FORMS OF PRAYER TO BE USED AT SEA. These were inserted in 1662. The first introduction of special prayers to be used at sea was due to the action of the Long Parlia ment-marking perhaps the fuller organisation and greater importance of the Navy at this period. An order was put out in 1644, after the supersession of the Prayer Book by the "Directory for Public Worship," providing a general Service of Prayer, Psalms, Lessons, Thanksgiving, and Blessing; which followed mainly the lines of the Directory, but added two special Prayers-one "a Prayer particularly fitted for those who travail on the Sea," and the other "a Prayer in a Storm." On the restoration of the Prayer Book the order of the Daily Service, and with it the other Services, was, of course, revived; and it was only thought necessary to provide certain special and appropriate prayers, in addition to these, for use at Sea. It is said, though without any certain authority, that these were composed by Bishop Sanderson. Although they bear strong indications of the more diffuse and rhetorical form of the compositions of the 17th century, they are striking specimens of their kind, full of Scriptural quotation and allusion, and having much force of earnestness. I. THE TWO REGULAR COLLECTS. The FIRST COLLECT (a) in its preamble (quoting Job ix. 8; xxvi. 10) appeals to God, as "the spreader out of the heavens (with their winds and storms) and the ruler of the rage of the sea, keeping it within its appointed bounds; (b) next, commits the Fleet and its sailors to God's protection, against the twofold danger of the storm and the enemy; (c) lastly, asks for the result of that protectionsafeguard and peace to the country they serve, and for themselves a safe return in joy and thankfulness. The SECOND COLLECT is simply one of the Occasional Collects of the Communion Service; asking for God's "preventing and furthering grace in the work of duty. II. THE PRAYERS IN STORM The FIRST COLLECT (a), looking to God's hand as raising and quelling the storm (see Ps. cvii. 25 and lxxxix. 9), and acknowledging at once our unworthiness and our helplessness, cries to Him in the words of the Apostles to Our Lord in the storm, "Lord, save us; we perish." (b) Next, it goes on to confess the folly (unreasonable enough, but yet too common) through which in the days of God's quiet and continual blessing we forget Him, and only remember Him when the wonders of His hand are seen in their awfulness; (c) and ends with a cry for help, not for our merits, but "for His mercy's sake, through Jesus Christ our Lord." The ALTERNATIVE COLLECT, except that it omits the confession, follows the same line of thought with perhaps greater fervour of supplication; quoting the cry of Hezekiah (Isa. xxxviii. 18) in his terror of death, and clinging to life as the means of glorifying God. The PRAYER BEFORE A BATTLE is fuller even than the rest of Scriptural quotation and allusion (see Ps. ix. 4; lxxx. 2; Eccl. ix. 11; 1 Sam. xiv. 6). It may well stand as a model of Christian humility and moderation in prayer for deliverance from our enemies. For (a), addressing God as the Judge and Ruler of the world, it prays that He will "judge between us and our enemies; and (implying a trust The Morning and Evening Service to be used daily at Sea shall be the same which is appointed in the Book of Common Prayer. These two following Prayers are to be also used in her Majesty's Navy every day. ETERNAL Lord God, who alone spreadest out the heavens, and rulest the raging of the sea; who hast compassed the waters with bounds until day and night come to an end; Be pleased to receive into thy Almighty and most gracious protection the persons of us thy servants, and the Fleet in which we serve. Preserve us from the dangers of the sea, and from the violence of the enemy; that we may be a safeguard unto our most gracious Sovereign Lady, Queen VICTORIA, and her Dominions, and a security for such as pass on the seas upon their lawful occasions; that the inhabitants of our Island may in peace and quietness serve thee our God; and that we may return in safety to enjoy the blessings of the land, with the fruits of our labours, and with a thankful remembrance of thy mercies to praise and glorify thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The Collect. PREVENT us, O Lord, in all our do ings, with thy most gracious favour, and further us with thy continual help; that in all our works begun, continued, and ended in thee, we may glorify thy holy Name, and finally by thy mercy obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Prayers to be used in Storms at Sea. MOST powerful and glorious Lord God, at whose command the winds blow, and lift up the waves of the sea, and who stillest the rage thereof; We thy creatures, but miserable sinners, do in this our great distress cry unto thee for help: Save, Lord, or else we perish. We confess, when we have been safe, and seen all things quiet about us, we have forgot thee our God, and refused to hearken to the still voice of thy word, and to obey thy commandments: But now we see, how terrible thou art in all thy works of wonder; the great God to be feared above all: And therefore we adore thy Divine Majesty, acknowledging thy power, and imploring thy goodness. Help, Lord, and save us for thy mercy's sake in Jesus Christ thy Son, our Lord. Amen. Or this. MOST glorious and gracious Lord God, who dwellest in heaven, but beholdest all things below; Look down, we beseech thee, and hear us, calling out of the depth of misery, and out of the jaws of this death, which is ready now to swallow us up: Save, Lord, or else we perish. The living, the living, shall praise thee. O send thy word of command to rebuke the raging winds, and the roaring sea; that we, being delivered from this distress, may live to serve thee, and to glorify thy Name all the days of our life. Hear, Lord, and save us, for the infinite merits of our blessed Saviour, thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. The Prayer to be said before a Fight at Sea against any Enemy. O MOST powerful and glorious Lord God, the Lord of hosts, that rulest and commandest all