Blessing of Crosses to be Set in Fields, Vineyards, etc.
(Performed on the Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross, or on the next Sunday.)
V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who has made heaven and earth.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
Almighty, everlasting God, Father of all consolation and kindness, through the merits of the bitter passion of Your only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, which He was so kind as to undergo for us sinners on the wood of the cross, bless these crosses, which Your people will take from here to set in gardens, vineyards, fields, or other places, so that the farms on which they are set up may be free from the crushing of hail, the violence of tornadoes, the power of storms, and from every disturbance of the enemy. May then their produce be brought to full ripeness, and gathered in honor of Your name by those who trust in the power of the holy cross of the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and is King with You for ever and ever.
R. Amen.
(And they are sprinkled with holy water.)
Blessing of Sprouting Seed
V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who has made heaven and earth.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
We ask and beg of You, Lord, to bless this sprouting seed. Warm it with the gentle breath of soft winds, make it fruitful with dew from heaven, and be so kind as to bring it to its fullest maturity for the good of our souls and bodies, through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
(And they are sprinkled with holy water.)
Blessing of Seeds, Flowers, and Crops
on the Feast of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary
V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who has made heaven and earth.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
Holy Lord, Father almighty, eternal God, we beg and pray You to be so kind as to turn Your calm eyes and happy countenance upon these crops and seeds. You testified to Your servant Moses in the land of Egypt, saying: "Tell the sons of Israel that when they have entered the land of promise which I shall give them, they should offer their first fruits to the priests, and they shall be blessed." Now we ask You, Lord, by the aid of Your mercy, to send the blessing of Your right hand upon these crops, which You have been so kind as to give us to present to You. Grant that no hail may crush them, nor violent winds destroy them, but may they ever remain unharmed. Be so kind as to bring them to great abundance and ripeness for the use of body and soul. You live and are King in the perfect Trinity for ever and ever.
R. Amen.
Let us pray.
Almighty, everlasting God, sower and nourisher of the heavenly Word, You till the ground of our hearts with spiritual tools. Hear our prayers, please, and pour Your great blessing upon the fields that have been sown, and by the grace of Your protection, turn away from them the force of every storm. Let all these fruits be filled with Your blessing and be brought to storehouse without trouble, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and is King and God with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit for ever and ever.
R. Amen.
(And they are sprinkled with holy water, and if possible, incensed.)
Blessing of all Kinds of Fruit Trees and Vines
V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who has made heaven and earth.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
We beg You in Your goodness, almighty God, to pour the showers of Your blessing upon these newly budding trees and vines which You have made, and which You have been so kind as to nourish with temperate weather and sufficient rain. Bring the fruits of Your earth to full ripeness. Grant, too, that Your people may always give You thanks for Your gifts, so that You may fill them that are hungry with the fruits of a fertile land and that the poor and the needy may praise the glory of Your name, through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
(And they are sprinkled with holy water.)
A Blessing to Ward Off Destructive Insects and other Small Animals
(The priest comes to the fields infested by grasshoppers, locusts, or other pests, and says:)
(Antiphon)
Rise up, O Lord, and come to our aid; and free us for Your name's sake.
(Psalm 43)
O God, our ears have heard, our fathers have declared to us.
V. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end, amen.
(Antiphon)
Rise up, O Lord, and come to our aid; and free us for Your name's sake.
V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who has made heaven and earth.
V. Lord, hear our prayer.
R. And let our cry reach up to You.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
O Lord, we beg of You kindly to hear our prayers, so that we, who in just punishment for our sins bear the affliction of this plague of (name it) may mercifully be freed from it for the glory of Your name. By Your power may these injurious pests be driven off, doing no injury to anyone, and leaving our fields and plains unharmed, so that the plants sprouting and growing in these fields may do honor to Your majesty and serve our needs, through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
Let us pray
Almighty, everlasting God, You reward the good and have great mercy on the sinner. In Your name, every knee is bent, in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth. By Your power grant to us sinners that what we have begun in reliance on Your mercy, we may, through Your favor and help, successfully complete. Let us act as Your servants in our efforts to control these pests, to free our farms of them, and to exterminate them. And so, delivered from them by Your mercy, we may freely give thanks to Your majesty, through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
Let us pray.
I bid you depart, animals of destruction, through God the Father almighty, through Jesus Christ, His only Son, through the Holy Spirit proceeding from them both. Leave our fields and plains immediately; live no longer in them, but pass over into places where you can harm no one. In the name of the almighty God, and of the whole heavenly court, and of the Holy Church of God, I call God's wrath upon you, so that, wherever you may go, you bear it with you, and, diminishing from day to day, you may disappear; except where you serve the health and good purposes of mankind, may no trace of you be found. All this may He be so good as to grant us, who is to come to judge the living and the dead, and the world by fire.
R. Amen.
(Then the afflicted fields are sprinkled with holy water.)