For the fear itself
Prayer of St Macrina
O Lord, You have freed us from the fear of death.You have made the end of this lifethe beginning of true life for us.For a time You let our bodies rest in sleep,and You will wake them again at the last trumpet.
You give the earth we are made of,which You shaped with Your hands,to the earth for safe keeping.And You will take back what You have given,transfiguring what is mortal and unsightly in uswith incorruption and grace.
You have saved us from the curse and from sin,by becoming both for our sake.You have crushed the heads of the dragonthat had seized mankind in its jawsthrough the gaping pit of disobedience.You have opened the way to resurrection for us:You broke the gates of helland brought to nothing the one who had the power of death, the devil.To those who fear You, You have given a sign,the shape of Your holy Cross,to destroy the enemy and keep our life safe.
O eternal God,upon Whom I was cast from my mother’s womb,Whom my soul has loved with all its strength,to Whom I have given both my flesh and my soulfrom my youth until now:set beside me a shining angelto lead me by the hand to the place of refreshment,by the water of rest,at the side of the holy fathers.
You broke through the flaming swordand brought back to Paradisethe man who was crucified with You and threw himself on Your mercy:remember me too in Your kingdom.For I too was crucified with You:I nailed down my flesh in fear of You,and I have feared Your judgments.
Do not let the terrible chasmpart me from Your chosen ones.Do not let the envious one stand in my way.Do not let my sin be found before Your eyes,if I have sinned in anything, in word or deed or thought,led astray by the weakness of our nature.
You have power on earth to forgive sins:forgive me, so that I may be refreshed,and be found before You, when I put off my body,with no stain on the form of my soul.But may my soul be received into Your hands,blameless and spotless,like incense before You.
Traditional wording, 1916
Thou, O Lord, hast freed us from the fear of death.Thou hast made the end of this life the beginning to us of true life.Thou for a season restest our bodies in sleep and awakest them again at the last trump.
Thou givest our earth, which Thou hast fashioned with Thy hands, to the earth to keep in safety.One day Thou wilt take again what Thou hast given, transfiguring with immortality and grace our mortal and unsightly remains.
Thou hast saved us from the curse and from sin, having become both for our sakes.Thou hast broken the heads of the dragon who had seized us with his jaws, in the yawning gulf of disobedience.Thou hast shown us the way of resurrection, having broken the gates of hell, and brought to nought him who had the power of death, the devil.Thou hast given a sign to those that fear Thee in the symbol of the Holy Cross, to destroy the adversary and save our life.
O God eternal, to Whom I have been attached from my mother's womb, Whom my soul has loved with all its strength, to Whom I have dedicated both my flesh and my soul from my youth up until now,do Thou give me an angel of light to conduct me to the place of refreshment, where is the water of rest, in the bosom of the holy Fathers.
Thou that didst break the flaming sword and didst restore to Paradise the man that was crucified with Thee and implored Thy mercies, remember me, too, in Thy kingdom;because I, too, was crucified with Thee, having nailed my flesh to the cross for fear of Thee, and of Thy judgments have I been afraid.
Let not the terrible chasm separate me from Thy elect.Nor let the slanderer stand against me in the way;nor let my sin be found before Thy eyes, if in anything I have sinned in word or deed or thought, led astray by the weakness of our nature.
O Thou Who hast power on earth to forgive sins, forgive me, that I may be refreshed and may be found before Thee when I put off my body, without defilement on my soul.But may my soul be received into Thy hands spotless and undefiled, as an offering before Thee.
St Macrina whispered it as she lay dying, in AD 379 or 380. It begins with thanks that Christ has freed us from the fear of death. It ends by asking Him to receive her soul.
Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Greek, with W. K. Lowther Clarke’s 1916 translation beside it. How the wording is made. Traditional wording: W. K. Lowther Clarke, The Life of St. Macrina by Gregory, Bishop of Nyssa, 1916.
Where Clarke has “the slanderer” and “an offering”, the Greek says “the envious one” and “incense”.
