Commontide
The Burial of the Dead — Opening Collect
O God, whose beloved Son took children into his arms and blessed them: Give us grace to entrust N. to your never-failing care and love, and bring us all to your heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Draft — AI-assisted research under editorial review.
A prayer composed for the 1928 American Episcopal prayer book, which introduced a distinct service for the burial of a child – the first such provision in the American Episcopal succession. Its central image, Christ taking children into his arms and blessing them, comes directly from the Gospel of Mark. The 1979 prayer book modernized the language; ACNA carried that form into the 2019 book.