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Irish Blessings
page Four

This page was inspired by a comment from the O'Doud family who suggested that with so many beautiful Irish blessings in existence, we could probably post a different one each day. The O'Doud's, bless them, are so right - we've found a wealth of blessings. We'd like to invite readers to send us their favorites and we'll list those, too.

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Anniversary Blessing
As God brings you closer together
through all the days of your life,
May you renew the faith-filled
promise that joined you as
husband and wife. May the
beautiful moments you treasure
help you forever to see
that today, tomorrow and always,
you're blessed with a love meant to be.

Health and long life to you,
The woman of your choice to you,
A child every year to you,
Land without rent to you,
And may you die in Ireland.

May your home be bright with cheer,
May your cares all disappear,
May contentment come your way,
And may laughter fill your day.

May you be blessed with
sunlight after April showers,
Miles and miles of Irish smiles
For golden happy hours.
Shamrocks at your doorway
For luck and laughter, too,
And a host of friends that never ends
Each day your whole life through.

Mother's Day Blessing
May Jesus and Mary bless
and protect your home
And all who receive
your tender care.
May you be praised on
this day of your own,
May the sun shine bright
and the sky be fair.
Fr. Andrew M. Greeley

May these rich blessings be your due,
A wealth of friendships, old and new,
Some service rendered, some solace given,
And gentle peace with God and Heaven.

Blest be that spot, where cheerful guests retire
To pause from toil, and trim their evening fire;
Blest that abode, where want and pain repair,
And every stranger finds a ready chair;
Blest be those feasts with simple plenty crowned,
Where all the ruddy family around
Laugh at the jests or pranks that never fail,
Or sigh with pity at some mournful tale;
Or press the bashful stranger to his food,
And learn the luxury of doing good.
Oliver Goldsmith, The Traveler

May you be blessed
with hope and
strength to guide
you through the
weeks of Lent.
And If God sends you
down a stony path,
may He give
you strong shoes.
Photo Credit: Tourism Ireland/Newgrange

May your mornings bring joy
and your evenings bring peace
May your troubles grow less
as your blessings increase!

The Blessing of the Three
The blessing-help of the Three upon your waking,
The blessing-help of the Three upon your walking,
The blessing-help of the Three upon your working,
and upon your knees that they may never weaken.

When eternity beckons
at the end of a life
heaped with love,
May the good Lord
embrace you
with arms that have
nurtured you
the whole length of your
joy-filled days.

Brighid of the Mantle,
encompass us,
Lady of the Lambs,
protect us,
Keeper of the Hearth,
kindle us.
Beneath your mantle,
gather us.
Guide our hands in yours,
Your hands upon ours,
Our hands within yours
The Mantle of Brighid about us,
The Memory of Brighid within us,
The Protection of Brighid keeping us
From harm, from ignorance, from
heartlessness.
This day and night,
From dark till light.

A blessing upon your home
A blessing upon your hearth
A blessing upon your dwelling
And upon your warming fire
A blessing upon your animals
and land
A blessing upon your kith
and kin
A blessing upon you in
dark or light
Each day and night of your
living.

May you be poor in misfortune,
Rich in blessings,
Slow to make enemies,
Quick to make friends,
But rich or poor, quick or slow,
May you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward.

Aithbhlian Faoi Mhaise d'ár Léitheoirí Uilig!
Happy New Year to all our readers!

Be the eye of God dwelling with you
The foot of Christ in guidance with you
The shower of the Spirit pouring on you
Richly and generously.
Old Celtic Blessing

May green be the grass you walk on,
May blue be the skies above you,
May pure be the joys that surround you,
May true be the hearts that love you.

A Blessing for Nollaig na mBan
Women's Christmas - January 6

May you always seek your spiritual star
Away from home, whether near or far.
May you delight in wonders unforeseen,
And in new adventures only just begun.
A blessing on your Epiphany tea,
May all go well with that,
and may all go well with you and yours
in the year that lies ahead.
Adapted and edited from a blessing by
Fr. Andrew M. Greeley

May you find truth in the year's smallest grace
And hope in the year's heaviest cross;
May a pillar of light before your face
shine through the dark so you're never lost
May your journey be safe wherever you go,
and the angels keep you from all harm,
May you learn to take life easy and slow,
And celebrate your gift of Irish charm.
And may the God of new beginnings grant you
a year of health, happiness and prosperity.
Adapted from a blessing by Fr. Andrew Greeley
Photo Credit: Henri/webshots


May your home be trimmed with love
With joy wound 'round and round,
May laughter raise the rafters
And merriment abound
May your hearth glow with the smiles
Of all your kith and kin,
And may heaven grace your humble place
As the good Lord dwells within

May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

Blessing for a Holiday Party
May Brigid who wished for a pool of ale
Grant that the fun of your party will not fail;
And may Jesus and Mary come to your party, too,
In the friendship and joy in each one of you.

May you rejoice in all of the good times past
and pray to God that the good times will last;
May you celebrate God's love for all of us
And clean up when it's over without a fuss.
Edited and adapted from a blessing by Fr. Andrew M. Greeley

May your good Irish heart make the most of every day
And may all your winter nights be as warm as the May.

