Minister's Prayer Book: An Order of Prayers and Readings

By Timothy J. Wengert, Mary Jane Haemig, Chris Halverson and Robb Harrell

Since it first appeared in print in 1959, John Doberstein's Minister's Prayer Book has been a devotional classic among Lutheran pastors. Written by a pastor for other pastors, Doberstein's work recognizes the need for the pastor to drink from a well of rich resources to sustain the spiritual vitality needed to serve faithfully in parish ministry. The fact that this manual of devotion is still available more than fifty years later is a testament to the timelessness of the collection Doberstein gathered, as well as to his own pastoral acumen. Other than a minor revision made in 1986 by Philip Pfatteicher to update the propers, there has been no attempt to bring fresh material to Doberstein's work, no attempt to update it for a new generation. Until now. This revised edition recognizes the increasingly diverse face of clergy. New resources--prayers and readings written by women, people of color, and Christians from around the world--give the collection a broader appeal. The beauty of the Minister's Prayer Book is its intentional re-centering of the pastor's calling on word and sacrament, on pastoral care, and on being fully present and engaged in the lives of God's people.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Fortress Press
• Release date: Feb 4, 2020
• ISBN: 9781506454535

Book preview

Preface

In 1977, Pastor William J. Hansen, then a director of American Missions for the American Lutheran Church, gave me a gift for my ordination: his copy of John Doberstein’s A Minister’s Prayer Book . He told me how helpful it had been when he was a pastor and that he hoped it would enhance my own ministry as well. For the most part, it sat neglected on a shelf as I went from being an assistant pastor to graduate student to pastor again in 1983. Then, in the midst of a dry spell in my own devotional life, I read Virgil Thompson’s article In Honorem: The Minister’s Prayer Book ( Lutheran Quarterly 1 [1987]: 357–74). As a result, the book became my constant companion for ministry, as I prayed its prayers and contemplated its many and varied readings. In the 1990s, as a professor at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, where Doberstein, too, had taught, I began offering a course on Lutheran spirituality, in which Doberstein’s Prayer Book formed the heart of our common studies.

Much has changed in Christian congregations and public ministry since the 1950s, when Doberstein first collected the prayers and readings that make up the heart of this book. An edition in the 1980s at least offered pastors daily readings based upon the Lutheran Book of Worship with its expanded lectionary. But sixty years after its first publication, some of the language seems obsolete, the Bible readings do not match more recent attempts to accommodate the Revised Common Lectionary, and the anthology does not completely speak to the needs of pastors, deacons, and other leaders from not only Lutheran churches but also the broader ecumenical spectrum of Christians. Nevertheless, the Prayer Book has offered solid food for many ministers throughout the church, as I learned from countless stories of those I have taught and conversed with about Doberstein’s work. So it seemed only right, in cooperation with the Doberstein family, Fortress Press, and the editors of Lutheran Quarterly Books, that we undertake a thorough revision of this little gem.

The team we assembled for the work included two working pastors (Robb Harrell and Chris Halverson) and two retired professors (Mary Jane Haemig and, as general editor, Timothy J. Wengert). Behind the scenes, Paul Rorem, the editor of Lutheran Quarterly Books, and two Fortress editors, Beth Gaede and Scott Tunseth, provided invaluable support. We also reached out to other pastors and professors in the church for suggestions, especially for the anthology.

From the beginning, we have been committed to retaining as much of the original as possible—updating translations and word usage but allowing the countless voices that Doberstein had already assembled to assist the prayers and meditation of a new generation of ministers. The genius of this book, we believe, is how each day’s readings on the ministry, both from Scripture and in the anthology, speak to the ebb and flow of the minister’s life. Building upon its seven themes, we changed only Wednesday—dedicating it to the minister as teacher while combining the minister as confessor (the original Wednesday theme) and the minister as pastor into Thursday. We added this new topic in part to welcome deacons—many of whom have special calls in education—to participate more fully in the prayers and readings of this book. But we were also convinced that most pastors also spend a good part of their week teaching and preparing to teach. Thus, the themes for each day now are:

Sunday: The Divine Institution and Mission of Ministry

Monday: The Promise and Responsibility of the Ministry

Tuesday: The Minister’s Life

Wednesday: The Minister as Teacher

Thursday: The Minister as Confessor and Pastor

Friday: The Minister as Intercessor

Saturday: The Minister as Preacher

As we were revising the anthology, we discovered one facet of Doberstein’s work that most users of the original may not have noticed. Many, though not all, of the contemporary German voices that Doberstein translated and placed in the anthology were survivors from the Confessing Church—that movement of resistance in the 1930s and ’40s to the Nazification of German Protestantism (the Deutsche Christen). To be sure, Doberstein also translated a few voices of former German Christians, but scattered throughout the anthology are insights from not only well-known Confessing Christians like Dietrich Bonhoeffer but also lesser-known figures whose theology was equally shaped under the shadow of tyranny. For those interested in discovering more about these people, we have provided an expanded biographical index at the end of this book.

