Memorial Verses
Catholic prayers, blessings and scripture-based verses traditionally used on Irish memorial cards.
Don’t grieve for me, for now I’m free,I’m following the path God laid for me,I took His hand when I heard Him call,I turned my back and left it all.If my parting has left a void,Then fill it with remembered joy,A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss,Ah yes, these I too will miss.· · ·
God called your name so softly,That only you could hear,And no one heard the footstepsOf Angels drawing near.The golden gates stood open,God saw you needed rest,His garden must be beautiful,He only takes the best.
Just a prayer from the family who loved you,Just a memory fond and true,In our hearts you will live forever,Because we thought the world of you.
It does not take a special dayFor me to think of you,Each Mass I hear, each prayer I say,Is offered up for you.
Those who die in grace go no further from usthan to God, and God is very near.
Each time you think of me,Remember would you please,Whether standing at a bus stopOr in Church on your knees.It doesn’t need to be a long one,A little one will do,But say a prayer, any prayer,And I will watch over you.
Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord,And let perpetual light shine upon her.May she rest in peace. Amen.
Hail Mary, full of Grace,The Lord is with Thee,Blessed art Thou amongst women,And blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus.Holy Mary, Mother of God,Pray for us sinners,Now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary,that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection,implored thy help, or sought thy intercession, was left unaided.Inspired with this confidence I fly unto thee,O Virgin of Virgins, my Mother, to thee I come;before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful.O Mother of the Word Incarnate,despise not my petitions,· · ·
The Lord is my shepherd, I’ll not want,He makes me down to lie,In pastures green he leadeth me,The quiet waters by.My soul he doth restore again,And me to walk doth make,Within the paths of righteousness,E’en for his own name’s sake.· · ·
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;Where there is hatred, let me sow love;Where there is injury, pardon;Where there is doubt, faith;Where there is despair, hope;Where there is darkness, light;And where there is sadness, joy.
God grant me the serenityTo accept the things I cannot change,The courage to change the things I can,And the wisdom to know the difference.
We give our loved ones back to God,And just as He first gave them to usand did not lose them in the giving,so we have not lost them in returning them to Him,For life is eternal, love is immortal,death is only a horizon,and a horizon is nothingbut the limit of our earthly sight.
There is a home that lies beyond,And past its golden doorAwaits the one who’s now away,Not lost — just gone before.And in that home that lies beyondThe Master will prepareA place for you, and when He callsYou’ll meet your loved one there.
There comes a time for all of usWhen we must say good-bye,But faith and hope and love and trustCan never, never die.Although the curtain falls at last,Is that a cause to grieve?The future’s fairer than the pastIf only we believe.· · ·
O God, the creator and Redeemer of all the faithful,grant to the souls of Thy servants departedthe full remission of their sins,that through pious supplicationsthey may obtain the pardon they have always desired.Who livest and reignest world without end. Amen.
O Sweet Jesus, for the sake of Thy bitter Passionand the sorrows of Thy Immaculate Mother,have mercy on his soul and let the lightof Thy countenance shine upon him.
I am at home in Heaven, dear ones,Oh, so happy and so bright,There is perfect joy and beautyIn this everlasting light.All the pain and grief is over,Every restless yearning passed,I am now at peace forever,Safely home in Heaven at last.· · ·
Softly in the morning,You heard a gentle call,You took the hand God offered you,And quietly left us all.The day you left us, mother,Our hearts just broke in two,The smallest part is still with us,And the biggest part with you.· · ·
Pray for us, O dearest father,To Jesus Christ, our King;That He may bless our lonely homeWhere thou once dwelt therein.And pray that God may give us strengthTo bear our heavy cross;For no one knows but only HeThe treasure we have lost.
As we look upon your picture,Sweet memories we recallOf a face so full of sunshineAnd a smile for one and all.Sweet Jesus, take this messageTo our dear father up above,Tell him how we miss him,And give him all our love.
Not gone from Daddy’s memory,Not gone from Mammy’s love,But gone to shine with JesusIn His beautiful home above.
Our Lady wished a pretty flowerTo lay at Jesus’ feet,Her choice was of the fairest,A lily pure and sweet.She gazed amid the little ones,And stopped to pick the best,Our dear one was the chosen one,With Jesus now she rests.
Hold him, O Jesus, in Thy arms,And let him henceforth beA messenger of love betweenOur human hearts and Thee.
Jesus walked with his beautiful MotherIn the Heavenly Gardens one day,He looked down at millions of children,Sleeping, toddling or at play.The Blessed Virgin said, “His parents love him,His family does too,But I’ll mind him and keep him safe,Wrapped up in my mantle of blue.”
Grandmother, dear grandmother,You watched us grow with pride,Now in the arms of the Lord,You forever will abide.
Grandfather dear, we think of you,In silence and in prayer,And thank the Lord for lending usAn angel while you were there.
May the Lord who called you homeward,Keep you both close as one,Grandparents dear, forever loved,Until our days are done.
Lord, keep our son within Your care,Enfold him in Your love,Until the day we meet again,In Heaven up above.
Sleep on, dear son, and take your rest,God called you home, He knows what's best.
Dear Lord, watch over our daughter,Hold her gently in Your hand,Until we meet again someday,In that eternal land.
Lord, grant my husband eternal rest,And peace beyond all measure,Until the day we meet again,And love becomes forever.
Lord, grant my wife eternal peace,And keep her in Your care,Until the day we meet again,In Heaven, over there.
Lord, keep our brother in Your care,Grant him eternal rest,He was a treasure while he lived,And now with You is blessed.
Lord, keep our sister in Your keeping,Grant her peace and gentle rest,She brought such joy while she was with us,Now with You she's truly blessed.
