Almighty Father, the Author of every good and perfect gift, whose care for thy childrn faileth not, neither groweth weary: we gather in thy house to lift up to thee the voice of our thanksgiving and praise. We praise thee for our physical life, for the glow of health and the feeling of strength it may bring; for food and clothing and shelter, and all the innocent pleasures of sense. We praise thee for our intellectual life, for the power to observe and think, plan and meditate, and to influence others by the energy of our minds; and for all wise and good books and teachers whose words quicken, enlarge and enrich our thought.

We praise thee for our moral life, that, notwithstanding our transgression and sin, conscience still speaks to us, and that we have still the power to choose the right and reject the wrong. We praise thee for our social life, for all its beneficent fellowships and ministries, for home and friends, and all the things which give us strength and peace amid the disquietude and strife of our passing days. We praise thee for our spiritual life, for our knowledge of thee and our communion with thee, and for the peace passing all understanding, which the prayer of trust and submission ever brings into our hearts and minds.

We praise thee for the hope of that life which is immortal, for the persuasion that the souls of the departed are in thy hand, and that only in the sight of the unwise do they seem to die. Amen.*