Commontide
O God, who on this day taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending to them the light of your Holy Spirit: Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Original-language source · public domain
BCP 2019, p. 614
Preface of Pentecost
Through Jesus Christ our Lord; according to whose most true promise, the Holy Spirit came down from heaven, lighting upon the disciples, to teach them and to lead them into all truth, giving them boldness and fervent zeal constantly to preach the Gospel to all nations; by which we have been brought out of darkness and error into the clear light and true knowledge of you, and of your Son Jesus Christ.
Draft — AI-assisted research under editorial review.
This Pentecost prayer is among the oldest in the Anglican prayer book, rooted in a Latin oration attested since at least the eighth century. Cranmer translated it faithfully in 1549, and it anchored Whitsunday services in every English prayer book until 1979, when it was joined by a second option and labeled "alternative."