Irish Prayers for Strong Families and Spiritual Protection

Although I collected these prayers in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, these three beautiful prayers are for spiritual strength and protection all year round. Before the days when the Church waned in the Emerald Isle, faith stirred a humble faith. Ireland had a bounty of vocations, even sending its priests and nuns abroad far and wide because there were so many.
Here are two beautiful Irish prayers I’ve adapted for families (replacing “this child” with “our children” in the first one, and “you” with “our children” in the second.) The third prayer, I pray daily for spiritual protection. Interviewing exorcists and writing against false apparitions has shown me it’s a powerful prayer.

An Irish Gaelic Christening Blessing for Children

Dearest Father in Heaven,
Bless our children and bless this day
Of new beginnings.
Smile upon our children
And surround our children, Lord,
With the soft mantle of your love.
Teach our children to follow in your footsteps,
And to live life in the ways of
Love, faith, hope and charity.

A Simple Irish Prayer

May God give our children….
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

Lorica of Saint Patrick (also known as the Breastplate of Saint Patrick or the Prayer of Saint Patrick.)

This prayer is attributed to St. Patrick in 433 A.D., but many scholars believe the author to be anonymous. Regardless of whence it came, during a time I was feeling spiritual backlash, (after being threatened spiritually by someone when I reported on false apparitions) two people—one a lay Carmelite and the other an exorcist—told me to pray this prayer daily. Coincidentally, a short time later, at a women’s conference where I was a speaker, someone randomly came up to me and gave me a prayer card with this prayer on it. I try to pray it daily.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.
I arise today
Through the strength of Christ’s birth and His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.
I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In preachings of the apostles,
In faiths of confessors,
In innocence of virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.
I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.
I arise today
Through God’s strength to pilot me;
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me,
God’s shield to protect me,
God’s hosts to save me
From snares of the devil,
From temptations of vices,
From every one who desires me ill,
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a multitude.
I summon today all these powers between me and evil,
Against every cruel merciless power that opposes my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of women and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul.
Christ shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that reward may come to me in abundance.
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through a confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.

St. Patrick, pray for us!

Patti Maguire Armstrong, is the mother of 10, and has a B.A. in social work and M.A. in public administration. Her newest book is Holy Hacks: Everyday Ways to Live Your Faith & Get to Heaven. Others include Big Hearted: Inspiring Stories from Everyday Families and the Amazing GraceSeries. Follow her at @PattiArmstrong and read her blog at PattiMaguireArmstrong.com