Pray

Pray with our Kmhmú Catholic community

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Kmhmú Catholics are People who Pray.

The U.S. Bishops asked communities associated with their Secretariat

for Cultural Diversity to make available in the various languages the

best known prayers such as The Lord's Prayer and The Hail Mary and

to make them available on our websites.

These special prayers are given first. Then follow additional prayers which Kmhmú chant during Mass.

The design of this page allows you to appreciate our Kmhmú prayer in two ways. Firstly, you may open the video to see and hear us at prayer.

Secondly, by continuing down the page, you will be presented with the prayers in English and Kmhmú, in both Roman and Lao script.

This space reserved for the spot to open video,

when it becomes available.

Fr Bountha was among the first Kmhmú priests. He and his family suffered greatly for his Catholic Faith by the hands of the Lao Communists.

K'eey root/Sign of the Cross

When Catholic pray, they usually begin with a short prayer called

The Sign of the Cross

It brings our hearts closer to Jesus who suffered agonizing death on his cross and powerfully reminds us that Father, Son and Holy Spirit cover us just as this cross that we trace on our forehead and chest. Divine Providence guards the reason why we hurt right now even though that reason may seem unreasonable to us right now.

K'eey root seqmeh Cav Yôq In the name of the Father

pô' Cav Koon and of the Son

pô' Cav Hnmall. Amèèn and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

During his ordination ceremony in January 2011, the new Fr Bountha, gives an 'Embrace of Peace' to an older priest.

An ba yat/Hail Mary

An ba yat le' Mariya,

Ba ah 'mun guun kiñ hrñwam,

Cav vaaq blwar yat yo' ba,

ba ah 'mun kveey cmkwn gbaq,

taq Yésu koon loh ba

ge ah 'mun jwm nèèv.

Mariya ma' dé cav vaaq blwar,

khro trnèèm i' gôn 'maap

hn'ni' pô' yam ci' haan.

Eh tqni.

Hail Mary

Full of grace

The Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou amongst women

And blessed is the fruit of they womb,

Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God

Prayer for us sinners

Now and at the hour of our death.

Amen

The most beloved of all Catholic prayers is

The Hail Mary

Because of the way things were, the Hail Mary was the only prayer that the people were allowed to pray in Kmhmú, all the rest were always prayed in the Lao language, even though many did not understand it.

In the beloved Sermon on the Mount St. Matthew’s Gospel (6: 9-13) tells how Jesus Himself gave us this prayer as a model of how Catholics should always pray. It is chanted reverently during the Communion Rite at Mass and at the beginning of each Decade of the Rosary and often prayed privately.

Praise, thanksgiving, excitement over our Holy Trinity inspired the short prayer said at the end of each Decade of the Rosary. Oftentimes it is prayed spontaneously as a shortened form of the much longer Praise of God’s Glory offered at Mass to introduce the Liturgy of the Readings and also called "Sq le doom."

The prayers above comprise those best known Catholic prayers that the U.S.

Bishops requested be placed on our websites. They are:

The Sign of the Cross

The Hail Mary

The Lord's Prayer

The Glory Be

The following prayers are deeply cherished by the Kmhmú Catholic Community. You

have had a chance to hear them on the video at the beginning of this presentation.

Below you have the text.

Cav Yôq I’/Our Father

Sq le doom/Glory be

Cav Yôq i' tqlôôc yo' ge yat da'

lvaaq,

an seqmeh mé riñ yoh

an mwaq mé root yo' i',

I' cu' hmñèq hrlo' dé mé

Yat da' kveey pté' i' gi an meh dôk

yat da' lvaaq.

Seq i' ci' mah khro an mé prôôt

pan.

Khro yôk dôôt prôôt 'maap dé i',

hmwan dôk I’ yôk dôôt prôôt

'maap dé briaq.

Hrôôy yoh ñua' khro mé da' an i'

yoh hmñèq

hrlo' dé ge, taq jooy an i' hlian

du' pic sqje'.. Amèèn.

Our Father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses as

we forgive those

who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation

but deliver us from evil.

