Celebrating St. Patrick's Day Dinner

Today is St. Patrick's Day. 

I'm sitting down to a cup of tea, Irish Breakfast, of course. 

While you are putting on the green today, and are perhaps sharing your boiled dinner fare, why not grace your table with a special toast, grace or Irish blessing to enhance your mealtime?  Here are a few ideas for you as well as a beautiful house blessing, that I have hanging in my own home.






Toast: 
I lift my glass to one and all,
To oldest and wisest, to the youngest and small,
Welcome to our Irish feast,
Adorned with potatoes and Cornish beast,
Thank you for coming from {Concord}* to Cork,
Now please lower your glass and raise your fork!

--Lisa Steigerwalt
*substitute your own town

Grace:
Be present at our table Lord,
Be here and everywhere adored.
We thank You for the feast before us,
The friends among us,
the love between us.
For all the blessings of this day,
We rejoice, give thanks and pray.

--LS arrangement from traditional opening lines

A House Blessing:
God bless the corners of this house,
And be the lintel blest,
And bless the hearth and bless the board
And bless each place of rest;
And bless the door that opens wide to stranger as to kin;
And bless each crystal window pane
That lets the starlight in
And bless the rooftree overhead
and every sturdy wall;
The peace of man, the peace of God,
The peace of love on all.

--Franciscan Sisters

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