The Prayer of Thanksgiving

The prayer that concludes the administration of the sacrament of Holy Baptism is a beautiful expression of thanksgiving that, with the exception of a single word, has been preserved for us in its original form. In about the middle of the prayer we find the phrase, "that Thou wilt be pleased always to govern these baptized children by Thy Holy Spirit." The word "baptized" in this connection did not appear in the original prayer but was added later. Its omission or inclusion in the prayer does...