Dominus vobiscum

Dominus vobiscum

Dominus vobiscum (Latin: "The Lord be with you") is an ancient salutation and blessing traditionally used by the clergy in the Masses of the Catholic Church and other liturgies, as well as liturgies of other Western Christian denominations, such as Lutheranism, Anglicanism and Methodism.

The response is Et cum spiritu tuo, meaning "And with your spirit." Some English translations, such as Divine Worship: The Missal and the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, translate the response in the older form, "And with thy spirit." Eastern Orthodox churches also follow this usage, although the episcopal and presbyteral blessing are one and the same; in Greek, Εἰρήνη πᾶσι, eirene pasi, "peace to all." In the Roman Rite, this usage is only for the bishop, who says Pax vobiscum. The ICEL translation presently in use for Roman Catholic Masses in English has "And with your spirit."

In the Episcopal Church, the response to "The Lord be with you" is "And also with you."