Keep them, we pray Thee, dearest Lord,
Keep them, for they are Thine
Thy priests whose lives burn out
Before Thy consecrated Shrine.
Keep them - Thou knowest, dearest Lord - the world,
The flesh are strong and Satan spreads a thousand snares
To lead them into wrong.
Keep them for they are in the world,
Though from the world apart;
When earthly pleasures tempt, allure ,
Shelter them in Thy Heart.
Keep them, and comfort them
In hours of loneliness and pain,
When all their life of sacrifice
For souls seems but in vain.
Keep them, and oh! remember Lord,
They have no one but Thee;
They have only human hearts,
With human frailty.
Keep them as spotless as the Host
That daily, they caress.
Their every thought and word and deed,
Deign, dearest Lord, to bless.