OH GOD, who by thy Spirit didst call Cornelius the Centurian to be the first Christian among the Gentiles. Grant to thy Church in every nation a ready mind and will to proclaim thy love to all who turn to thee with unfeigned hope and faith; for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
Cornelius was a centurion in the Cohors II Italica Civium Romanorum, mentioned as Cohors Italica in the Vulgate. He is depicted in the New Testament as a God-fearing man who always prayed and was full of good works and deeds of alms.
