Prayer of Saint Francis
"Make me an instrument of your peace" — the prayer of the gentle saint of Assisi.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
About this prayer
Though traditionally attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, the prayer in this form is actually much younger — first published in France in 1912 — and only later associated with the saint whose spirit it so clearly carries. It has been prayed by Mother Teresa, recited at presidential inaugurations, and sung in countless churches. Every line turns the natural order of the heart inside-out: not to be loved but to love.
When to pray it
Before a hard conversation. When someone has hurt you. When you are tempted to win an argument instead of see a person. At the start of any work that involves serving others.