Blessing of the home
Visita, quaesumus, Domine
Visit this house, we beg you, Lord, and drive far from it every snare of the enemy. Let your holy angels live here, to keep us in peace; and let your blessing rest upon us always. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Pass it on
In Latin
Vísita, quǽsumus, Dómine, habitatiónem istam, et omnes insídias inimíci ab ea longe repélle: Ángeli tui sancti hábitent in ea, qui nos in pace custódiant; et benedíctio tua sit super nos semper. Per Christum Dóminum nostrum. Amen.
When this prayer is prayed
The collect of Compline, the Church's last prayer before sleep, and the prayer the Roman Ritual says over a dwelling — the same request made over the same doorways for more than a thousand years. Say it at the door, over a new house, or over an old one that needs reclaiming. And ask your parish priest to bless the house: that blessing is his to give, it is free, and he will.