an enigma da risolvere, Padova, Edizioni Messaggero, 2003.