Come, Creator Spirit
Traditional prayer of the Church; text: English text from the Letter of Pope John Paul II to Priests for Holy Thursday 1998. · The rights holder named on the source
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Come, Creator Spirit
Come, O Creator Spirit,
visit our minds.
Fill with your grace
the hearts you have created.
O you who are called Paraclete,
gift of the Most High God,
living spring, fire, love,
anointing of the soul.
Finger of God’s right hand,
the Saviour’s promise,
send forth your seven gifts,
stir in us the word.
Be light to the mind,
burning love in the heart.
Heal our wounds
with the balm of your love.
From the enemy defend us,
bring forth the gift of peace.
With your invincible hand
keep us from all harm.
Light of eternal wisdom,
unveil to us the great mystery
of God the Father and the Son
united in one single Love.
To God the Father be glory,
to the Son who is risen
and to the Spirit, the Paraclete,
For ages unending.
Amen.
Latin text
Veni, Creator Spiritus
“Veni, creator Spiritus,
Mentes tuorum visita,
Imple superna gratia
Quae tu creasti pectora.
Qui diceris Paraclitus,
Altissimi donum Dei,
Fons vivus, ignis, caritas
Et spiritalis unctio.
Tu septiformis munere,
Digitus paternae dexterae,
Tu rite promissum Patris,
Sermone ditans guttura.
Accende lumen sensibus,
Infunde amorem cordibus,
Infirma nostri corporis
Virtute firmans perpeti.
Hostem repellas longius
Pacemque dones protinus;
Ductore sic te praevio
Vitemus omne noxium.
Per te sciamus da Patrem,
Noscamus atque Filium;
Teque utriusque Spiritum
Credamus omni tempore.
Deo Patri sit gloria,
Et Filio, qui a mortuis
Surrexit, ac Paraclito
In saeculorum saecula.
Amen.”
Meaning in brief
This hymn asks the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, Fire, and Love, to come and fill our hearts with grace, light, and strength, to drive away evil, and to give peace. It also asks that we may come to know the Father and the Son more deeply, for "the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit" (Rom 5:5).
Intentions and hope
The faithful pray it to ask for the light and guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is common at the beginning of the year, the start of the school year, meetings, retreats, or when an important decision has to be made. We may hope to be given a heart that is more open, calm, and attentive to God's will.
When and how to pray
- Pray or sing it on the Solemnity of Pentecost, on January 1 to ask for God's presence throughout the year, and whenever the Holy Spirit is invoked in a special way.
- Use it as an opening prayer before a meeting, a class, a retreat, or important work, whether together with others or on your own.
- Begin with the Sign of the Cross, then pause in silence for a moment and be aware that you are asking for the presence of the Holy Spirit.
- Pray all the verses calmly. The last verse gives glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; then close with Amen.
- Between the Ascension of the Lord and Pentecost, this hymn can be prayed each day along with the Novena to the Holy Spirit.
Where it comes from
History
Traditionally, the Latin hymn Veni, Creator Spiritus is linked with Rabanus Maurus. He was a Frankish Benedictine monk who became abbot of Fulda and later archbishop of Mainz. This attribution is considered the most likely. Some nineteenth-century scholars doubted it, but in the twentieth century confidence in this attribution grew stronger again. [6][5]
Some scholars suggest that the hymn was composed for the Synod of Aachen in 809. That synod discussed the procession of the Holy Spirit from the Father and the Son (the filioque), and the line about the Spirit coming from both seems to reflect that discussion. This is only a scholarly suggestion, not a documented fact. [5][6]
The oldest surviving manuscripts date from the tenth century. The attribution to Rabanus rests on a tenth-century manuscript from Fulda that no longer exists. Other attributions, to Saint Ambrose, Saint Gregory the Great, or Charlemagne, are judged to have almost no serious evidence behind them. [4][3][5]
In the Middle Ages, the hymn was assigned to Terce and Vespers on the Solemnity of Pentecost, and it was also sung in the liturgy of ordination. The Roman Breviary placed it at Vespers and Terce of Pentecost and throughout its octave. [4][3]
Sources & version
Text: The rights holder named on the source, English text from the Letter of Pope John Paul II to Priests for Holy Thursday 1998. Checked word for word against the source on 2026-11-05.
- English text from the Letter of Pope John Paul II to Priests for Holy Thursday 1998 — Veni, Creator Spiritus - Come Creator Spirit - SpiritualDirection.com
Text follows English text from the Letter of Pope John Paul II to Priests for Holy Thursday 1998; taken from spiritualdirection.com
Prayer text © The rights holder named on the source; quoted with attribution and a link (owner decision K2, ADR 0067).
- Veni Creator Spiritus - Hozana
Latin text from hozana.org
Latin text quoted with attribution and a link.
- Veni Creator Spiritus
Published by Catholic Encyclopedia (via Catholic Answers)
Cited as a factual source; the source text remains its publisher's.
- Veni Creator Spiritus
Published by New Catholic Encyclopedia (via Encyclopedia.com)
Cited as a factual source; the source text remains its publisher's.
- Veni creator spiritus
Published by The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology
Cited as a factual source; the source text remains its publisher's.
- Veni Creator Spiritus
Published by Hymnology Archive
Cited as a factual source; the source text remains its publisher's.
- History of the Christian Church, Vol. IV: Mediaeval Christianity, A.D. 590-1073
Published by Philip Schaff, Christian Classics Ethereal Library
Cited as a factual source; the source text remains its publisher's.
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