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St. Francis of Assisi: Peace prayer
Lord, make me an instrument of your 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 sadness, joy.
Divine Master,
Grant that I may 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,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned.
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Reflection questions:
1. Most of us are very familiar with this prayer—so familiar, perhaps, that we don’t even really hear the meaning anymore. Today, take the time to really contemplate each line. Which phrases speak to you the most? How is God calling us to live? What comfort does St. Francis offer?
Although the authorship of this prayer, first printed in the early 20th century, remains unclear, it has traditionally been attributed to St. Francis of Assisi (1181/82–1226), the founder of the Franciscans.
