We
pray you, O God of Truth, for your servant here. We ask you to make him worthy
of the Divine mystery and your unutterable regeneration. For it is to you who
love men that we offer him, it is to you that we consecrate him. According to
your grace, let him share in this regeneration, let him no longer be under the
influence of any baleful and wicked spirit; but let him serve you at all times,
let him keep your commandments, let the Word, your Only-begotten Son, guide
him. Through him, glory to you and power, in the Holy Spirit, now and for ever
and ever! Amen.
You
who love men, benefactor, Savior of all who turn to you: Be gracious to this
servant of yours; let your right hand lead him to regeneration. Let your Only-begotten
Son, the Word, bring him to the baptismal font. Let his new birth be honored,
let your grace not be fruitless. Let your Holy Word be at his side, let your Holy
Spirit be with him, let him repel and put to flight every temptation. Through your
Only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, glory to you and power, now and forever and
ever. Amen.
God,
O God of Truth, Creator of the universe and Lord of all creation, fill your
servant here with your blessing. Make him share in the angelic powers, so that
henceforth he who has had a part in your divine and profitable grace, may be no
longer “flesh” but “spirit”. Keep him for yourself to the very end, O Creator
of all things, Through your Only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, glory to you and
power in the Holy Spirit, now and forever and ever. Amen. (Serapion of Thmuis,
as quoted in Fr. Matthew the Poor and Fr. Athanasius Al-Maqary, The Birth From
On High: Reflections on the Spirituality and History of Baptism from the
Monastery of St. Macarius [trans. Ramez Mikhail; Agora University Press,
2020], 21-22)
