Provided below are a few of the Anglican prayers used by the Catholic Church in the Divine Worship series. These are prayers have nourished the faith of countless Anglicans and as such the Church has recognized the value and catholicity of their content.
¶ The Collect for Purity is said by the Priest at the beginning of Mass.
Almighty God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid; Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ The Summary of the Law is said by the Deacon or Priest after the Collect for Purity and before the Kyrie. The Decalogue may be said in place of the Summary of the Law, often in penitential seasons.
Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ saith:
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.
¶ This General Confession is made by the Priest and the People in the Penitential Rite before the Offertory.
Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, Judge of all men; We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, Which we from time to time most grievously have committed, By thought, word, and deed, against thy divine Majesty, Provoking most justly thy wrath and indignation against us. We do earnestly repent, and are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; The remembrance of them is grievous unto us, The burden of them is intolerable. Have mercy upon us, Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; For thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, Forgive us all that is past; And grant that we may ever hereafter Serve and please thee in newness of life, To the honour and glory of thy Name; Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ One or more of these sentences are rehearsed by the Deacon or Priest after the General Confession.
Hear what comfortable words our Saviour Christ saith unto all that truly turn to him.
Come unto me, all ye that travail and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you. Matthew 11:28
God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, to the end that all that believe in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
Hear also what Saint Paul saith: This is a true saying, and worthy of all men to be received, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. 1 Timothy 1:15
Hear also what Saint John saith: If any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our sins (and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world). 1 John 2:1-2
¶ As the Priest takes the Host and breaks it, he sings or says:
(Alleluia.) Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.
Therefore let us keep the feast. (Alleluia.)
¶ The Prayer of Humble Access is said by the Priest and all those who shall receive communion between the Agnus Dei and the Ecce Agnus Dei.
We do not presume to come to this thy Table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in thy manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy Table. But thou art the same Lord whose property is always to have mercy. Grant us therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of thy dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his Blood, that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his Body, and our souls washed through his most precious Blood, and that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.
¶ This Prayer of Thanksgiving is said after Communion.
Almighty and everliving God, we most heartily thank thee for that thou dost feed us, in these holy mysteries, with the spiritual food of the most precious Body and Blood of thy Son our Saviour Jesus Christ; and dost assure us thereby of thy favour and goodness towards us; and that we are very members incorporate in the mystical body of thy Son, the blessed company of all faithful people; and are also heirs, through hope, of thy everlasting kingdom, by the merits of the most precious death and Passion of thy dear Son. And we humbly beseech thee, O heavenly Father, so to assist us with thy grace, that we may continue in that holy fellowship, and do all such good works as thou hast prepared for us to walk in; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with thee and the Holy Spirit, be all honour and glory, world without end. Amen.
¶ Turning back to the altar, the Priest says:
The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, ✠ the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be amongst you, and remain with you always. Amen.
¶ This Collect for Peace is said at Mattins after the Collect for the Day.
O God, who art the author of peace and lover of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom; Defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ Instead of the Venite the following Anthems are said at Morning Prayer of Easter Day and through the Octave:
Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: therefore let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness: but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more: death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto since once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin: but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Christ is risen from the dead: and become the first fruits of them that slept. For since by man came death: by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die: even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.