Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel

A Pope's Prayer for a Troubled Age

Pope Leo XIII composed this prayer in 1886 and directed that it be recited after every Low Mass throughout the Latin Church — a practice (among the so-called "Leonine Prayers") that continued until the liturgical changes following the Second Vatican Council removed it from the Mass itself. Popular accounts describe Leo XIII being moved to compose it after a disturbing experience concerning a coming trial for the Church, though the precise historical details of that account vary by source. Many parishes and individual Catholics have restored it as a prayer after Mass or as a personal daily prayer, particularly given the prayer's direct petition for protection from spiritual evil.

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

Helper

1. St. Michael is named explicitly in Scripture as a defender of God's people (Daniel 12:1, Jude 1:9, Revelation 12:7-9) — this prayer draws directly on that biblical role.
2. A longer, original form of Leo XIII's prayer also exists and is used in some traditional communities; the short form above is the version in most common circulation today.
3. Many parishes now pray this together at the end of Sunday Mass, standing, as a restored custom distinct from its original mandatory place in the old Low Mass.