In 11th-century Canterbury, a Benedictine monk named Reginald wrote a book on a saint’s life, and in that book he included a lengthy and beautiful prayer to the angels.
The prayer appealed to what we know of the nature of angels, especially the guardian angels, invoking their aid in confiding and loving words. Written in a rhyming meter, the prayer was originally six stanzas long. The first two lines read:
Angele, qui meus es custos pietate superna,
me tibi commissum serva, tueare, guberna.
(Angel, who is my guardian by heavenly love,
It is entrusted to you to save, protect, and guide me.)
It’s clear that the prayer as we have it today was taken from Reginald’s original. The Latin reads:
Angele Dei, qui custos es mei,
Me tibi commissum pietate superna
(Hodie/Hac nocte) illumina, custodi, rege, et guberna.
(Angel of God, who is my guardian,
It is entrusted to you by heavenly love
[Today/This night] to light, guard, rule, and guide me.)
The English translation we’re familiar with follows a rhythm and rhyme like the Latin verses. That makes it easy to learn and remember!
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