Of course, we also added voices to the prayers and anthology, so that ministers might hear a richer choir of witnesses. Since two of us have studied the Reformation throughout our careers, we also included other important writings from that and other eras in Christian history, out of the conviction that older testimonies of faith, too, may still speak to us in the present. But we have also incorporated some writings of women and citizens of world Christianity—albeit less fully than we might have hoped. In fact, perhaps the most important insight of our work comes from the realization of just how many Christians have written wisely about ministry over the course of the church’s history.

This book has four main components.

Order of Prayer for the Days of the Week

Prayers and Readings for the Church Year

Prayers of Preparation for Ministry

Meditations for Ministers: An Anthology

Part 1 provides the structure for daily meditation, referring to one of the seven themes and including invitations to prayer, confession, creedal statements, lessons on the ministry, prayers, and benedictions. In addition, the user is directed to part 2 for the psalm, daily readings, and prayer of the week and to part 4 for readings from the appropriate section of the anthology. In all, then, there are twelve sections, where the readings from the anthology and Lessons on the Ministry are organized around the seven themes of ministry.

Invitation to Prayer

Hymn for the Week (from part 2)

Confession

Psalm (from part 2)

Profession of Faith

Lesson (from part 2)

Lesson on the Ministry

Reading from the Anthology (from part 4)

Prayer for the Week (from part 2)

Prayers, Intercessions, and Lord’s Prayer

Evening Commendation

Benediction

Part 2 provides the three-year daily reading cycle of Evangelical Lutheran Worship, using the set of readings that focus on the Sunday lectionary. These readings begin with Thursday through Saturday and lead up to the Sunday texts of the Revised Common Lectionary, while the Monday through Wednesday readings continue to reflect those same Sunday texts. The Sunday psalm is used from Thursday through Sunday with a second, matching psalm provided for Monday through Wednesday. This section also includes the Sunday prayer of the day and a suggested hymn gleaned by Robb Harrell from resources such as Sundays and Seasons.

Part 3 has a very different function by providing specific prayers that ministers may use in preparation for a variety of functions in congregational life. While by no means exhaustive, it identifies many of the important ministerial acts and provides ministers with prayers to strengthen them in their daily tasks. Here, one can take solace in the fact that none of us ministers alone and that witnesses past and present can support us in our work.

Part 4, organized around the seven themes of ministry, also provides admonition and encouragement for all who minister in Christ’s church taken from ancient and modern sources. These saints from every age, who have experienced God’s unbounded grace and have borne the ministry’s sorrow and joy, testify now and help orient today’s ministers to walk in the light of God’s mercy. Every aspect of the minister’s week thus receives new support from this cloud of witnesses in the face of personal trials, pressures from the world, and temptations to all manner of evil. If Doberstein’s Prayer Book teaches us anything, it is that we are not alone. Not only can fellow ministers today be praying these same prayers and reading these same selections, but these very prayers and readings also join the reader to the prayers and meditations by ministers of every age.

This book also has four appendixes. The first is a brief Examination of Conscience based upon Martin Luther’s explanations to the Ten Commandments in the Small Catechism, compiled by Robb Harrell, together with an order for confession and absolution. The second, as in Doberstein’s original edition, is Martin Luther’s A Simple Way to Pray [for Master Peter, the Barber], using the recent translation from volume 4 of The Annotated Luther. The third, from the first page of the original Prayer Book, contains the orders for household prayer from Martin Luther’s Small Catechism. The fourth is the general editor’s own translation of the first published Lutheran hymn by a woman, Elisabeth Cruciger (née von Meseritz).

Alongside the basic twelve parts, Doberstein suggested three orders of private devotion for morning, noon, and evening.

Morning: Invitation to prayer, morning prayer, psalm, lesson from the lectionary, meditation and free prayer, prayer for the week, benediction.

Noon: Invitation to prayer, hymn for the week, text for the week (not included in this edition), lesson on the ministry, prayer, benediction.

Evening: Invitation to prayer, confession, psalm, lesson from the lectionary, reading from the anthology, evening commendation, intercessions, evening prayer, benediction.

Ministers may, however, also wish to use the ancient orders of the Western church—especially matins, vespers, and compline—and thus to adapt the various categories of the day’s prayers found here to the order of prayers employed by many other Christians. In fact, if our own experience is any indication, ministers will find their own best ways to harvest the riches of this little book for their devotions.

