“’The Light of Christ’ has a refrain that is an adaptation of the ‘Prayer of Protection’ by James Dillet Freeman . . . . Dr. Freeman had written the prayer for soldiers serving during the Second World War” (from the album insert, Marty Haugen: Anthology I, 1980-1984).
“[Dr. Freeman’s] 1941 ‘Prayer for Protection’ was taken aboard Apollo 11 in July 1969 by Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin, and a microfilm of Freeman’s 1947 “I Am There” was left on the moon by James B. Irwin on Apollo 15”(Wikipedia).
Dr. Freeman’s prayer is the following:
The light of God surrounds me,
the love of God enfolds me,
the power of God protects me,
the presence of God watches over me.
Marty Haugen’s song version is the following:
Refrain:
The light of Christ surrounds us,
the love of Christ enfolds us,
the power of Christ protects us,
the presence of Christ watches over us.
Marty Haugen is a composer of liturgical music and a pianist. He has written numerous beautiful songs and has performed them in many parts of the world. Here is the iTunes link: The Light of Christ – Anthology I: 1980-1984
I repeat the refrain, both words and melody, in my mind as a silent prayer. Sometimes I change the word “us” to the word “me” at the end of each line. I find the prayer/song meditative and comforting.
Linked with Thought-Provoking Thursday.
Leave a Reply