Veni, Sancte Spíritus, reple tuórum corda fidélium, et tui amóris in eis ignem accénde.
V. Emítte Spíritum tuum, et creabúntur. R. Et renovábis fáciem terræ.
Orémus. Deus, qui corda fidélium Sancti Spíritus illustratióne docuísti: da nobis in eódem Spíritu recta sápere, et de eius semper consolatióne gaudére. Per Christum Dóminum nostrum. Amen.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and kindle in them the fire of Thy love.
V. Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created. R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray. O God, who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit, grant that by the gift of the same Spirit we may be always truly wise, and ever rejoice in His consolation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
A prayer of Cardinal Mercier: O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore Thee. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I ought to do; give me Thy commands. I promise to submit to all that Thou dost desire of me, and to accept all that Thou dost permit to happen to me. Only show me what is Thy will. Amen.
Before any important undertaking — study or work, a decision or a discernment, a meeting or a journey — the Church has always paused to invoke the Holy Spirit, the "Spirit of counsel," that His light may guide what human wisdom cannot. This little prayer, "Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful," is the most familiar of those invocations. It is prayed at the start of the day, of a class, of a chapter meeting, of a council — anywhere the faithful wish to act not by their own lights but by God’s.
Its versicle is drawn from the Psalms: "Thou shalt send forth thy spirit, and they shall be created: and thou shalt renew the face of the earth" (Psalm 103:30). The concluding collect asks precisely for the grace of guidance: "grant that by the same Spirit we may be always truly wise" — in the Latin, recta sápere, "to judge rightly" — "and ever rejoice in His consolation." The Church attaches an indulgence to this prayer, so beloved and so often used.
Our Lord promised this guidance Himself: the Holy Spirit, He said, "will teach you all things" (John 14:26) and "will teach you all truth" (John 16:13); and St. Paul teaches that "whosoever are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" (Romans 8:14). To that daily leading the modern Cardinal Désiré-Joseph Mercier of Belgium gave a memorable form, calling it "the secret of sanctity and happiness": each day to speak to the Holy Spirit within the soul, "tell me what I ought to do… only show me Thy will," and then to obey. His short prayer is joined here to the Church’s ancient invocation.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and kindle in them the fire of Thy love.
V. Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created.
R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray. O God, who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit, grant that by the gift of the same Spirit we may be always truly wise, and ever rejoice in His consolation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
A prayer of Cardinal Mercier:
O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore Thee. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I ought to do; give me Thy commands. I promise to submit to all that Thou dost desire of me, and to accept all that Thou dost permit to happen to me. Only show me what is Thy will. Amen.
Veni, Sancte Spíritus, reple tuórum corda fidélium, et tui amóris in eis ignem accénde.
V. Emítte Spíritum tuum, et creabúntur.
R. Et renovábis fáciem terræ.
Orémus. Deus, qui corda fidélium Sancti Spíritus illustratióne docuísti: da nobis in eódem Spíritu recta sápere, et de eius semper consolatióne gaudére. Per Christum Dóminum nostrum. Amen.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and kindle in them the fire of Thy love.
V. Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created.
R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray. O God, who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit, grant that by the gift of the same Spirit we may be always truly wise, and ever rejoice in His consolation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
A prayer of Cardinal Mercier:
O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore Thee. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I ought to do; give me Thy commands. I promise to submit to all that Thou dost desire of me, and to accept all that Thou dost permit to happen to me. Only show me what is Thy will. Amen.