On the translation of collects: the "qui" clause

When I hear the “qui” clause in a prayer I feel engaged with God. It acts on me like a preface does, or the Creed when I’m paying close attention. Instead of addressing a vague deity (just “God”), a collect with an appositive qui expresses that this God has a history with me. I realize the sentence construction is like nothing in common use, but the activity of expressing the historic reasons for mutual trust is a part of communication in all relationships. It can be as simple as “thanks for your kind words” or as complex as “you have been my best friend for thirty years.” It’s a kind of appreciation.

In a collect, the qui clause roots the petition of the prayer in the history of the relationship. To my ears, although it has a formal sound, it adds to the intimacy of the prayer because of its meaning.

If the qui clause is divided from the petition (as usual in the 1973), although a reference is made to the history, the causal connection between the history and the hoped-for answer to the petition is weakened.

Here is a lightly meant example of how a divided qui strikes my ear, and a contrasting, appositive qui:

Dear Dad, you have always been supportive of my education. Please send money.

-or-

Dear Dad, in light of your steadfast support of my education over the years, please send money.

The second is a more complex sentence but I feel it expresses a more engaged relationship.