ALMIGHTY and most merciful Father,
We have erred and strayed from your ways like lost sheep,
We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts,
We have offended against your holy laws,
We have left undone those things which we ought to have done,
And we have done those things which we ought not to have done,
And there is no health in us:
But you, O Lord, have mercy upon us miserable offenders;
Spare them, O God, which confess their faults,
Restore them that are penitent,
According to your promises declared unto mankind in Christ Jesu our Lord:
And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake,
That we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life,
To the glory of your holy Name. Amen.
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I’ve always liked this version from the 1662 Prayer Book, particularly the lines I have bolded above. I am a Catholic, and our Act of Contrition, while perfectly adequate, lacks the poetry of the Anglican version. If you know the author P D James, she titled one of her books from the Anglican version – “Devices and Desires.”
The Catholic version:
O MY GOD, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of Heaven and the pains of Hell; but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Amen.
