I pray, O God, that I may know You and love You,
so that I may rejoice in You.
And if I cannot do so fully in this life
may I progress gradually until it comes to fullness.
Let the knowledge of You grow in me here,
and there [in heaven] be made complete;
Let Your love grow in me here
and there be made complete,
so that here my joy may be great in hope,
and there be complete in reality.
Lord, by Your Son You command,
or rather, counsel us to ask
and You promise that we shall receive
so that our ‘joy may be complete’.
I ask, Lord,
as You counsel through our admirable counsellor.
May I receive what You promise
through Your truth
so that my ‘joy may be complete’.
God of truth, I ask that I may receive
so that my ‘joy may be complete’.
Until then
let my mind meditate on it,
let my tongue speak of it,
let my heart love it,
let my mouth preach it.
Let my soul hunger for it,
let my flesh thirst for it,
my whole being desire it,
until I enter into the ‘joy of the Lord’,
who is God, Three in One, ‘blessed forever. Amen’ .
Anselm of Canterbury [c. 1033–1109], The Major Works, (OUP, 1998), pgs 103–104. [Slight formatting alterations inspired by Justin Taylor]
