Suscipe (Take, Lord, Receive)
The Suscipe comes from the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, the sixteenth-century founder of the Society of Jesus. It appears in the “Contemplation to Attain Love,” near the close of the Exercises. Its name comes from the Latin word suscipe, meaning “receive.” Catholics pray it as an act of complete self-offering, returning every faculty and possession to God’s service. It is especially fitting during an Ignatian retreat, after prayerful meditation, before important decisions, or as a daily act of surrender. The final petition asks only for God’s love and grace as the soul’s true sufficiency.
In Latin
Suscipe, Domine, universam meam libertatem. Accipe memoriam, intellectum atque voluntatem omnem. Quidquid habeo vel possideo, mihi largitus es: id tibi totum restituo, ac tuae prorsus voluntati trado gubernandum. Amorem tui solum cum gratia tua mihi dones, et dives sum satis, nec aliud quidquam ultra posco.
When to pray it: Pray it after meditation, during a retreat, or whenever making a complete offering of yourself to God.