Grace Before Meals (Extended Form)

This longer grace joins the familiar "Bless us, O Lord" with a second line drawn from the Church's traditional table blessings: "May the King of eternal glory make us partakers of the heavenly table." The addition lifts our thoughts from the food in front of us to the banquet of heaven, which Jesus often compared to a wedding feast. Monasteries and religious houses have used similar blessings at their meals for centuries.

Use this form for Sunday dinners, feast days, holidays, and family gatherings, when there is time for a slightly fuller prayer. One person can lead and everyone answers "Amen." You may add intentions for the hungry, for the cook, or for absent family members, and end with a grace after meals and a prayer for the faithful departed.

The Prayer

Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen. May the King of eternal glory make us partakers of the heavenly table. Amen.

Sources: Traditional extended grace; classic manuals. Distinct from short Grace Before Meals post.