John W. Doberstein dedicated the first edition to his wife using the words of Martin Luther about his wife, Katie. We dedicate this edition to Doberstein’s memory in the same spirit as his former students the Doberstein Window in the Krauth Memorial Library of United Lutheran Seminary’s Philadelphia Campus to him. As Philip Melanchthon said about the church fathers and justification by faith in Article Twenty of the Augsburg Confession (Latin edition), we can say about Doberstein: "Et ne quis cavilletur a nobis novam Pauli interpretationem excogitari, tota haec causa habet testimonia patrum" (So that no one may quibble that we have contrived a new interpretation of Paul, this entire approach is supported by the testimonies of the fathers).

Timothy J. Wengert, general editor, in collaboration with Mary Jane ­Haemig, Robb Harrell, and Chris Halverson, editors.

St. Matthias Day (traditional), February 24, 2019

Introduction

I

This book, [1] the entire content of which is concerned with the ministry, is consciously confined to the life and work of the pastor, though others whose life is wholly or partly devoted to ministering to others may find it useful, since the ministry of the pastor is only one of many ministries in the church. The compiler, however, has had seminary students in mind, along with working pastors, as he prepared this book of private devotions. It is the result of some twenty years of reading and ransacking of libraries, and yet it is presented with acute consciousness of many shortcomings. To our knowledge there is no book in English that has attempted to meet the need of the evangelical pastor for an aid to a disciplined life of prayer.

There can be no question of the centrality of prayer and reading in the minister’s life. And yet the constant confession we hear when ministers grow candid is that increasingly they have no time for prayer and study. Consider the life of busy pastors in city or country and think of the traffic that runs through their day. Where will ministers, caught in a net of multitudinous responsibilities, find the quietness that will give them strength and give power and authority to their preaching and pastoral care? When will they concentrate upon prayer for the Holy Spirit, who, it is true, bids us be sensitive to the voices of the world, but also liberates us from bondage to them?

Devotional life is not a pseudo-spirituality that is too holy to concern itself with practical things. It is not morbid introspection and preoccupation with self; then it becomes a wretched, soul-destroying narcissism. This is a matter of the inmost, hidden side of a person’s ministerial life, a side inaccessible to human sight, known only to ourselves and to the Father who sees in secret [Matt 6:4]; but it is the really determinative side. Only when we are completely alone with God do all the masks fall away, do we become utterly honest, stripped to our real and ultimate aims and ambitions. Prayer reveals whether the inmost direction of my life is really toward God and his kingdom. This is the hinterland out of which comes whatever richness there may be in a person’s ministry. Out of these times of study, meditation, and prayer, of fruitful solitariness, will come the best of our testimony and we can say to our hearers, I delivered to you that which I also received [1 Cor 15:3]. But for many of us still the most haunting text in the Bible is this: They made me keeper of the vineyards; but my own vineyard I have not kept [Song 1:6].

Pastoral care, in the full sense of one’s total ministry, is always proclamation of the Word addressed to the real human situation. But I the minister must receive pastoral care, too; I too must hear the Word of God spoken to my situation. This is a prerequisite to any fruitful administration of pastoral care, since ministers must always be witnesses, one of those, as Daniel T. Niles has said, who dare to quote themselves as part of the evidence of what God has wrought.[2] There are other prerequisites, such as psychological insights based upon observation and experience, a natural gift for intuitively putting oneself in another’s situation, systematic analysis, psychological or sociological, all of which may sharpen and clarify our knowledge of the spiritual situation to which the Word is to be addressed. But the experience of receiving personal pastoral care is not merely to know spiritual situations objectively, as a good psychologist or sociologist; it is to know the blessings of God’s Word, heard personally in all its severity and love.

How, then, am I, the minister, to receive this pastoral care without which I cannot minister? There are a number of ways.

I may receive pastoral care from those who are appointed to be my pastor by reason of their ecclesiastical office, a synod president or bishop or other office-bearer. But the duties we have imposed upon these people who should be pastors of pastors actually disqualify them for the role of confessor.

