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Known worldwide as "the Prayer of St Francis," this prayer was in fact first published in 1912 in a small French magazine, and its author is unknown. Yet every line breathes the soul of Francis — which is why it has become joined to his name.
The Prayer for Peace
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 darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.O 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;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
How to Pray It
Pray it in full each morning. Then choose a single line and try to live it all day. At night, ask where that line came true in your day.
In Francis's Own Words
"The Lord gave me brothers, and no one showed me what I should do, but the Most High himself revealed to me that I should live according to the form of the holy Gospel."
— The Testament, 1226
"What a person is before God, that he is, and nothing more."
— Admonition 19 (adapted)
On Humility
"Blessed is the servant who does not think himself better when praised and exalted than when he is held worthless." (after Admonitions 19 & 22)
On Peace
"As you announce peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your hearts" — counsel recorded in the Legend of the Three Companions.
On Joy
In his first Rule he urged the brothers not to look gloomy, but to show themselves "joyful in the Lord, cheerful and courteous."
Virtue Puts Vice to Flight
— Admonition 27
Where there is love and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance. Where there is patience and humility, there is neither anger nor disturbance. Where there is poverty with joy, there is neither greed nor avarice.
Where there is rest and meditation, there is neither anxiety nor restlessness.
Where there is fear of the Lord to guard the house, the enemy cannot find a way in.
Where there is mercy and discernment, there is neither excess nor hardness of heart.
Daily Guidance: A Franciscan Week
For each day: a word, a Scripture passage, an action and a short prayer. Cut this page out and stick it on your wall, or use it for family night prayer.
| Day | Word | Reading | Today's Action | Short Prayer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | Gratitude | Lk 17:11-19 | Write down seven gifts you received this week and praise God for them. | Almighty God, all praise be yours! |
| Monday | Simplicity | Mt 6:25-34 | Give away one thing from your cupboard you never use. | My God and my all. |
| Tuesday | Forgiveness | Mt 18:21-22 | Pray for someone who hurt you; if you can, send them a kind message. | Make me an instrument of your peace. |
| Wednesday | Creation | Ps 104 | Sit outside for five minutes without your phone; look at the sky and the trees. | Praised be you for Sister Mother Earth. |
| Thursday | Service | Jn 13:1-15 | Cheerfully do the household job nobody wants to do. | You who came not to be served, but to serve! |
| Friday | The Cross | Phil 2:5-11 | Spend three silent minutes before a crucifix; visit someone who is sick. | We adore you, O Christ… |
| Saturday | Mary | Lk 1:46-55 | Read Mary's Magnificat and pray one decade of the Rosary. | Hail, holy Lady, palace of the Lord! |
Night Examen — Three Questions
- Where did I feel God's love today?
- To whom was I — or wasn't I — an instrument of peace?
- What one small change will I make tomorrow?
Francis's Prayer Before the Cross
"We adore you, Lord Jesus Christ, in all your churches throughout the whole world, and we bless you, because by your holy cross you have re- deemed the world."
— the prayer Francis taught in his Testament