Amen.

Sq le' doom

an cav yôq

pô' cav koon

pô' cav Hnmaal,

yar da’ kaal ni yoh,

tkroh c én hn'ni ,

to yoh vaay sqi gi hnwq.

Amèèn.

Glory be to the Father

And to the Son

And to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning

Is now and ever shall be

World without end.

Amen

Ô khro pntuun/Penitential Rite

Ô' khro pntuun 'maap pô' Cav Vaaq Blwar, sit rèèq tqma' hnam pô' taay hèèm bo, lav ô' eh klih 'maap 'nek, eh yo' loh yoh yo' hrñwam pô' lese' lenseen, Cav Vaaq Blwar ô' meh gôn eh klih 'maap hôôc, dqni' khro ma' ploot Maria, khro dit p'na pô' gôn 'mun tqlôôc, pô' khro taay hèèm jooy beih yo' Cav Vaaq Blwar an ô' dé' em.

Cav Vaaq Blwar khro trnèèm I'.

Cav Tnaq khro trnèèm I'.

Cav Vaaq Blwar khro trnèèm I'.

I confess to almighty God, and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault, in my thoughts and in my words, and in what I have done, and in what I have failed to do; and I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God.

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

. Ô dwwm root/I believe

I believe in God,

the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

Ô' dwwm root pô'

Cav Vaaq Blwar. Cav Blwar bwan dé laaq pté' lvaaq. Dwwm root Cav Tnaq Yésu. Meh Koon dook dé Cav Yôq môôy. Keet ah root yo' Cav Hnmaal. Juur beq iiq ma' ploot Maria. Ñaam ni Pilatô gôn oor. Bwp dôk yaak plak s'ooq klnèq. Haan hmaan uun kndruum pté'. Goop pé' bah ge vér gaay Blwar. Khwan lvaaq dén luaq ham yôq ah sit tqma'. Hôôc ci' hnooq juur tat gro' ro' dôôt. Gôn Blwar broom deq gôn haan. Ô' dwwm Cav Hnmaal. Dwwm riit gooq pté' oor eh. Dwwm ci yoor gôn 'mun. Dwwm ah riit kah 'maap. Dwwm loh ci vér gaay, dwwm ah jua vaaq Blwar. Amèèn

Very meaningful for Kmhmú, as for all followers of Jesus, is the response to His sinless Presence in the Confession of sin that He called for when He began his public ministry. (Mt 4/16). This prayer is recited at the beginning of Mass.

From the earliest centuries Catholics wanted to have a statement of the basic truths of their faith. The two most famous statements are the long Nicene Creed and the shorter Apostles' Creed. Each creed divides into three parts to celebrate Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Both are pronounced at the conclusion of the homily at Mass. The Apostles' Creed is most commonly used in Kmhmú Masses.

Khét yam/Holy, Holy, Holy

To usher in the most solemn part of Mass, the liturgy sings the brief hymn first sung by the angels in the Vision that launched Isiaias the Prophet in his ministry.. (Is 6/3)

Khét 'Yam. Khét 'Yam. Khét'Yam.

Cav Vaaq Blwar meh prtwq jua tqlôôc, klaaq paq pô' pté' kiñ r'aaq blia dé mé. An kmséq jua yat klaaq paq jôq jiq, Khro bor beih an jum bo ge root, k'eey root seqmeh Cav Vaaq Blwar, an kmséq jua yat klaaq paq jôq jiq

Holy, holy, holy

Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

Koon ño dook/Lamb of God

Another beloved hymn from Mass is inspired by the greetings that St. John the Baptist call out to Jesus as He came along the River Jordan for Baptism. "Lamb of God." However, since sheep and lambs are unknown in Southeast Asia, Kmhmú use the fitting substitution which means, "Precious child."

Koon ño dook dé Cav Vaaq Blwar, meh mé péh paaq 'maap pté', khro an klé' trèèm I' em.

Koon ño dook dé Cav Vaaq Blwar, meh mé péh paaq 'maap pté', khro an I' yat le' be' lam.

Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace

Hôôc

The End