I may be ministered to by other pastors or any other Christian friend. Such people are willing to become brother or sister to me in the real sense of the word, ones who speak the Word of God to me, ones to whom I listen because I recognize that God is speaking to me through them. In the Smalcald Articles (part III, art. 4) Luther speaks of the various ways in which the gospel comes to us:

first, through the spoken word, in which the forgiveness of sins is preached to the whole world (which is the proper function of the gospel); second, through Baptism; third, through the Holy Sacrament of the Altar; fourth, through the power of the keys and also through the mutual conversation and consolation of brothers and sisters. Matthew 18[:20]: Where two or three are gathered . . .[3]

I know of no better discussions of this largely unrealized source of pastor care than Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together and the article, reprinted in this book, Who Is My Pastor? by Hermann Dietzfelbinger, the [Lutheran] bishop of Bavaria.[4]

Still another source of pastoral care is my congregation and persons in it. All my theological theory is put to the test at a sickbed or a deathbed, and my faith is shown up for what it really is. A great pastor once said that when he ministered to a sick person, that sick person was actually like a professor examining him on his theology, not the theology he had, but the theology that had him. All real pastors have had this experience, wherein parishioners of mature and tested faith have ministered to him not only by exposing his own deepest need but by the benediction of their steadfast grip on the one thing needful.

But I can also receive pastoral care in solitariness. If the experience of pastoral care is a personal encounter with the Word of God addressed to my real situation, then whenever I listen to that Word addressed to me, I am the recipient of pastoral care. And this means that I can, and must, be my own pastor. In the stance of prayer, I allow God to speak to my condition through the words of the Bible and the words of witnesses. Luther’s triad, oratio, meditatio, tentatio, a priceless pearl of our devotional heritage, sums it up. This personal cure of soul is prayerful, thoughtful, meditative, receptive listening to the Word of God as it speaks to me out of the words of the Bible and of witnesses (meditatio), the self-examination that is necessary concomitant, as I am taken aside, searched, challenged, smitten, and brought to decision (tentatio), and finally the prayer that is my response to this Word of God that confronts me (oratio).

It must be understood that this is the pastor’s personal and daily meeting with God; therefore preparation for preaching and teaching is not to be regarded as a substitute for regular private devotions, even though such preparation must include subjective meditation.

Our fundamental concern, however, is with evangelical meditation. It is not true that prayers and books of devotion, even the so-called classics of devotion, can be used indiscriminately. Many of them are infused with a mystical tradition that is completely alien to the gospel and can only be confusing to the evangelical user of them. Prayer and liturgy are realized dogma, doctrine that is prayed; but if the doctrine is false, putting it into the form of devotion does not make it any less false. The central difference is that many forms of prayer and meditation rest upon the dogmatic assumption of synergism. Meditation and spiritual exercises are self-preparation for the reception of spiritual graces. What Ignatius of Loyola seems to imply when speaking of works that lead to the salvation of one’s soul is that the worshiper thus cooperates with God, serves God, and saves their soul. By employing the whole mechanical and psychological apparatus of exercises, they seek to call down divine grace. This the evangelical must reject. I know of no better statement of the evangelical attitude than that of Paul Althaus in his dogmatics.

Nobody can induce the encounter with God by himself [or herself] or induce it in another person. It is given to us only by God himself. Revelation is an event over which we have no control, an event that occurs when and where God wills. God alone reveals himself to me. . . . I know him only as He makes himself known to me.[5]

The theological foundation of evangelical meditation must be free of all synergistic and Pelagianistic concepts. It rejects any mysticism that puts the initiative with the worshiper. The human creature cannot by searching find out God. Prayer is turning to the Word of God. Prayer is nothing but response to God’s Word and therefore it is nothing without the Word that precedes it. We must avoid the danger of making prayer an independent and autonomous concern of our devotional life.[6]

Our task is not to practice and cultivate prayer and the so-called spiritual life, but rightly to hear God’s Word and give him due answer in prayer.

Another characteristic of evangelical meditation and prayer is its fundamental concern with the Scriptures. It is practical application of the evangelical principle that the Word of God speaks in, with, and under the words of the Bible. The Bible is its primary prayer book. This by no means excludes the use of other words and witnesses or meditation upon the general truths of salvation. I have never forgotten the words of Charles M. Jacobs in a chapel address: "I wish that each of us could take each day some little familiar sentence out of the Bible or, if one prefer it, out of pure theology, and let loose upon it all the power of imagination that he [or she] possesses." It was the italicized phrase that struck me. Nevertheless, the church of the gospel has rightly insisted that meditation and prayer be closely linked with the Bible in order that it may avoid running out into sterile, mystical brooding or unstable, unhealthy speculation. Theologus in scripturis nascitur.[7] Here Adolf Köberle has put his finger on the point:

Prayer escapes the danger of disorder and confusion only when it is enkindled by the words of Scripture. From the Word proceeds its inner justification, as well as its life-giving power and the clearness of its petitions. A prayer life that does not stick to Scripture will soon become poor in ideas, poor in faith, poor in love, and will finally die. Free prayer and silent prayer require years of faithful association and training with the spirit of Scripture. . . . The more that oratio arises from the meditatio of Scripture the more moving will the prayer be.[8]

Because evangelical prayer and meditation start with the clear Word of God, and it is important that it should be heard sharply and unmistakably, stripped as far as possible of all archaic obscurity, it is suggested that the passages for the minister’s meditation be read in an up-to-date version.[9] The aim of evangelical devotion is perhaps best served by using several modern versions, including paraphrases like those of J. B. Phillips.

