 | Twenty-two sonnets |  |
23
The Departed
When, Gracious Lord, Thy Holy Name I blessFor those departed in Thy faith and fear,
When, ere Thine altar venturing to draw near,
With heart-felt sorrow I my sins confess;
With the same look of loving thankfulness
As when on earth, that form to memory dear
Doth meekly kneeling at my side appear,
E'en while Thy chalice to my lips I press.
Let not that vision, Lord, Thy presence wrong,
May it assure me that before Thy throne
Her prayer for my forgiveness intercedes,
And may I, following the example shown
By that pure soul now with the sainted throng,
Win, through Thy merits, that for which she pleads.
| Twenty-two sonnets | |