Work & Money

Coal Miners Prayer

On 6 December 1907, explosions tore through two connected mines at Monongah, West Virginia. The official count was 362 men and boys killed, and many believe the real number was higher. It remains the worst mining disaster in American history. Many of the dead were Italian and Polish immigrants, and their families prayed to the patron saint of miners whose feast had fallen just two days before: St Barbara.

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Mining is safer today than it was then, thanks partly to laws passed after later disasters like Farmington in 1968. But anyone who goes underground knows the risks, and so does everyone waiting for them at home. Prayer has always been part of mining life, in the lamp room, at the portal and at the kitchen table.

Historical Context

Patron saint: St Barbara, 4 December

Remembered: Monongah, West Virginia, 6 December 1907

Scripture: “Surely there is a vein for the silver,” Job 28:1

St Barbara is the patron of miners, artillery and anyone in danger of sudden death. In parts of Germany, Poland and Appalachia, miners still keep her feast, and some mines have a small shrine to her near the entrance.

A Coal Miner’s Prayer Before a Shift

Lord, I’m going down again today.
Keep the roof solid and the air clean.
Keep the machines working and the men around me alert.
Give me the sense to see danger and the courage to speak up.
Watch over my crew and bring every one of us back up to daylight.
St Barbara, pray for us.
Amen.

A Prayer for Mining Families

Father, bless the families who wait.
Give them peace while their loved ones work underground,
and strength on the hard days.
Watch over the children who are proud of their fathers and mothers,
and the wives and husbands who listen for the truck in the driveway.
Amen.

For Miners Who Died

Lord, remember the miners who never came home.
Give them eternal rest, and let perpetual light shine upon them.
Comfort their families and their towns.
Amen.

For Miners’ Health

Lord, heal those who suffer from black lung and injuries from the mines.
Give them good care and the support they’ve earned.
Amen.

Best Times for This Prayer

Before going underground.
On 4 December, the feast of St Barbara.
On anniversaries of mining disasters in your community.
During a rescue or when a mine accident is in the news.

Scripture Connection

“He setteth an end to darkness, and searcheth out all perfection: the stones of darkness, and the shadow of death.” — Job 28:3

Job 28 is a poem about mining, describing men who cut shafts and work in darkness far from anyone. It asks where wisdom can be found, and answers that only God knows. Miners have long found themselves in this chapter.

Related prayers

For the miners’ patron, see the Saint Barbara Prayer. For other hard trades, the Ironworker Prayer, Welder Prayer and Loggers Prayer.

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About Stephen S. Griffin

Stephen S. Griffin is the pen name of the person who runs Guided by Prayer, a reference library of prayers. How the prayers are written and sourced.