What is saying grace and how do people do it?

29 comments

  1. Pre-meal prayer. Typically “saying grace” is a southern phrase (at least that’s where I first encountered it).

    There’s no real right way, every family is different, and it also depends somewhat on religious background.

  2. It’s another term for praying before a meal, or at the very least giving thanks and appreciation for what you have.

  3. Every family will be different, probably with the majority not doing it at all. Its most often at formal family dinners.

    Its just a prayer and will come in many forms depending on the particular religion in question.

  4. For Catholics it is usually

    > Bless us, Oh Lord, and these thy gifts which we are about to receive from thy bounty, through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

    You say it before a meal, usually avoid with the whole family. Sometimes just quietly to yourself.

    Other Christian denominations use that prayer. Some just kind of have a freestyle prayer of thanksgiving for the food.

    Actual practice varies a lot but includes some kind of thanks for the food.

  5. “Dear Lord, we thank you for bringing us together for this Reddit thread. Let us, truly, be thankful for the functioning internet connections and coding we’re about to make use of.”

    Something like that, but for a meal. Sometimes, you’ll add specific things involving people at the table (say, if someone is new or came a long way), or thanks for the general health of the group. Some people go longer, and other people keep it short or simply bow their heads in a moment of silence.

    In my experience, people take turns saying it. (so, I do it this time, someone else does it next time, etc)

    It isn’t specific to a region (people claiming it’s “Southern” are just incorrect), though you might see different variations by denomination.

  6. Saying grace refers to a traditional prayer (really more of a prayer format) said before a meal in Southern culture.

    ​

    Every family does things a little differently, but my family always included being grateful for the food, something good that happened, and some thoughts about someone in the family/community who is suffering. Basically, it’d go like this:

    “Dear lord, we thank you for this food. *Insert praise for God.* Thank you for blessing *family member* with/in *good thing*. Our hearts go out to *community member* who is struggling with *bad thing*. In Jesus’s name we pray, amen.”

  7. It’s a prayer to thank God for your food and the people you are eating with. You basically just hold hands or clasp your own hands together in prayer and one person blesses the meal.

  8. It is praying before a meal.

    You might say something like Thank you Lord for this food we are about to receive. You might throw in other stuff to make it longer. Generally everyone would be sitting there silently with their heads bowed while one person prays. They amen and then people can start eating.

    My family did not do this regularly.

  12. I’m confused as to why you are asking Americans about this. Saying a prayer before a meal is something that is done around the world.

  13. Our family took a light approach and only said it on thanksgiving in a jokey way

    – Rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub

    – in the mouth, over the gums. Watch out tummy because here it comes. Thanks for the food.

  15. It’s basically just a way for your older relatives to impose their religion on you when you’re hungry. They expect everyone to wait for them to finish talking to themselves before eating, because it makes them feel better about their lives, and they don’t care how long it’s been since everyone else has last eaten, they’re gonna complain at you for not participating.

  16. I’m not really religious but for big family diners like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter I get asked to say grace since a lot of our family are religious and I’m the man of the house.

    I usually give a very agnostic prayer and everyone seems satisfied with it. It usually goes something like this:

    “Let us all be thankful for the friends and family that we are with tonight. Let us be thankful for this wonderful meal we are about to eat. Let us all keep Tio Roberto in our thoughts as he’s about to undergo surgery and with Estefania as she finishes her first semester in college. Amen”.

    When I’ve had little old ladies swarming around my kitchen and theirs all day to put a bombass feast on the table if they want me to say grace, I try to say the shit out of it even if it isn’t really my bag.

  18. Just praying together before a meal. The prayer might be a memorized prayer said together, or it might be one person “talking to God” and praying on behalf of the entire group in a non-memorized prayer. The following is an example of a memorized prayer said together by everyone at the table:

    For food, for raiment, for life, for opportunity, for friendship and fellowship we thank thee o Lord.

  19. It’s praying before a meal. Some people pray from the top of their head, and other people follow a more structured prayer or one that was made already.

    The two my family uses are below.

    Come Lord Jesus, be our guest. Let these gifts to us be blessed. Amen.

    The other is typically sung:

    Be present at our table lord.
    Be here and everywhere, adored.
    These mercies bless and grant that we,
    May feast in paradise with Thee.

  20. Depends on the family, but it’s just saying a prayer before a meal. My family is Catholic and my grandparents usually do one. It’s always just “bless us, oh Lord and these, thy gifts which we are about to receive, from thy bounty through Christ, our Lord.” Generally you hold hands, close your eyes and say it in unison.

  21. “Saying grace” is usually a Christian term for praying before a meal. Plenty of other religions do the same but call it something else.

    If you’re “saying grace” in the Christian sense, you’ll usually bow your head and put your hands together or hold hands with the people next to you. Catholics will do the sign of the cross first.

    One person will then say a brief prayer, sometimes something specific but more often something off the top of their head. It will usually involve thanking God for the food, for health, for safety, and for good company. This will usually, and hopefully, last less than a minute.

    Sometimes the person who said the prayer will offer an opportunity for other people at the table to say a prayer. Most will decline as they would prefer to begin eating.

  22. Have you seen movies with Catholic nuns or priests eating a meal, “Call The Midwife”, maybe?

  23. It’s a brief prayer before a meal, most people only do it at special occasions if at all.

    It’s by no means a purely American thing.

  24. It’s basically a pre-meal prayer.

    Once everybody is seated at the table, and food is ready to be served/eaten somebody will be designated to lead the prayer. Often this is the religious head of the family, but some families/groups like to give other an opportunity to lead the prayer.

    Some families hold hands in a circle, but it’s not required. Heads are bowed and eyes are shut. Typically it starts off acknowledging God as the ultimate power, and the reason for everything they have. Thanking God for all the good things they have. If there are bad things there’s usually a prayer to make those things better. There’s often an acknowledgement of the people that are unable to make it, and a prayer for them. Often families will acknowledge all the work it took to get the food to the table. The farmers that tilled the soil, the animals that sacrificed their lives, the people the prepared the meal, etc. At the end “amen” is said by everybody and the meal begins.

    Here’s an example

    >Dear God,

    We thank you for this wonderful meal that you have provided for us. We thank you for the farmers who grew the crops, the animals who gave their lives, and the workers who prepared and delivered the food. We thank you for the family and friends who are gathered here today, and for the love and joy that we share. We ask you to bless this food to our bodies, and to nourish our souls with your grace. We pray for those who are hungry, lonely, or suffering in any way, and we ask you to comfort them and meet their needs. We also pray for our world, that you would bring peace and justice to all people. We give you all the glory and praise, for you are the source of every good gift. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

  25. As a Catholic we say a specific prayer before a meal that goes,
    ” Bless us, Our Lord, for thy gifts, which we are about to receive. From thy bounty, through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.”
    It usually followed by making the sign of the cross.

    My Protestant inlaws are much more freeform.

  27. Did you mean to type this in to Google? It’s not like it’s not in most of our tv and movies to show you examples.

  28. I had a step uncle that would always say “Dear Lord, thank you for these groceries, now lets grub.” Made my grandma so angry. He was never asked to say it again.

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