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Prayers of Thanksgiving

The Te Deum is the Church's official thank-you — sung at the end of wars, elections of popes, and ordinary years since the fourth century. The Magnificat is Mary's own, and the Church prays it every single evening.

Traditional prayers

Te Deum

We praise thee, O God; we acknowledge thee to be the Lord.
All the earth doth worship thee, the Father everlasting.
To thee all angels cry aloud, the heavens and all the powers therein.
To thee cherubim and seraphim continually do cry:
Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Sabaoth;
heaven and earth are full of the majesty of thy glory.
The glorious company of the apostles praise thee.
The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise thee.
The noble army of martyrs praise thee.
The holy Church throughout all the world doth acknowledge thee:
the Father, of an infinite majesty;
thine adorable, true, and only Son;
also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter.
Thou art the King of glory, O Christ.
Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.
When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man,
thou didst humble thyself to be born of a Virgin.
When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death,
thou didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right hand of God, in the glory of the Father.
We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge.
We therefore pray thee, help thy servants,
whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with thy saints in glory everlasting.
O Lord, save thy people and bless thine heritage.
Govern them and lift them up for ever.
Day by day we magnify thee;
and we worship thy name ever, world without end.
Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.
O Lord, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us.
O Lord, let thy mercy be upon us, as our trust is in thee.
O Lord, in thee have I trusted; let me never be confounded.
History, Latin text & meaning →

Magnificat (Canticle of Mary)

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.
History, Latin text & meaning →

From Scripture

2Sing joyfully to God, all the earth: serve ye the Lord with gladness. Come in before his presence with exceeding great joy.

4Go ye into his gates with praise, into his courts with hymns: and give glory to him. Praise ye his name:

— Psalm 99 (100), vv. 2, 4, Douay-Rheims · read the full chapter

1Alleluia. Praise the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

2Praise ye the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever.

3Praise ye the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever.

— Psalm 135 (136), vv. 1-3, Douay-Rheims · read the full chapter

18In all things give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you all.

— 1 Thessalonians 5, vv. 18, Douay-Rheims · read the full chapter

Psalm numbers follow the Douay-Rheims (Vulgate) numbering; the common Hebrew numbering appears in parentheses.

How to use these prayers

Thanksgiving is strongest when specific: name three concrete things before praying the Te Deum, and it stops being a formality.