things; Thou sittest in the throne judging right, and therefore we make our address to thy Divine Majesty in this our necessity, that thou wouldest take the cause into thine own hand, and judge between us and our enemies. Stir up thy strength, O Lord, and come and help us; for thou givest not alway the battle to the strong, but canst save by many or by few. O let not our sins now cry against us for vengeance; but hear us thy poor servants begging mercy, and imploring thy help, and that thou wouldest be a defence unto us against the face of the enemy. Make it appear that thou art our Saviour and mighty Deliverer; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ¶ Short Prayers for single persons, that cannot meet to join in Prayer with others, by reason of the Fight, or Storm. General Prayers. LORD, be merciful to us sinners, and save us for thy mercy's sake. Thou art the great God, that hast made and rulest all things: O deliver us for thy Name's sake. Thou art the great God to be feared above all: O save us, that we may praise thee. Special Prayers with respect to the Enemy. THOU, O Lord, art just and powerful: O defend our cause against the face of the enemy. O God, thou art a strong tower of defence to all that flee unto thee: O save us from the violence of the enemy. O Lord of hosts, fight for us, that we may glorify thee. O suffer us not to sink under the weight of our sins, or the violence of the enemy. that our cause is just) calls for His help, even to the weak against the strong, and to the few against the many. Its prayer is, therefore, virtually conditional, resting on the full conviction that "the Judge of all the world will do right." Yet (b) with this trust in our cause it unites consciousness of sin in ourselves, and prays that it may not turn away His blessing from us and our country. Of the Short Prayers in emergency, to be used by individuals, the GENERAL PRAYERS are simply ejaculations, crying for forgiveness, deliverance from danger, and salvation. The PRAYERS IN BATTLE still dwell on God's Justice, as well as His Power; and, only in the hope that we are on His side, ask Him to defend, to save, and to fight for us, even in spite of our personal sins, and to help us for "His Name' sake"-that is, for the sake of Truth and Right, viewed as His chief attributes, and, therefore, acknowledged as irresistible. The PRAYERS IN THE STORM form a short Service in themselves, having a more express appeal to the Mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For they not only cry to God, as the Ruler of Nature, but cry also to Him, the Son of God and Man, who once saved His disciples in the hour of danger, to be our Saviour and Mediator, and so pass on to the old Kyrie Eleeson, the invocation of the Litany, "O Christ, hear us," to an express prayer to the Three Persons of the Holy Trinity, and to the Lord's Prayer. III. THE SERVICE IN IMMINENT DANGER. This is simply the Confession and Absolution of the Communion Service; which each is bidden to take home specially to himself in the awful and unsparing light of the hour of imminent death. It was felt, and felt truly, that nothing more solemn and more full of comfort could be devised. IV. THE THANKSGIVING AFTER A STORM. This Service presupposes, of course, time and quiet. It is made up of Psalms and Collect, strangely, however, departing from the almost invariable custom of the Church in not making the Lord's Prayer the very centre of Thanksgiving. The PSALMS. The FIRST PSALM (PS. lxvi.) is a singularly beautiful Psalm of Thanksgiv ing, though having nothing to do with the sea, except the allusion to the passage through the Red Sea in safety (v. 6). It falls into four sections (divided by the "Selah," which indicates an interposed symphony). The first (vs. 1-4) is simply a general call to all men to give God praise and worship; the next (vs. 5-7) a similar call to the contempla tion of His wonderful works; the third (vs. 8-15) is a special acknowledgment of deliverance from trouble, and a promise to pay the vow of sacrifice; the last (vs. 16-20), a special invitation to all the world to behold in this God's blessing on the righteous, and His unfailing answer to prayer. The SECOND PSALM (Ps. cvii.) is evidently chosen for the sake of that section (vs. 23-32), which is the only passage in the Psalms dwelling on the dangers of the sea, and which must belong to some time in the later historical period, when the Israelites had experience of the seafaring life. It is, indeed, the great " Psalm of Life," dwelling on all the vicissitudes of trouble and deliverance of "the redeemed of the Lord," gathered from the Captivity. (a) It presents (in rs. 4 -9) the wandering in hunger and thirst through the wilderness; in vs. 10-15, the bondage of captivity and downfall through sin; in vs. 16-22, the anguish of pain and sickness even to death; in vs. 23-32, the hopeless danger of the storm on the sea. From all these it declares exultantly God's manifold salvation, and cries out again and again, "O that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and declare the wonders that He doeth O Lord, arise, help us, and deliver us for thy Name's sake. TH Short Prayers in respect of a Storm. HOU, O Lord, that stillest the raging of the sea, hear, hear us, and save us, that we perish not. O blessed Saviour, that didst save in all goodness, and bring you to everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Thanksgiving after a Storm, Jubilate Deo. Psalm 66. thy disciples ready to perish in a storm, OBE joyful in God, all ye lands: sing hear us, and save us, we beseech thee. Lord, have mercy upon us. O Christ, hear us. