This excerpt from St. Patrick’s Lorica (the “Breastplate”) names Christ’s presence in every direction, every posture, every encounter. Written in 8th-century Ireland as a prayer of protection, it gives you words for the morning when you need to remember you are not alone.
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me. Salvation is of the Lord, salvation is of the Lord, salvation is of Christ; may thy salvation, O Lord, be ever with us.
Attributed to St. Patrick, 8th century ‘Lorica’
How this prayer works
The prayer maps Christ onto every axis of your life: the six directions (above, below, before, behind, left, right), the three postures of the day (lying, sitting, rising), and the four ways you meet other people (in their thoughts, words, sight, hearing). It asks for nothing except to see what is already true: Christ is not distant.
The word Lorica means “breastplate” in Latin. Irish monks used this style of prayer as spiritual armor, naming divine protection over body and soul before walking into the day’s dangers. St. Patrick is credited with the full hymn (which runs much longer), though the oldest manuscript dates to the 8th century, two centuries after his death.
Pray it when you open your eyes in the morning. Pray it before you leave the house. Pray it when you are about to walk into a hard conversation or a crowded room and need to remember whose company you keep. The repetition is the point: Christ is not one thing on your list, but the air in which you move.
Carry it through this morning.
