Grace After Meals

We give you thanks, O Lord, for these your gifts, which we have received from your goodness, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Explanation of Meal Blessings

The prayer before meals is known as a "blessing," for it consists in the invoking of God's blessing upon us and upon what we are about to receive; and that after meals is called a "grace," from the Latin word "gratiae," meaning "thanks," because it expresses our gratitude for our food and all other favors which God has given us.

There is no strict rule about the wording of these prayers. In convents and religious houses the blessing and grace are somewhat long, being made up of several verses, responses and prayers.