PRAYERS FOR TRAVELERS

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Do you have a business trip or a vacation coming up? Think of these prayers for travelers below as a little extra insurance for a safe journey. They’re good for your regular commute to and from work these days as well. After all there are lots of “speed demons” on the road these days, as well as people driving while intoxicated or distracted by cell phones or “texting.” These prayers below ask for assistance from the angels.

(Angels are pure spirits and possess superior knowledge to ours, as discussed in this article.)

Our first prayer is attributed to Bishop Dupanloup of Orleans (1802-1878), a vigorous promoter of catholic education in France.

O almighty and merciful God, Who hast commissioned Thy angels to guide and protect us, command them to be our assiduous companions from our setting out until our return; to clothe us with their invisible protection; to keep us from all danger of collision, of fire, of explosion, of falls and bruises; and finally, having preserved us from all evil, and especially from sin, to guide us to our heavenly home. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

While there were many hazards involved in 19th century travel, some listed in this prayer, we have our own more contemporary risks from cars (as mentioned above), trains, and air travel as well.

As a reminder, Angels are bodiless spiritual beings who possess an intelligence superior to ours in that they do not have to process a series of thoughts to arrive at a conclusion. In other words they can go from what might be our step one directly to step 10! 

While they are bodiless they are also quite numerous. We read in the book of Revelation for example of myriads upon myriads of angels gathering to praise our Lord (Rev. 5:11). 

So don’t worry that there might not be enough angels around for you! That’s like worrying about whether or not God is too busy for you and your prayerful needs. He’s not. He’s infinitely everywhere! And his angels are all around us as well.

Angels often delivered important messages in Biblical times, such as when the angel Gabriel told Mary that she was to be the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:26-38). (Indeed, the word “angel” is derived from the Greek word “angelos,” meaning messenger.)

They carried out other important tasks in Scripture as well, like keeping three youths safe who were thrown into a fiery furnace after they defied the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel, Ch.3); and rescuing St. Peter from prison (Acts 12:6-10).

Angels can help protect us physically as well as spiritually. There have been numerous stories for example, of people being rescued from harmful situations by mysterious strangers who seem to depart just as suddenly as they first appeared!

Although these accounts are anecdotal, they nonetheless point out how important angels can be in our lives and encourage us to call on them for help in our prayers.

This second prayer is addressed directly to our Guardian Angels.

My holy angel guardian, ask the Lord to bless the journey which I undertake, that it may profit the health of my soul and body; that I may reach its end; and that, returning safe and sound, I may find all at home in good health. Do thou guard, guide, and preserve us. Amen.

God in His great love for us gives each of us our own unique guide, a Guardian Angel, at birth to keep us going in the right direction on the often rocky paths on our earthly pilgrimage to heaven so that we might indeed attain salvation, God willing!

Guardian Angels watch over us, pray for us, and help guide our thoughts and inclinations. They can even protect us from physical as well as spiritual harm!

There is even a Guardian Angel Prayer that is easy to memorize. The rosary is also good to pray while traveling. (As is the Hail Mary by itself!)

Christ Himself made reference to Guardian Angels when he said once referring to children that “their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven” (Matt 18:10).

St. Jerome marveled in reference to this passage “How great is the value of the (human) soul that every single person has from birth received an angel for his protection.”

One of his 4th century contemporaries, St. Basil, once wrote that “every one of the faithful has an angel at his side as educator and guide, directing his life.” (Doesn’t this statement remind you of the Guardian Angel Prayer?)

Other theologians including St. Clement and St. Gregory the Great noted that every country, city, town, village, and even family has its own special Guardian Angel!

For all our daily concerns and often hectic schedules, life is fleeting, after all. So it never hurts to call on our angels, our Blessed Mother, and our Lord Himself to help see us through whatever perils we may experience on our journey towards Eternal Life, be they physical or spiritual.

Along with these prayers for travelers we leave you with this inspiring quote from the Old Testament book of Tobit, in which Tobit sends his son off on an important errand, assisted by the Archangel Raphael: “May you have a good journey, and God be with you in your way, and his angel accompany you.” (Tobit 5:22)