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, have mercy upon us, save us now and evermore. Amen. UR Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil : For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen. When there shall be imminent danger, as many as can be spared from necessary service in the Ship shall be called together, and make an humble Confession of their sin to God: In which every one ought seriously to reflect upon those particular sins of which his conscience shall accuse him; saying as followeth, The Confession. ALMIGHTY God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, Judge of all men; We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wick edness, Which we, from time to time, most grievously have committed, By thought, word, and deed, Against thy Divine Majesty, Provoking most justly thy wrath and indignation against us. We do earnestly repent, And are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; The remembrance of them is grievous unto us; The burden of them is intolerable. Have mercy upon us, Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; For thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ's sake, Forgive us all that is past; And grant that we may ever hereafter Serve and please thee In newness of life, To the honour and glory of thy Name; Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Then shall the Priest, if there be any in the Ship, pronounce this Absolution. LMIGHTY God, our heavenly FaA ther, who of his great mercy hath promised forgiveness of sins to all them that with hearty repentance and true faith turn unto him: Have mercy upon you; pardon and deliver you from all your sins; confirm and strengthen you praises unto the honour of his Name, make his praise to be glorious. Say unto God, O how wonderful art thou in thy works through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies be found liars unto thee. For all the world shall worship thee: sing of thee, and praise thy Name. O come hither, and behold the works of God: how wonderful he is in his doing toward the children of men. He turned the sea into dry land: so that they went through the water on foot; there did we rejoice thereof. He ruleth with his power for ever; his eyes behold the people and such as will not believe shall not be able to exalt themselves. O praise our God, ye people and make the voice of his praise to be heard; Who holdeth our soul in life and suffereth not our feet to slip. For thou, O God, hast proved us : thou also hast tried us, like as silver is tried. Thou broughtest us into the snare: and laidest trouble upon our loins. Thou sufferedst men to ride over our heads we went through fire and water, and thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place. I will go into thine house with burntofferings and will pay thee my vows, which I promised with my lips, and spake with my mouth, when I was in trouble. I will offer unto thee fat burnt-sacrifices, with the incense of rams: I will offer bullocks and goats. O come hither, and hearken, all ye that fear God and I will tell you what he hath done for my soul. I called unto him with my mouth : and gave him praises with my tongue. If I incline unto wickedness with mine heart: the Lord will not hear me. But God hath heard me and considered the voice of my prayer. Praised be God who hath not cast out my prayer: nor turned his mercy from me. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be world without end. Amen. Confitemini Domino. Psalm cvii. GIVE thanks unto the Lord, for he is gracious; and his mercy endureth for ever. for the children of men!" Then (b) in calmer strain it looks up to God, as the Giver alike of parched barrenness and wellwatered fertility, of sorrow under oppression and of joyful deliverance. In all alike it recognises His justice and love, which "the wise shall understand," and in which "the righteous shall rejoice." THE COLLECTS. The FIRST COLLECT presupposes imminent danger. It is one of simple and fervent Thanksgiving to the "God of infinite goodness and mercy," as having saved "out of the jaws of death," and given "wonderful deliverance," when all seemed lost; to Him it offers the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving" because He "did not cast out the prayer" of sore distress. The SECOND COLLECT is one of calmer tone, and includes Prayer as well as Praise. (a) The Thanksgiving declares how God had shown His power to help those who trust in Him, so that even winds and waves read us a lesson of obedience to His Will; and for this it "blesses and glorifies His Name." (b) The Prayer is for grateful hearts, showing thankfulness "not only by words but in our lives," and for the continuance still of God's mercy and protection. The HYMN which follows (like some of the State Services of the same period) is made up of passages from many Psalms, in a few cases slightly altered to suit the occasion. It is perhaps hard to preserve in such composition the unity and freedom of an original. But its general tenour is clear and coherent enough. It is, first, a general thanksgiving for God's continual mercy to His Redeemed; then a picture of the distress and danger undergone, and the deliverance granted; and finally special praise and adoration for the special mercy. V. THE THANKSGIVING AFTER This is of the same kind as the foregoing, but simpler. The HYMN is similarly made up of passages, chiefly from the Psalms (beginning with almost the whole of Ps. cxxiv.), ascribing the victory to God's hand, not to our own, and giving Him thanks and praise accordingly. The COLLECT (addressed to God, as "the Sovereign Commander" of the world) after thanksgiving for the victory, turns to a twofold prayer, first for the whole country, that through victory it may better perform its true mission, which is nobly described as the advancement of God's glory on earth and His Gospel, the honour of the Sovereign, which is that of England itself, and the good of all mankind; next for those actually engaged, that they may show thankfulness for preservation in the devotion of their lives to God. VI. AT THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD. This is, in the first place, the necessary variation of the committal of the body to the grave, looking to the time when "the sea shall give up her dead;" but it also changes the phrase "in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life" into the more general phrase "looking for the Resur rection of the Body and the life of the world to come" a change which must have been intentional, perhaps with a view to avoid what might seem too confident expression of hope, |
