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A Prayer that may be used in and for any School.

Then may be used any of the preceding Prayers, or a Selection of Collects from the Prayer Book. Afterwards a suitable Psalm, or portion of the Psalter, may be named and used; he who conducts the service reading one verse, and the rest who are present reading alternately; and after the Psalm, the Christian Doxology. The service may end here;. or there may be read for a lesson the portion of the Scriptures at that time to be explained: and after the lesson, what follows:

Blessed Lord, who hast caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning, grant that we may in such wise hear them; read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them; that, by patience and comfort of thy holy word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Then may be named and sung a Hymn or Psalm in metre; and then:

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all, evermore. Amen.

A Prayer that may be used in and for any School.

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid, we beseech thee to pardon our sins, to sanctify our hearts, and mercifully to assist us in these our supplications and prayers. We adore thee as a holy and merciful God, whose righteous providence orders all things in heaven and on earth; and from whom all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works do proceed. Without thee nothing is strong, nothing is holy, nothing good. Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain who build it; except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh in vain. We beseech thee to direct and bless us in what we do. Give

A Prayer that may be used in and for any School.

us wisdom to choose, and grace to perform, whatever is according to thy holy will. Preserve us

from every sin, protect us in every danger, and grant that all our doings, being ordered by thy governance, may be righteous in thy sight. Dispose all our ways towards the attainment of immortal life; that, amidst the manifold perils of our earthly pilgrimage, our conversation may be in heaven. Make us sensible, O blessed Lord, of thy great goodness, and thankful for all thy mercies. We render thee humble and hearty thanks for blessings daily bestowed upon us, and upon all men, temporal and spiritual. We bless thee especially for the means of knowledge and mutual improvement so bountifully bestowed on this our favored country. And we humbly ask for thy blessing upon all our schools and seminaries of learning. Give wisdom and patience to those who teach, and a meek and teachable disposition to all who learn. Defend them from pride and a vain confidence in themselves, and incline their hearts to such things as are truly profitable. May we never forget that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and that the most important knowledge is, to know thee the only true God, and ourselves as unworthy sinners, and Jesus Christ as the only Savior. Give thy blessing, O Lord, to this school and to all who are engaged in its instruction and concerned in its support. May the children and youth who are here present be partakers of thy heavenly benediction; may they be members of Christ and heirs through hope of thy everlasting kingdom. Do thou, their Father who art in heaven, take them under thy holy care and keeping. Incline their hearts and open their minds to the light of truth and the attainment of useful science. Imprint upon their hearts an early and thankful sense of thy goodness in giving them abundant means of intel

A Prayer that may be used at the Opening of any School.

lectual improvement. Preserve them from the snares of sin and all the perils of youth, and conduct them safely through the journey of life. Help them continually to mortify their evil and corrupt affections, and daily to proceed in all virtue and godliness of living. Make them happy and useful as members of society, and an honor and comfort to their relatives and friends, and prepare them for thy heavenly kingdom. Guide and bless the care and patient labor of those who instruct them in what is good and useful; remember them for good, and reward their labor of love. To all who are engaged in the important business of instructing youth, give wisdom and grace, both by precept and example, to teach such things as will best promote the good of their pupils in this world, and in the world to come. Help them to rear the tender thought to ripened wisdom, and to conduct the youthful mind, in all its growth, to manly virtue. To all who are present, give thy heavenly grace; that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we may live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present life; and finally be prepared to dwell with thee in thine everlasting kingdom. For thine is the kingdom and the power, and thine be the glory forever and ever. These things we ask, O heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, our blessed Lord and Savior. Amen.

A Prayer that may be used at the Opening of any School.

ADORABLE and everliving God, the Author of our being, and the Giver of all good, we beseech thee in mercy to pardon our sins, to hear our prayers, and to give us thy blessing. Without thee nothing

A Prayer that may be used at the Opening of any School. is strong, nothing is holy, nothing good. Except the Lord build the house they labor in vain who build. We humbly ask for thy guidance and protection, beseeching thee to direct us in all we design or do with thy most gracious favor, and to prosper us with thy continual help. Look down with thy favor and blessing upon this school now present before thee, and upon all who convene in this place for the acquirement of knowledge. Preserve them from evil and error, and from all things which would be hurtful to them, in body or mind. Incline their hearts to truth and righteousness, and help them, we beseech thee, to receive such instruction as shall fit them to be useful members of society in this world and heirs of thy heavenly kingdom. Inspire them with that fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of true knowledge. May they be duly respectful to their parents, teachers, and others in authority over them, inclining their ears to wisdom, and applying their hearts to understanding. Wisdom is the principal thing; help us, O Lord, to get wisdom, and to walk in thy commandments. We are blind, and weak, and sinful, and need, O heavenly Father, thy mercy and thy care. By thy Spirit and thy providence, be thou, we beseech thee, our Teacher and Guide. May we strive for knowledge, and lift up our voice for understanding. Give thy blessing to parents and masters, and to all who have the care and the tuition of the rising generation. Endue them with wisdom and patience, with kindness and love. May the children under their care be so trained up in the way that they should go, that when they are old they will not depart from it. Behold with thy blessing and favor all our schools and seminaries of learning. May they be instrumental in promoting righteousness and truth; and may knowledge and happiness, and pure and undefiled religion, be

For the Closing of any School.

spread and increased throughout our land. These things, and whatever else thou shalt see to be good for us, for this school, and for all mankind, we humbly ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

And may the

grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us now and evermore. Amen.

For the Closing of any School.

O LORD, our heavenly Father, in whom we live and move and have our being, we humbly desire to render thee our thanks and praise for all thy daily mercies; and especially for the favors and blessings which have been vouchsafed to us this present day. We thank thee, O God, for the means and opportunities of acquiring useful knowledge, which are bountifully bestowed upon us, and upon the people of this our country, beseeching thee to give us grace rightly to use them, to the promotion of thy honor, and of our own best good. Grant us a right judgment in all things, and guide our steps in the paths of heavenly wisdom. May we love the things which thou commandest, and desire those which thou dost promise to them who love and serve thee. Take us, we beseech

thee, and all that appertains to us, under thy holy care and keeping. Preserve us from sin and wickedness, and from every danger of soul and body. Help us in the performance of every duty, and every work which our hand findeth to do. Give us grace to be humble and meek; to be respectful to all to whom respect is due, and just and charitable to all our fellow-men. May we be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another; and as much as lieth in

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