A Prayer For Priests

A Prayer For Priests

Keep them, I pray Thee, dearest Lord, 

     Keep them, for they are Thine -

Thy priests whose lives burn out before 
     Thy consecrated shrine.

Keep them, for they are in the world, 
     Though from the world apart;

When earthly pleasures tempt, allure, - 
     Shelter them in Thy heart.

Keep them, and comfort them in hours 
     Of loneliness and pain,

When all their life of sacrifice 
     For souls seems but in vain.

Keep them, and O remember, Lord, 
     They have no one but Thee,

Yet they have only human hearts, 
     With human frailty.

Keep them as spotless as the Host. 
     That daily they caress;

Their every thought and word and deed, 
     Deign, dearest Lord, to bless.

Imprimatur:  +D. Card. Dougherty, Arch. of Philadelphia

Our Father Hail Mary Mary, Queen of the Clergy, pray for them.

Image Credit Lawrence OP