humbly supplicate thee to irradiate our minds with all useful truth, and instil into our hearts the spirit of general benevolence. Give understanding to the foolish; meekness to the proud; temperance to the dissolute; fortitude to the feeblehearted; hope to the desponding; faith to the unbelieving; diligence to the slothful; patience to those who are in pain, and thy celestial aid to those in danger. O God, comfort the afflicted; relieve the distressed; supply the hungry with salutary food, and the thirsty with a plenteous stream. Impute not our doubts to indifference, nor our slowness of belief to hardness of heart; but be indulgent to our imperfect nature, and supply our imperfections by thy heavenly favor. O suner not oppression to prevail over innocence, nor the might of the avenger over the weakness of the just. Whenever we address thee in our retirement from the cares of the world, if our prayers are unwise, pity us; if presumptuous, pardon us; if acceptable to thee, grant them, All-powerful God; and as with our living voice, and with our dying lips, we would express our submission to thy decrees, adore thy providence, and bless thy dispensations, so, in that future state to which we reverently hope thy goodness will raise us, grant that we may continue praising, admiring, venerating and worshiping thee more and more, through worlds without number and ages without end. * Amen.

SATURDAY EVENING.

Holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty; heaven and earth are full of the majesty of thy glory. The glorious company of the Apostles praise thee. The goodly fellowship of the Prophets praise thee. The noble army of Martyrs praise thee. Thy church throughout the world doth acknowledge thee, the Father of an infinite majesty. We thy servants, though a small part of thy great family, would come in humble trust and with pure hearts, to join our praises and prayers with those of the spirits in thy presence, ascribing glory and honor, dominion and power to him who sitteth on the throne forever and ever. Thy inspiration has given us the understanding by which we know and love and worship thee; and we deem it our reasonable service to present to thee our souls and bodies as a living sacrifice.

Eternal God, the changing seasons and revolving months bring convincing evidence of thy being, agency, and love. Thou art now crowning another day and another week with thy loving kindness. Thy mercies have been borne to us on the wings of every hour. Thou hast continued to us health and friends, food and raiment. To thee we owe the establishment of civil society, the institution of wise and salutary laws, the progress of useful knowledge, the advantages of

commercial intercourse, and all the blessings of social life. To thee we are indebted for the lessons and examples of the intelligent and good, for the benefits of a virtuous education, and for every opportunity of family worship. Above all, to thy unchangeable compassion we owe the offers of pardon, and the animating hope of immortality.

Unfailing Source of life and mercy; while with grateful hearts we thank thee for thy bounties and providence through another week, we must lament our transgressions. We have felt the effects of former carelessness, and deeply lament that our past sins yet exercise a power over our minds. If we have allowed prejudice to warp our judgments, or unkind feelings to rest in our hearts, we would truly deplore them. We would mourn over every act which has made us less useful, or others less happy. Spare thou those who confess their faults. Restore thou those who are penitent; and while the closing week proves how rapidly our lives are shortening, let it rouse us to new activity. O let us not defer to the uncertain future what should be done now. Relying on thee, we would, in the stillness of this hour and in the presence of each other, form the most serious and deliberate purpose to correct whatever has been wrong in our temper and conduct, and to live in future as the obedient disciples of Jesus Christ.

Parent of good, we thank thee for our do

mestic altar. As thou hast gathered the solitary in families, and cheered us by the ties of kindred and the comforts of home, we pray that we may be in truth a christian household. May we guard against ill-humor, and against every incident which would disturb the tranquillity of our dwelling, or lessen the love of our hearts. May we live together as they should, who wish to be united in thy heavenly family.

*

Lord of life, hitherto hast thou helped us. As the close of another week calls us to self-examination, may it find us at peace with thee, with our own consciences, and with our fellow men. We ask thy protection through the coming night. Let not our beds be those of pain, nor our meditations those of sin; but when we sleep let our rest be refreshing, and when we wake let our meditations be of thee. Prepare us for the Sabbath and the sanctuary; and when our days and weeks on earth shall revolve no more, then admit us, eternal One, to thy heavenly temple, to the everlasting mansions of love and devotion, of purity and bliss. Amen.

OCCASIONAL PRAYERS.*

BEFORE THE BAPTISM OF A CHILD.

Father of mercies; all souls are thine. We are about to dedicate this child to thee in baptism. From thee it was received; we would give it back to thee again in our prayer, beseeching thee to accept it. May it be wholly and forever thine. As the water to be used in its consecration is emblematic of the purity required in the christian life, do thou help its parents to perform faithfully their incumbent duty. May they inform him of the dignity of his nature; of the importance of reason, the light of God within him, by which he is to govern himself, and be made useful and happy. Assist them to enlarge his understanding, and to open his heart to the impressions of religion; that from his youth he may know the holy scriptures, and be a child of God. If he lives, may he live to thee; if soon called to die, may he die to thee; and in the world of spirits hereafter may he join his parents to rejoice with them in thy redeeming love. In the name of him, who took little children in his arms and blessed them, do thou hear and accept us.

The words his, him, he, &c., printed in Italics, may be changed into her, she, &c. as the occasion may require.