When you wake feeling hardened by habit or numb to grace, St. Augustine’s prayer asks the Holy Spirit to do what we cannot: melt the stone and kindle the fire. Written around 400 AD during his years as Bishop of Hippo, this prayer names the fundamental human problem (the heart of stone) and begs for the only solution (the fire of the Spirit).
O Lord, who hast mercy upon all, take away from me my sins, and mercifully kindle in me the fire of thy Holy Spirit. Take away from me the heart of stone, and give me a heart of flesh, a heart to love and adore thee, a heart to delight in thee, to follow and to enjoy thee, for Christ’s sake. Amen.
St. Augustine of Hippo, c. 400 AD
How this prayer works
Augustine is quoting Ezekiel 36:26, where God promises: “I will take away the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” The prayer asks for what the prophet announced: a radical interior transformation only God can accomplish. The “fire of the Holy Spirit” echoes Pentecost, when tongues of flame descended on the apostles and changed them from fearful men into witnesses who turned the world upside down.
This is a morning prayer. Before you open your laptop or check your phone, before the day’s armor goes on, pray it slowly and ask the Spirit to soften what has hardened overnight. Augustine knew the heart calcifies through small refusals, and he knew mercy is the solvent.
Notice the sequence: take away my sins, then kindle the fire. Confession precedes Pentecost. If you are preparing for the sacrament of Reconciliation, pray this beforehand. If you are returning to daily prayer after a long absence, pray this first.
Carry it through this morning.
