It also includes prayers in American Sign Language, and tells you how to say “bless this food” in 19 languages. We who are grateful for our food are in good company. It is a gem full of 160 mealtime blessings representing all of the world’s major religions, ancient traditions, and offerings from poets, thinkers and activists, including Shakespeare, Milton, Gandhi and Mother Teresa. I found these in the new book, “ Bless This Food: Ancient & Contemporary Graces from Around the World,” by Adrian Butash (2013, New World Library, $14.95). I vow to live a life which is worthy to receive it.Īnd another, by George Herbert (1593-1633), this reminder of the bounty of our lives and our universal need to express gratitude:

This food comes from the Earth and the Sky, In that light, perhaps this Grace of the Bodhisattva Buddhists applies: So how do we make ourselves worthy of the life of another?” he asks. Whenever we eat, we are receiving the gift of another’s life and, in certain cases, another’s immediate death. Shannon Jung, author of “Sharing Food: The Spirituality and Ethics of Eating.” “It’s a primal recognition. Saying grace speaks to something deep inside us all, says Rev. Sometimes, a simple expression is all that is needed, as in this child’s prayer of thanks:

That meal didn’t get to the table by itself. We are not the creators of the food we are eating. When I was a child, we used to say the following traditional Catholic prayer before meals:īless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts which we are about to receiveįrom Thy bounty, through Christ our Lord.Īlthough as an adult I don’t follow any organized religion, I often miss the ritual of giving thanks before a meal.

How do you say fineprint in asl