The Boondock Saints prayer, also known as The Family Prayer, was made popular by the 1999 movie called “Boondock Saints”, in which two brothers seek to avenge the death of their beloved priest.
Since the movie, the prayer has become pretty popular.
People have started buying posters with the prayer on it and even getting the prayer tattooed on their bodies.
The Boondock Saints Prayer is:
“And shepherds we shall be. For thee, my Lord, for thee.
Power hath descended forth from thy hand that our feet may swiftly carry out thy command.
So we shall flow a river forth to thee and teeming with souls shall it ever be.
In Nomeni Patri, Et Fili Spiritus Sancti.”
There is another line in the movie which goes:
“When I raise my flashing sword, and my hand takes hold in judgement, I will take vengeance upon my enemies and I shall repay those who have hazed me. Oh Lord, raise me to thy right hand and count me among thy saints.”
This is actually based on the bible verse from Deuteronomy 32:41 which reads:
“When I whet my flashing sword” (to sharpen it) “I will repay those who hate me.”
So, What Does the Boondock Saints Prayer Mean?
In the movie, the characters basically think that they themselves have been told by God that they are to be tools to avenge their priest as well as to “destroy all that which is evil…so that which is good may flourish.”
The two brothers recite the prayer in one of the scenes in the movie, which roughly translates to:
My Lord we are yours to command. The powers which we receive from you will enable us to fulfill our duties ask of you. We shall rid the world of evil by sending them back to you, if it is in our power. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
In the movie the phrase “Veritas Aequitas” appears multiple times. It is a Latin phrase meaning “Truth and Justice”
This phrase appears in the Latin version of the Bible, in Isaiah 59:14:
“et conversum est retrorsum iudicium et iustitia longe stetit quia corruit in platea veritas et aequitas non potuit ingredi”
This phrase translates to:
“And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.”
What religion are the Boondock Saints?
The two brothers in the movie are Irish Catholics.
Where Does the Boondock Saints Prayer Originate?
The prayer isn’t actually in the Bible at all, but it may be based on scripture from the Bible.
The prayer was actually written for the movie, by the film’s director “Troy Duffy”.
Many tend to believe that he was inspired by the book of Ezekiel 25:17 which reads:
“And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.”
This verse from the Bible was also the inspiration for a popular quote in the movie “Pulp Fiction”, which reads:
“The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides with the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who in the name of charity and good will shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon those with great vengeance and with furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know that my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.”
The verse is describing how sinners will know it’s God when he severely punishes those who have committed sins.
The only actual line from the prayer in the movie that is in the bible is the very last line: “In Nomeni Patri, Et Fili Spiritus Sancti.”
This is a common phrase in the Catholic church used by priests.
It is from the book of Matthew 28:19-20
“euntes ergo docete omnes gentes baptizantes eos in nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti docentes eos servare omnia quaecumque mandavi vobis et ecce ego vobiscum sum omnibus diebus usque ad consummationem saeculi”
This translates to:
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
The Boondock Saints movie has gained somewhat of a cult following and has become quite a popular movie to quote. Though the characters in the movie use the verse as inspiration to kill those who commit evil acts. This is, in fact, a fictional movie and nowhere in the Bible does it say that anyone should do that. God actually says that he is the one that will bring justice to the evil.
Here is the Boondock Saints Prayer in Irish Gaelic Celtic:
“Agus beimid inár n-aoirí
ar do shonsa, a Thiarna, ar do shonsa,
tá cumhacht tagtha anuas ó do lámh
ionas go gcomhlíonadh ár gcosa do thoil go tapaidh.
Sruthóimid ar aghaidh mar abhainn chugat
Agus plódaithe le hanamacha a bheidh sí go deo.
In ainm an Athar, agus an Mhic, agus an Spioraid Naomh”
Il Duce’s Prayer (also in the Boondock Saints movie)
“And when I vest my flashing sword And my hand takes hold in judgement I will take vengeance upon mine enemies And I will repay those who hase me O Lord, raise me to Thy right hand And count me amoung Thy saints .”
“Whosoever shed last blood. By man shall his blood be shed. For immunity of god make he the man. Destroy all that which is evil. So that which is good may flourish. And I shall count thee amoung my favoured sheep. And you shall have the protection of all the angels in heaven.”
“Never shall innocent blood be shed. Yet the blood of the wicked shall flow like a river. The three shall spread their blackened wings and be the vengeaful striking hammer of god. ”
I would like to learn latin and I love boondock saints prayer
Pray to the Lord, he know all!