Evangelical meditation and prayer is, furthermore, a response to the imperatives in the Bible that demand and enjoin prayer, and it is founded upon the confident faith in God’s sovereign promise that prayer will be heard and answered. So in the Large Catechism Luther answers quite simply, in a way that sentimental mystics may despise, the question Why pray? by saying: because God has commanded it and promised that he will hear. Evangelical meditation is founded upon obedience and faith. Its purpose is clearly set forth in the Formula of Concord:

In addition, after God has made his beginning through his Holy Spirit in baptism and has ignited and effected true knowledge of God and faith, it is necessary to pray unceasingly that day by day, through this same Spirit and his grace, he strengthen this faith and preserve his heavenly gifts in us by means of daily exercise in the reading and use of God’s Word, and preserve us until the end. For where God himself is not the schoolteacher, nothing can be studied and learned that is pleasing to him and beneficial for us and others.[10]

Meditation in this broad sense of personal soul-cure has always been practiced, but it has never been common in the sense of being an indispensable lament of the minister’s day, as the breviary is in the Roman church. Voices have been raised from time to time, expressing the desire for the practice and guides for it. In 1852, Wilhelm Löhe said, There is one practice and expression of the inner life which has been completely lost among us, namely, meditation, reflection upon divine words and truths in the presence of God.[11] In the middle of the last century there appeared in Germany a very valuable, but now completely forgotten book, the Evangelisches Brevier by Dieffenbach and Müller.[12] This Evangelical Breviary is remarkably complete, containing a lectionary, psalter, prayers, and hymns. It is warmly recommended in the two older, standard works on pastoral care in the American Lutheran tradition, The Evangelical Pastor by E. T. Horn (1887) and The Lutheran Pastor by G. H. Gerberding (1902). Most recent is a suggestion made by a Committee on Faith and Life of the United Lutheran Church.[13]

As to practical directions and a method of meditation, the evangelical tradition has not been lacking, and one of the purposes of this book has been to recover something of the spiritual inheritance that lies in the Lutheran tradition, as Nathaniel Micklem has done for free churchmen in A Book of Personal Religion (1938).[14] Chief among these from the Reformation period are A Little Guide and Instructor for Future Pastors by Caspar Huberinus,[15] Luther’s Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio: A Right Way to Study Theology, Luther’s A Simple Way to Pray, and The Ladder of Devotion by Caspar Calvör.[16] The last-named work of Luther, with its practical directions for meditation on the Lord’s Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the Creed, deserves the name of classic in any devotional tradition. The Small Catechism was, for him, not only a compendium of dogmatics or a popular handbook of Christian teaching, but, quite simply, a prayer book for the practice of daily prayer.

Learning from Luther, then, the following suggestions for the pastor’s quiet hour may be helpful.

Prayer for the presence of God.

Thorough digestion of a scriptural or other passage of testimony. (What is it saying? Try to repeat the substance in your own words. What are the parallel passages? The Scriptures are their interpreter. What is the main point? Search for the inner aim of the passage.)

Self-examination. (What is there here that incites thanksgiving? What is the gospel of the passage? What sin must I confess? Regard the pangs of bad conscience stirred by the Word of God. What must I do, therefore, in my life and ministry? Be ye doers of the Word, not hearers only [Jas 1:22].)

Prayer on the basis of the insights gained.

Intercessions.

The use of an order can never be a law or an officium for evangelical Christians; all opus operatum, all merit is excluded. The editor therefore hopes that the term breviary, with its wrong associations, will never be applied to this book. The order is only a suggestion and a guide. It seems necessary always to make this apology of evangelical freedom whenever a form of devotion is offered, but, having recognized this, we must also recognize that evangelical freedom is not freedom not to pray at all. Luther had some harsh things to say about the use of the Roman breviary; he called it ass’s worship and the profitless rigmarole of the seven hours. But he was equally blunt and stinging with regard to those who have forgotten that prayer is a special exercise of faith.[17] In the preface of the Large Catechism he says:

