Several versions of the prayer then appeared in newspaper articles in the early 1930s written by, or reporting on talks given by, Wygal. "The victorious man in the day of crisis is the man who has the serenity to accept what he cannot help and the courage to change what must be altered." 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: Please see the talk page for more information. This article or section appears to contradict itself on roles of Niebuhr and Wygal in the origin of the prayer compare, rectify, and merge this and the History section. The best-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. William FitzGerald believes Wygal wrote the prayer, arguing sexism as the reason for misattribution, while Fred Shapiro's, with greater nuance, has alternated in his conclusions, but presents both the messages that the "rigin is debated" and Wygal as author in materials relating to the The New Yale Book of Quotations, published in 2021. Posters and household ornaments were produced by others without attribution. In 1962, Hallmark began using the prayer in its graduation cards, crediting Niebuhr, and in the 1970s they also produced a wall plaque. God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,Īnd the wisdom to know the difference. īy this stage, the prayer had become commonly quoted as: Niebuhr also published it in a magazine column in 1951. From January 1944, Niebuhr began being cited as the source of the prayer in newspaper articles. It then also appeared in a sermon of Niebuhr's in the 1944 A Book of Prayers and Services for the Armed Forces, and was printed on cards for American soldiers in WWII. Niebuhr's wife and daughter would later say this was when they understood the prayer was first written and used. Niebuhr presented it in a 1943 sermon at Heath Evangelical Union Church in Heath, Massachusetts. It was initially known within the group as "The AA prayer", but by the late 1940s, was known as "the serenity prayer." The organisation embraced it and spread it widely. In June 1941, the prayer was published in an obituary in the New York Herald Tribune, and from here became known by the first Alcoholics Anonymous group. The prayer became published in English language newspapers much more from 1940, but never attributed to Wygal or Neibuhr. 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. Wygal published the prayer again in her 1940 book We Plan Our Own Worship Services, and attributed it to Niebuhr. In 1937, the prayer was published in a Christian student newsletter, attributing it to Niebuhr. The prayer appeared a few additional times in American and Canadian newspapers in the 1930s, associated with the YWCA or with individual women. Substantial quotes from the prayer were also printed in two Atlanta newspapers that month. The prayer was also quoted in the Richmond Times-Dispatch later that month. Oh, God, give us courage to change what must be altered, serenity to accept what can not be helped, and insight to know the one from the other. On October 31, 1932, American YWCA official Winnifred Crane Wygal quoted her colleague Niebuhr in her diary, "The victorious man in the day of crisis is the man who has the serenity to accept what he cannot help and the courage to change what must be altered."' ĭrawing on this, Wygal published a prayer in the March 1933 edition of YWCA periodical The Woman's Press, which was soon shared with a broader audience on the front page of the Santa Cruz Sentinel of March 15, 1933.
In around 1932, theologian Reinhold Niebuhr is reported to have used the prayer as the last part of a longer prayer. This article or section appears to contradict itself on roles of Niebuhr and Wygal in the origin of the prayer, and improperly represents the conclusions of the Shapiro () citation compare, rectify, and merge this and the Early history sections.
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