also known as We Fly to Thy Patronage, Beneath Thy Protection
Sub tuum praesidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genetrix.
We fly to your protection, O Holy Mother of God.
Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus,
Do not despise our petitions in our necessities,
sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper,
but deliver us always from all dangers,
Virgo gloriosa et benedicta.
O glorious and blessed Virgin.
Amen.
Amen.
The Sub Tuum Praesidium is the oldest extant prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary preserved in the Christian tradition. A papyrus fragment of the prayer in Greek — known as Papyrus 470 of the John Rylands Library — has been dated to the third century, meaning the faithful have been praying these very words for some seventeen hundred years. The Latin version preserves both the antiquity and the urgency of the original.
When prayed: Prayed daily in the Roman Breviary, especially as a Marian antiphon, and in moments of trial when one places oneself under Our Lady's protection.
The Latin text of the Sub Tuum Praesidium alongside its English translation, line by line.
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| Sub tuum praesidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genetrix. | We fly to your protection, O Holy Mother of God. |
| Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, | Do not despise our petitions in our necessities, |
| sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, | but deliver us always from all dangers, |
| Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. | O glorious and blessed Virgin. |
| Amen. | Amen. |
Word-by-word definitions and example uses. Tap any word to learn its meaning, then return to the prayer with new ears.
Definition: under, beneath
Navis sub ponte transiit. (The ship passed under the bridge.)
Definition: your (singular, masculine/feminine/neuter)
Tuus liber est in mensa. (Your book is on the table.)
Definition: protection, defense
Milites praesidium urbi dederunt. (The soldiers gave protection to the city.)
Definition: we take refuge, we flee to
Ad templum confugimus. (We take refuge at the temple.)
Definition: holy, sacred
Sancta Maria, ora pro nobis. (Holy Mary, pray for us.)
Definition: of God, God's
Fides Dei magna est. (The faith of God is great.)
Definition: mother, progenitrix
Genetrix pueri mulier erat. (The mother of the boy was a woman.)
Definition: our (accusative, feminine plural)
Nostras res protegere debemus. (We must protect our affairs.)
Definition: prayers, entreaties
Deprecationes nostras ad te mittimus. (We send our prayers to you.)
Definition: not, lest
Ne sitis tristes. (Do not be sad.)
Definition: you might despise, you might scorn
Noli amicos despicere. (Do not despise your friends.)
Definition: in, on, among
In horto laboramus. (We work in the garden.)
Definition: needs, necessities
In necessitatibus auxilium petunt. (In needs, they seek help.)
Definition: but
Non solum sapit, sed etiam amat. (He is not only wise, but also loves.)
Definition: from, away from
A villa discessit. (He left from the villa.)
Definition: dangers, perils
Monachos periculis liberavit. (He freed the monks from dangers.)
Definition: all, every
Cunctis vicis pervasit. (He traveled through all the villages.)
Definition: free, set free (imperative form)
Libera me ab oneribus. (Free me from burdens.)
Definition: us, we
Nos amici sumus. (We are friends.)
Definition: always
Semper fidelis manet. (He remains always faithful.)
Definition: virgin, maiden
Virgo cum flore est pulchra. (The maiden with a flower is beautiful.)
Definition: glorious
Gloriosa victoria fuit. (It was a glorious victory.)
Definition: and
Mater et pater adsunt. (Mother and father are present.)
Definition: blessed
Benedicta es inter mulieres. (Blessed are you among women.)
Definition: so be it, truly
Finivit orationem dicens: Amen. (He ended the prayer saying: Amen.)
Sub Tuum Praesidium — 'Beneath Thy Protection' or 'We Fly to Thy Patronage' — is the oldest known prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary still in continuous use. It asks her not to despise the petitions of her children in their necessities, but to deliver them from all dangers. It is the Church's most ancient Marian cry for help.
Astonishingly old. A Greek papyrus fragment of the prayer — Papyrus 470, held at the John Rylands Library in Manchester — has been dated by paleographers to the third century, meaning it predates the Council of Nicaea and even the legalization of Christianity. The faithful have prayed these words, in Greek and Latin and a hundred vernaculars, for some seventeen centuries.
The Sub Tuum is one of the Marian antiphons of the Roman Breviary and appears in the Liturgy of the Hours throughout the year. It is also recited at moments of particular need, such as in the prayers of consecration to Mary, in times of national or ecclesial danger, and in the final commendation of the dying.
The Latin Dei Genetrix translates the Greek Theotokos — 'God-bearer' or 'Mother of God.' That this title appears in a third-century prayer is striking historical evidence that the early Church already addressed Mary as the Mother of God, more than a century before the Council of Ephesus formally defined the doctrine in 431. The faithful had been praying what the Council would later confess.
The prayer Christ Himself taught — the heart of every Christian's life of prayer.
The greeting of the Archangel Gabriel, joined to the Church's own petition.
The Church's ancient doxology: glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
The Church's evening hymn to Mary, our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
St. Bernard's confident plea to the Mother of God.
Three times a day the Church remembers the Word made flesh.
Credo teaches you to read the Sub Tuum Praesidium (and every other Catholic prayer) in Latin the way the saints did — through the words themselves, not grammar drills.
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