Oh, these shameful gluttons and servants of their bellies are better suited to be swineherds and keepers of dogs than guardians of souls and pastors. Now that they are free from the useless, bothersome babbling of the seven hours, it would be much better if morning, noon, and night they would instead read a page or two from the catechism, the Prayer Book, the New Testament, or some other passage from the Bible, and would pray the Lord’s Prayer for themselves and their parishioners. In this way they would once again show honor and respect to the gospel, through which they have been delivered from so many burdens and troubles, and they might feel a little shame that, like pigs and dogs, they are remembering no more of the gospel than this rotten, pernicious, shameful, carnal liberty.[18]

The question of the method of meditation leads to the question of the materials of meditation. Each pastor must use what fits their need. One may read a chapter or passage from the Bible or a hymn from the hymnal; another may use one of the countless available books of daily devotions; some will compose their own devotions, using the Bible, the hymnal, a devotional classic, and free prayer. Others may welcome a prayer book and a store of material such as this book supplies. This collection is based on the conviction that pastors are best served by a selection of materials that fits their peculiar needs and responsibilities rather than a more general prayer book intended for family use.

II

The basic scheme of devotions in this book for the seven days of the week, along with the theme for each day, which governs the prayers, intercessions, and lessons on the office of the minister, has been adapted, with some alterations, from the work of Dieffenbach and Müller.[19]

The Order of Prayer for the Days of the Week and the section of Prayers of Preparation for Ministry are deeply indebted to the book Orate Fratres, mentioned above.

The anthology, Meditations for Ministers, is not intended to be merely a collection of flowers of literature. Its purpose is rather to provide what is in effect a source book of pastoral theology that will point constantly to the core and center of the ministry. It contains, therefore, much that is not devotional in the popular sense of that term but rather theological. No theology is much good unless it can be preached and prayed. As with many of the prayers and collects, the selections here represent an effort to recover a tradition past and present that is lost to us because of the barrier of language; therefore the many translations. Unless otherwise noted in the index of sources,[20] all translations are the work of the editor.[21]

It remains only to express my deep appreciation to the many authors and publishers who have permitted me to use copyrighted materials, my gratitude to my wife, to whom the book is dedicated, for her long patience, and my thanks to Miss Hope Treichler for her efficiency in preparing the typescript. My special thanks are due to my friend, the Rev. G. Elson Ruff, who lent his sure touch and fine understanding to the not-inconsiderable problems of the typography and styling of the book.

For the book itself I should like to borrow from the excellent George Herbert these words from his preface to The Country Parson: The Lord prosper the intention to myself, and others, who may not despise my poor labors, but add to these points, which I have observed until the book grow to a complete pastoral.[22]

John W. Doberstein

---

This introduction comes from John W. Doberstein, ed., Minister’s Prayer Book: An Order of Prayers and Readings (Philadelphia: Muhlenberg, 1959), xi–xxiv. Where possible, we have eliminated masculine language to refer to the minister or pastor. We have also shortened some sections. ↵

See Dandapati Samuel Satyaranjan, The Preaching of Daniel Thambirajah (D. T.) Niles: Homiletical Criticism (Delhi: ISPCK, 2009), 270. ↵

Martin Luther, Smalcald Articles, in BC, 319. ↵

The complete article is in Doberstein, Minister’s Prayer Book, 319–24. ↵

For the entire quotation, see Doberstein, Minister’s Prayer Book, xv, translating Paul Althaus, Die Christliche Wahrheit, vol. 1 (Gütersloh: Bertelsmann, 1947), 39–40. ↵

At this point, Doberstein quotes Daniel Jenkins, Prayer and the Service of God (London: Morehouse-Gorham, 1945), 20, 31. ↵

The Reformed theologian Jan Amos Comenius cites this as originating from Andreas Gerhard Hyperius. See Jan Amos Comenius, Unum necessarium, scire quid sibi sit necessarium, in vita & morte (Amsterdam: Cunrad, 1668), 63. ↵

Adolf Köberle, The Quest for Holiness, trans. John C. Mattes (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1936), 177. ↵

We now suggest the New Revised Standard Version, although other translations also contain faithful renderings of the biblical material. ↵

Formula of Concord, in BC 546–47. ↵

Wilhelm Löhe, Der evangelische Geistliche, vol. 1 (Stuttgart: Liesching, 1852), 122. ↵

Georg Christian Dieffenbach and Christian Müller, Evangelisches Brevier (Stuttgart: Liesching, 1857). ↵

United Lutheran Church in America, Minutes: 1948 (Philadelphia, 1948), 304: In order to strengthen the pastor’s devotional life, it is earnestly recommended that a pastor’s office book be provided. This office book may contain a collection of Psalter selections, New Testament lections (both quoted and referenced), prayers concerned with the pastor’s needs (Luther’s Sacristy Prayer), appropriate hymn texts, significant religious poetry, questions to measure and encourage faithfulness and loyalty to the ministerial office, etc. ↵

