| Contribute a translation | Source (English) |
|---|---|
|
|
For the sanctification of life.
|
|
|
Ⅰ.
Almighty God, thou hast sustained us day by day during the week that is past, and hast brought us to this, thy holy Sabbath with all its precious opportunities. Help us to be worthy of these Thy mercies. Thou art lending unto us this coming week; help us to give it back to thee by devoting it to thy service. O God, when our worship is ended, let its influence remain with us. Let the thought of thy presence still abide with us, to put to shame every base longing, to strengthen us against temptation, to inspire us with the love of holiness. May it sanctify the whole of this coming week making noble our most familiar tasks, hallowing our worldly work with sincerity and rectitude, so that our pleasures may leave behind them no regret and no self-reproach, and so that we may feel that in all that we have done we have tried our very utmost. Amen. |
|
|
Ⅱ.
Our God and God of our fathers, accept our rest; sanctify us by thy commandments, and grant our portion in thy Law; satisfy us with thy goodness, and gladden us with thy salvation; purify our hearts to serve thee in truth; and in thy love and favour, O Lord our God, let us inherit thy holy Sabbath; and may Israel, who hallow thy name, rest thereon. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who hallowest the Sabbath. Amen. |
Basil L.Q. Henriques’s prayers “For the Sanctification of Life” were first published in The Fratres Book of Prayer for the Oxford and St. George’s Synagogue Jewish Lads Club in 1916, and later reprinted in the Prayer Book of the St. George’s Settlement Synagogue (1929), “Special Prayers” section, pages 87-88. Both of these prayers appear to have been adapted from a Shabbat service. As some of the language makes reference to the coming week, it feels apposite for an afternoon Shabbat minḥah service. –Aharon Varady
Source(s)