A Blessing for Thanksgiving
May you thank the Lord with all your strength
For food and drink and family and friends,
For His goodness through life's long length
And His promise of love that never ends.
Edited and adapted from a blessing by Fr. Andrew M. Greeley

God bless and save us all
St. Patrick, Brigid and Colmcille
Guard each wall
May the Queen of heaven
and the angels bright
Keep us and our house
From all harm this night!
introduction to 'Christmas in Ireland'

Warm be the love that surrounds you;
Good be your friends, and true;
Constant be hope and promise;
Useful the work that you do;
Close be your family around you;
Good health be yours day by day;
Long be the life that you're living,
And full of much joy on the way.

May luck be our companion,
May friends stand by our side,
May history remind us
Of Ireland's faith and her pride.
May God bless us with happiness
And may love always abide.

May you always have...
A sunbeam to warm you,
Good luck to charm you,
And a sheltering angel
so nothing can harm you.
Laughter to cheer you,
Faithful friends near you,
And whenever you pray...
Heaven to hear you.

Here's wishing you the tops o' life without a single tumble;
Here's wishing you the smiles o' life and not a single grumble;
Here's wishing you the best o' life and not a flaw about it,
Here's wishing you all the joy in life and not a day without it!

Here's a special Irish wish, You can hear it in Cork or Kerry, God bless yourself, God Bless your house, and may your days be merry!

May the sun shine bright on your joyous days,
And the rain refresh you through peaceful nights;
May summer show you God's wondrous ways,
And prepare you for heaven's great delights.
From Irish-American Blessings & Prayers by Andrew M. Greeley.

May you live to be a hundred years, with an extra year to repent.

May the good Lord take a liking to you, but not too soon.

For a father and mother: For my mother who raised me at her breast, and for my father who raised me by the work of his bones; I trust in the Son of God, when they enter his presence, that there will be a hundred thousand welcomes for them in the heavens of peace.

May the blessings of each day be the blessings you need most.

A blessing before a meal: May the blessing of the five loaves and two fishes, which God divided amongst five thousand men, be ours: and may the King who made the division put luck back in our food and in our portion, Amen.

Grant me a sense of humor, Lord, the saving grace to see a joke. To win some happiness from life, and pass it on to other folk.

May the face of every good news and the back of every bad news be towards us.

That 'tis no plain priest you'll have to annoint you, but a bishop at the very least.

Wishing you always —
Walls for the wind
And a roof for the rain
And tea beside the warmth of the fire.
Laughter to cheer you
And those you love near you,
And all that your heart might desire!

Count your blessings instead of your crosses
Count your gains instead of your losses
Count your joys instead of your woes
Count your friends instead of your foes
Count your smiles instead of your tears
Count your courage instead of your fears
Count your full times instead of your lean
Count your kind deeds instead of your mean
Count your health instead of your wealth
Love your neighbor as much as yourself.

The blessings of God be with you ever and always.

May your bed be made in heaven.

That every hair on your head might turn into a candle to light your way to heaven.

May you get the reward in heaven that's been denied you for your goodness on earth.

May the pitcher be filled with wine instead of water the next time you call to the house.

May God and His Holy Mother take the harm of the year away from you.

May we have the Grace of God and may we die in Ireland.

May the Lord keep you in the palm of his hand and never close his fist too tight on you.

May God grant you many years to live, for sure he must be knowing, the earth has angels all too few and heaven is overflowing.

May the sons of your sons fill your home with laughter.

From our Friends
May you have a world of wishes at your command
God and His Angels close at hand
Friends and Family their love impart,
and Irish Blessings in your heart.
Sent in by Lou

May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
And the rain fall soft upon your fields.
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
The classic favorite of all time, sent in by the O'Doud family.

May you live a long life
Full of gladness and health,
With a pocket of gold
As the least of your wealth.
May the dreams you hold dearest,
Be those which come true,
And The kindness you spread,
Keep returning to you.
unattributed

Give us, Lord, a bit o sun,
A bit o work and a bit o fun,
Give us in all the struggle and sputter,
Our daily bread and a bit o butter.
Give us health our keep to make
And a bit to spare for other's sake.
Give us, too, a bit of song
And a tale and a book to help us along.
Give us, Lord, a chance to be 
Our goodly best, brave, wise and free,
Our goodly best for ourselves and others
Till all men learn to live as brothers.
Old Irish Prayer

The belt of Christ about you on your going out and on your coming in.
May God be on your road every way you go. And in the name of Him who made a pathway of the waves, may He bring you safely home at the end of the day.
Edited and adapted from Irish Blessings by Pat Fairon

Blessing for a Festival
May Brigid shine her light on this fest
May Brendan see the voyage be blest
May Colum preside over song and jest
And Michael guard each and every guest
May fair weather help assure success
and may God in his wisdom who knows
what's best
Grant that all will enjoy this year's fest.
Edited and adapted from a blessing by Fr. Andrew Greeley

Bless the hearth, bless the home, bless the rock, bless the stone, bless the tree, bless the hill, keep us all from every ill. Dear St. Brighid this I pray, guard us all through night and day.
Edited and adapted from a blessing by Maire O'Seasnain
Photo Credit: Cleary Brothers' Irish Pub "where it's always 5pm."


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