Lord, we thank You for the gift,Of friendship, true and kind,Grant our friend eternal peace,And peace to those left behind.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.May he be seated at the right hand of God.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam.May she be seated at the right hand of God.
Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam.May God have mercy on his soul.
Go n-éirí an bóthar leat,Go raibh an ghaoth i gcónaí ar do chúl,Go lonraí an ghrian go te ar d'aghaidh,Go dtite an bháisteach go bog ar do pháirceanna,Agus, go dtí go gcasfaimid le chéile arís,Go gcoinní Dia i mbos a láimhe thú.May the road rise to meet you,· · ·
Solas na bhFlaitheas ar a anam.The light of Heaven upon his soul.
Go dtuga Dia suaimhneas síoraí dá hanam,Agus go lonraí solas na bhFlaitheas uirthi go deo.May God grant her eternal rest,And may the light of Heaven shine upon her forever.
Lord, we did not have the chance,To say our last goodbye,Grant them peace and gentle rest,Now they are with You on high.
Along the quiet shore of time,Your love still walks beside us.Though waves may wash the prints away,No tide can part or hide us.
When the road was hard to follow,Faith became our guiding light;Love remains upon the shoreline,With us still, beyond our sight.
Across the tide, beyond our view,A faithful path remains;In every prayer and cherished thought,Your love walks with us again.
Though footsteps fade upon the sand,Love leaves its mark upon the heart.The shore may change with every tide,But memory will not depart.
We walked together through the years,Through days of joy and rain,And now the shore seems still and wideUntil we meet again.Yet God, who knew your every step,Has called you gently home;And in the love you left with us,We never walk alone.
Where sea and sky meet quietly,We bring your name in prayer;For every step we shared in lifeStill tells us you were there.And when our own path feels too steep,Or sorrow clouds the way,God holds us close, as He holds you,Until a brighter day.
Sunset and evening star,And one clear call for me!And may there be no moaning of the bar,When I put out to sea,But such a tide as moving seems asleep,Too full for sound and foam,When that which drew from out the boundless deepTurns again home.· · ·
Soul of Christ, sanctify me.Body of Christ, save me.Blood of Christ, inebriate me.Water from the side of Christ, wash me.Passion of Christ, strengthen me.O good Jesus, hear me.Within Thy wounds hide me.Permit me not to be separated from Thee.· · ·
May He support us all the day long,till the shades lengthen and the evening comes,and the busy world is hushed,and the fever of life is over,and our work is done.Then in His mercy may He give us a safe lodging,and a holy rest, and peace at the last.
I lift up my eyes to the hills —from whence cometh my help?My help cometh from the Lord,which made heaven and earth.The Lord shall preserve thy going outand thy coming in,from this time forth,and even for evermore.
Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,Lead Thou me on!The night is dark, and I am far from home;Lead Thou me on!Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to seeThe distant scene; one step enough for me.
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,our life, our sweetness and our hope.To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve;to thee do we send up our sighs,mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.Turn then, most gracious advocate,thine eyes of mercy toward us,and after this our exile· · ·
In my Father’s house are many mansions;if it were not so, I would have told you.I go to prepare a place for you.
Blessed are they that mourn,for they shall be comforted.
I am the resurrection and the life;he that believeth in me,though he were dead, yet shall he live.
Sweet Sacred Heart of Jesus,have mercy on his/her soul.Immaculate Heart of Mary,pray for him/her.
Merciful Jesus, grant him/her eternal rest.Mary, Mother of God, pray for him/her.St Joseph, patron of a happy death,pray for him/her.
When the Angelus bell rings out at noon,We pause, and think of you;We say a prayer and feel you near,As you would always do.
The Lord is my light and my salvation;whom shall I fear?The Lord is the strength of my life;of whom shall I be afraid?
Each bead we pass between our handsIs a prayer we say for you;Each mystery a memoryOf all the love we knew.Our Lady, keep you in her careTill we are with you there.
Into Your hands, O Lord,we commend the soul of Your servant.Grant him/her light, happiness and peace.
Until we meet again,may God hold youin the palm of His hand.
Peace, perfect peace.
Safe in the arms of Jesus.
Into Our Lady’s gentle careWe give our mother now;May Mary hold her close in HeavenAnd smooth her tired brow.
Her hands held us,her heart loved us,her prayers kept us.
He loved the fields, the cattle low,The hedges and the hay;God took him home to greener fieldsAt the closing of the day.
Lord, take our father to Your rest,The good man that he was;Reward the love he gave his own,And all he did for us.
A little angel came to stay,But could not stay for long;God gently called our darling homeTo sing an angel’s song.
Sleep gently, little one,In Jesus’ arms tonight;The stars will keep your watch for usUntil the morning light.
Suffer the little childrento come unto me,for of such is the kingdom of heaven.
Granny’s prayers were said each nightFor every one of us;Now we say our prayers for her,With love and gratefulness.
Together again in Heaven above,Reunited in God’s love.
God gave us a son to love,A gift beyond compare;He took him home too soon for us,But keeps him in His care.
A daughter’s smile, a daughter’s heart,God lent us for a while;We thank Him for each precious dayWe shared your gentle smile.
We walked the road of life together,Side by side through every weather;Now you rest, my love, my own,Till God shall call me home.
My wife, my love, my dearest friend,The heart of all our days;I’ll hold you close in memoryAnd thank God for your ways.
Rest now, brother, your journey’s done,You walked it bravely, every one;God keep you safe till we all meetWhere every road and river meet.
God saw you tired and called you home,Dear sister, rest in peace;Our love goes with you on your wayAnd never will it cease.
Without a warning, without a word,You left us in a day;God only knows how much we missThe one He called away.
Suaimhneas síoraí tabhair dó, a Thiarna,agus go lonraí solas suthain air.(Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord,and let perpetual light shine upon him.)
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