Nathaniel Micklem, A Book of Personal Religion (London: Independent, 1938). ↵

The original tract could not be identified. ↵

Not included in this edition. See Doberstein, Minister’s Prayer Book, 460–64. ↵

Martin Luther, Treatise on Good Works, in TAL 1:307. ↵

Martin Luther, Large Catechism, in BC 379–80. ↵

There follows a description of the Propers of the Church Year, the hymns, prayers of the week, and their sources, which are not a part of this edition. These sources, however, still figure in some of the prayers and include: Karl B. Ritter, Gebete für das Jahr der Kirche, 2nd ed. (Kassel: Stauda, 1948); Rudolf Spieker, Lesungen für das Jahr der Kirche, 3rd ed. (Kassel: Stauda, 1950); Wilhelm Stählin, Die Wochensprüche für das Kirchenjahr (Kassel: Stauda, 1954); Ernst Glüer and Kurt Jagdmann, Orate Fratres: Gebetsordnung für evangelisch-lutherische Pfarrer, 2nd ed. (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1952). ↵

Now the endnotes to individual texts. ↵

There follows a description of the various indexes. In this edition, this has been simplified by using endnotes for each section of the book or day of the week and a final biographical index. ↵

George Herbert, A Priest to the Temple, or The Country Parson: His Character, and Rule of Holy Life (London: Maxey, 1652), 2. ↵

1

Order of Prayer for the Days of the Week

Sunday: The Divine Institution and Mission of the Ministry

1. INVITATION TO PRAYER

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.[1]

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.[2]

Wondrously show your steadfast love, O savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand. Guard me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.[3]

2. HYMN FOR THE WEEK

3. CONFESSION

I confess to you, Almighty and most Holy God, that I have sinned in thought, word, and deed, through my own fault, my own most grievous fault. I acknowledge my lack of faithfulness in holy service, my lack of discipline and obedience, and my lack of love. And so, I pray to you, O God, have mercy upon me, for the sake of Jesus Christ, your dear Son, our Lord. Amen.[4]

Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause your anger toward us to cease. Make haste, O God, to deliver me; make haste to help me, O Lord. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be; world without end. Amen.

4. PSALM

5. PROFESSION OF FAITH

The Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

6. LESSON

7, LESSON ON THE MINISTRY

The Divine Institution and Commission of the Ministry

Matt 28:16–20

Luke 10:1–12, 16

Eph 4:1–10

Eph 4:11–16

Acts 20:24–28

Acts 20:29–38

1 Cor 4:1–5

2 Cor 5:17–21

Isa 6:1–13

Luke 5:1–11

1 Tim 3:1–7 or 1 Tim 3:8–13

Brief Passages for Meditation

John 7:38

Gal 2:20

Isa 49:4

2 Cor 12:9–10

Matt 10:8

1 Cor 12:4–7

Mark 16:15–16

2 Tim 1:13–14

Isa 40:29–31

8. READING FROM THE ANTHOLOGY

9. PRAYER FOR THE WEEK

10. PRAYERS, INTERCESSIONS, AND THE LORD’S PRAYER

Morning

We give thanks to you, heavenly Father, for the rest and peace of this holy day in which we remember all your benefits and seek your face;

For all the signs of your goodness in our homes and our lives, especially in the congregation we serve;

For all the goodness which you have bestowed upon us through brothers and sisters in the faith;

For the guarding grace with which you have watched over our bodies and preserved us in times of trial and trouble;

For fellowship with all who call upon your Name;

For the goodness that continually greets and blesses us in the gifts of your creation;

For the greatest of all gifts which you have bestowed upon us in Jesus Christ;

And for the hope in which we begin this great day in his Name.

For these and all other gifts, we give you thanks, O God our heavenly Father. Amen.[5]

O Lord, my God, awaken my heart and make me wakeful to serve you and alert to your commands. Awaken me and root out all half-­heartedness. Rouse my heart, O Lord, and make it ready for you. Forgive my sin and discipline me. Cleanse me for the service of your house. Come, Holy Spirit, fill my heart and mind with your joy, your light, your love.

Sanctify me as your own, sanctify me as your instrument. Let your Word take hold of me, speak yourself to me. Speak through my stammering words to your people. Stir up their hearts, that your seed may fall on good ground and bring forth fruit that will remain.

My Savior, when I stand before your congregation this day, please hold my heart in your hand.

O Lord, my God, let not this day be lost; make it your own day. Be among us and build your congregation.

