A 1937 Christian student publication attributed the prayer to Niebuhr in the following form, which matches the other earliest published forms in requesting “courage to change” before petitioning for serenity:įather, give us courage to change what must be altered, serenity to accept what cannot be helped, and the insight to know the one from the other. The earliest printed reference, in 1936, mentions that during a speech, a Miss Mildred Pinkerton “quotes the prayer,” as if to indicate it was already in a circulation known to the reporter, or that Pinkerton relayed it as a quote, without mentioning its authorship. Wygal was a longtime YWCA official and all early recorded usages were from women involved in volunteer or educational activities connected to the YWCA. O God, give us the serenity to accept what cannot be changed, the courage to change what can be changed, and the wisdom to know the one from the other. The earliest recorded reference to the prayer is a diary entry from 1932 by Winnifred Crane Wygal, a pupil and collaborator of Reinhold Niebuhr, quoting the prayer and attributing it to Niebuhr. Several versions of the prayer then appeared in newspaper articles in the early 1930s written by, or reporting on talks given by, Wygal. In 1940, Wygal included the following form of the prayer in a book on worship, attributing it to Niebuhr: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,Īnd the Wisdom to know the difference. Some twelve-step recovery programs use a slightly different version: Grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed courage to change that which can be changed, and wisdom to know the one from the other, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. A reply in the same column in the issue for August 13, 1950, p. 19, attributed the prayer to Niebuhr, quoting it as follows: So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,Īnd supremely happy with You forever in the next.Ī version (apparently quoted from memory) appeared in the “Queries and Answers” column in The New York Times Book Review, July 2, 1950, p. 23, asking for the author of the quotation. Trusting that You will make all things right, God, give me grace to accept with serenityĪccepting hardship as a pathway to peace, The most well-known form is a late version, as it includes a reference to grace not found before 1951: Reinhold Niebuhr’s versions of the prayer were always printed as a single prose sentence printings that set out the prayer as three lines of verse modify the author’s original version. The prayer has appeared in many versions. This theory suggests that in 1947, Niebuhr read the prayer in an obituary notice in the New York Tribune & was so taken by it that he shared it with Bill Wilson. Thus the simple little prayer became an integral part of the AA movement.Īnother popular theory states that Reinhold Niebuhr actually accredited Friedrich Oetinger, an 18th century theologian, for writing the Serenity Prayer. Bill & the staff read the prayer & felt that it particularly suited the needs of AA. member who liked it so much, he brought it to Bill W., the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. In 1939, it came to the attention of an early A.A. Howard Robbins, the doctor’s friend & neighbor, requested permission to use that portion of the longer prayer in a compilation he was building at the time. Reinhold Niebuhr, of the Union Theological Seminary, NYC, composed it in 1932 as the ending to a longer prayer. Records from Alcoholics Anonymous show that Dr. There is no shortage of theories as to who wrote the Serenity Prayer. See also our version of it: Serenity, courage & wisdom.Serenity prayer on a medallion A Brief History of the Serenity Prayer See also our version of it: A mindful, proactive quest for serenity, courage & wisdom. See also our version of it: Courage, Serenity & Wisdom. God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, He wrote what came to be known as the Serenity Prayer for a sermon, and used it in a variety of forms, including a longer-form poem. Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971) was a very infuential American theologian.
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