I would be nothing; please be all in all. Lord, I believe, help me to show forth your praise. Amen.[6]

O God, who makes us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of your Son our Lord, grant us this day such a blessing in worship, that the days which follow it may be spent in your favor; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.[7]

Noon

O Lord, let me stand before you. You are the beginning, middle, and end. Holy are you, and holy is your day, holy are all the hours of service to you.

Lead me by your Spirit. Help me; be my strength. Renew and quicken me. Give me the Bread of Life. Gather my thought, O Lord, and keep me from wandering and weariness. Preserve me from the curse of much speaking, from the death of vain busyness. Let all that I do and say be done in spirit and in truth. Keep my love ready and willing to serve you among people. In the midst of all our labor you are a refuge of peace. You strengthen us ever anew from the living fountain. There is no end to your mercy.

Praise, honor, and glory be to you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. By your mercy, accept my ministry to the praise of your glory. Amen.[8]

Evening

Eternal God, Father of Light, we give thanks to you, that you have given us the light of your Word and let it shine upon us this day. Abide with us, for it is toward evening and the day is far spent. Be also our soul’s light in the shadows of this evening that we may neither be afraid nor go astray. Into your hands we commend all whom we love, our homes, our country. Grant peace and comfort to all who are in trouble, sickness, sorrow, and other trials. Guard us, and especially our children, from spiritual perils, from temptation, sin, and shame. And may the blessing of your Word attend us until, by your mercy, we see the light of eternal life. Amen.[9]

Heavenly Father, we give you thanks for this day. You have met us in your Word, full of grace and truth; now settle your Word in our hearts that it may direct us in the coming week. We have known afresh the fellowship of believers; now preserve and strengthen us in the joy of this fellowship and bind us together in the yoke of serving love. Above all we praise you for your mercy in Jesus Christ, the Lord and Savior of our life. Be our safety through this night and help us in your name to begin the work of another week to your honor and our peace. Amen.[10]

Intercessions

Hallowed be your name.

O God, whose name is holy in itself, we pray that it may also become holy in and among us. To this end help us, dear Father in heaven, so that your word is taught clearly and purely and we, your children, live holy lives according to it; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.[11]

Plan for Intercessions

For congregations and the whole church; that the blessing of worship and preaching may continue throughout the week; for the practice of family worship; for the baptized and communicants; for those absent from worship.

Gracious Father, we pray for your holy catholic church. Fill it with all truth and peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it; where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in need, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.[12]

Eternal, merciful God, heavenly Father, look upon all who have been committed to my prayers and pastoral care. Grant to all of them your grace and Holy Spirit, that they may know you and your dear Son, Jesus Christ, that they may grow in true faith and fear and love, and that to the end of their lives they may remain steadfast in the Christian life of firm hope and repentance and obedience to your will. Give to me also, O God, grace to walk before them with pure teaching and a good life, that all of us, being preserved from unbelief and evil life, may attain to everlasting salvation, through the same Jesus Christ, your dear Son, our Lord. Amen.[13]

We pray, O God, for all who proclaim and hear your Word this day;

For all who cannot hear your Word and join in the praise of your church this day;

For the sick, lonely, and the prisoners;

For all who refuse to hear your Word and scorn your church, that they, too, may be enlightened by your grace;

For the lapsed, the unbelievers, and for your unworthy servants;

For the nations, that your name may spread abroad among them, and for all who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, that your light may shine upon them. Amen.[14]

Lord Jesus Christ, Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, behold in mercy your flock in this congregation where you set me to be a pastor to feed them with Word and sacrament.

I thank you, Lord, that I have been permitted again this day to perform this service. Now give power to your Word, that all who have heard it may be moved to repentance, daily renewal, and sanctification of life. By your mercy keep the baptized children in your grace, that they may daily increase in faith toward you and fight boldly against the world, the devil, and sin. Preserve those who have been guests at your Table in fellowship with you and one another.

Cause all who have been awakened from the sleep of sin by your Word to taste and see ever more how good you are. Preserve them from falling and keep them in your grace, that they lead their lives in the world without offense. Let all seeking souls whom you have stirred to seek after your salvation find their way to your blessed light. To all who are indifferent to your grace and all who resist or fall away, grant repentance, that they may know the things that belong to their peace.

Do not be silent to the cries of the afflicted, the sick, and the bereaved. Let your Word be the joy and rejoicing of their hearts, and make them sure that your thoughts toward them are thoughts of peace.

Uphold, O Lord, the whole church which you have purchased with your own blood. Let not one dearly bought soul be lost, for your mercy’s sake. Amen.[15]

Grant, O Lord Jesus, that the ears which have heard the voice of your Word may be closed to the voice of dispute; that the eyes which have seen your great love may also behold