Sunday 5 April 2020
Palm Sunday
Office of Readings
Introduction (without Invitatory)
If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, use the version with the Invitatory Psalm instead.
O God, come to our aid.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
________
Hymn
Sing, my tongue, the glorious battle,
sing the last, the dread affray;
o’er the cross, the victor’s trophy,
sound the high triumphal lay,
how, the pains of death enduring,
earth’s Redeemer won the day.
When at length the appointed fullness
of the sacred time was come,
he was sent, the world’s Creator,
from the Father’s heavenly home,
and was found in human fashion,
offspring of the virgin’s womb.
Now the thirty years are ended
which on earth he willed to see.
Willingly he meets his passion,
born to set his people free:
on the cross the Lamb is lifted,
there the sacrifice to be.
There the nails and spear he suffers,
vinegar and gall and reed.
From his sacred body piercèd
blood and water both proceed:
precious flood, which all creation
from the stain of sin hath freed.
Faithful Cross, above all other,
one and only noble Tree.
none in foliage, none in blossom,
none in fruit thy peer may be.
Sweet the wood and sweet the iron,
and thy load, most sweet is he.
Bend, O lofty Tree, thy branches,
thy too rigid sinews bend;
and awhile the stubborn harshness,
which thy birth bestowed, suspend;
and the limbs of heaven’s high Monarch
gently on thine arms extend.
Thou alone wast counted worthy
this world’s ransom to sustain,
that a shipwrecked race for ever
might a port of refuge gain,
with the sacred Blood anointed
of the Lamb for sinners slain.
Praise and honour to the Father,
praise and honour to the Son,
praise and honour to the Spirit,
ever Three and ever One:
One in might and One in glory,
while eternal ages run.
________
Psalm 103 (104)
Hymn to God the Creator
“For everyone who is in Christ there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here” (2 Cor 5:17).
Lord God, how great you are, clothed in majesty and glory, wrapped in light as in a robe.
Bléss the Lórd, my sóul! *
Lord Gód, how gréat you áre,
clóthed in májesty and glóry, *
wrápped in líght as in a róbe!
You strétch out the héavens like a tént. *
Above the ráins you búild your dwélling.
You máke the clóuds your cháriot, *
you wálk on the wíngs of the wínd,
you máke the wínds your méssengers *
and fláshing fíre your sérvant.
You fóunded the éarth on its báse, *
to stand fírm from áge to áge.
You wrápped it with the ócean like a clóak: *
the wáters stood hígher than the móuntains.
At your thréat they tóok to flíght; *
at the vóice of your thúnder they fléd.
They róse over the móuntains and flowed dówn *
to the pláce which yóu had appóinted.
You set límits they míght not páss *
lest they retúrn to cóver the éarth.
You make spríngs gush fórth in the válleys; *
they flów in betwéen the hílls.
They give drínk to all the béasts of the fíeld; *
the wíld-asses quénch their thírst.
On their bánks dwell the bírds of héaven; *
from the bránches they síng their sóng.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Lord God, how great you are, clothed in majesty and glory, wrapped in light as in a robe.
________
Psalm 103 (104)
The Lord brought forth bread from the earth and wine, to cheer man’s heart.
From your dwélling you wáter the hílls; *
éarth drinks its fíll of your gíft.
You máke the grass grów for the cáttle *
and the plánts to sérve man’s néeds,
that he may bríng forth bréad from the éarth *
and wíne to chéer man’s héart;
óil, to máke his face shíne *
and bréad to stréngthen man’s héart.
The trées of the Lórd drink their fíll, *
the cédars he plánted on Lébanon;
thére the bírds build their nésts; *
on the trée-top the stórk has her hóme.
The góats find a hóme on the móuntains *
and rábbits híde in the rócks.
You made the móon to márk the mónths; *
the sún knows the tíme for its sétting.
When you spréad the dárkness it is níght *
and all the béasts of the fórest creep fórth.
The young líons róar for their préy *
and ásk their fóod from Gód.
At the rísing of the sún they steal awáy *
and gó to rést in their déns.
Mán goes fórth to his wórk, *
to lábour till évening fálls.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
The Lord brought forth bread from the earth and wine, to cheer man’s heart.
________
Psalm 103 (104)
God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good.
How mány are your wórks, O Lórd! †
In wísdom you have máde them áll. *
The éarth is fúll of your ríches.
Thére is the séa, vast and wíde, †
with its móving swárms past cóunting, *
líving things gréat and smáll.
The shíps are móving thére *
and the mónsters you máde to pláy with.
Áll of thése look to yóu *
to gíve them their fóod in due séason.
You gíve it, they gáther it úp: *
you ópen your hánd, they have their fíll.
You híde your fáce, they are dismáyed; †
you táke back your spírit, they díe, *
retúrning to the dúst from which they cáme.
You sénd forth your spírit, they are creáted; *
and you renéw the fáce of the éarth.
May the glóry of the Lórd last for éver! *
May the Lórd rejóice in his wórks!
He lóoks on the éarth and it trémbles; *
the móuntains send forth smóke at his tóuch.
I will síng to the Lórd all my lífe, *
make músic to my Gód while I líve.
May my thóughts be pléasing to hím. *
I fínd my jóy in the Lórd.
Let sínners vánish from the éarth *
and the wícked exíst no móre.
Bléss the Lórd, my sóul.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good.
Psalm-prayer
Father, as you made springs in valleys to form streams between mountains, so you made living streams of grace flow from the apostles that their teaching may bring salvation to all nations. May we have a practical knowledge of their doctrine, be obedient to their commands, obtain remission of sins through their prayers, and finally receive the reward of eternal happiness.
Or:
God of all life, light, and love, through the visible things of this world you raise our thoughts to things unseen, and you show us your power and your love. From your dwelling place refresh our hearts and renew the face of the earth with the life-giving water of your word, until the new heaven and new earth resound with the song of resurrection.
________
℣. When I am lifted up from the earth,
℟. I shall draw all things to myself.
________
Readings (official one-year cycle)
First Reading
Hebrews 10:1-18
Since the Law has no more than a reflection of these realities, and no finished picture of them, it is quite incapable of bringing the worshippers to perfection, with the same sacrifices repeatedly offered year after year. Otherwise, the offering of them would have stopped, because the worshippers, when they had been purified once, would have no awareness of sins. Instead of that, the sins are recalled year after year in the sacrifices. Bulls’ blood and goats’ blood are useless for taking away sins, and this is what he said, on coming into the world:
You who wanted no sacrifice or oblation,
prepared a body for me.
You took no pleasure in holocausts or sacrifices for sin;
then I said,
just as I was commanded in the scroll of the book,
‘God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will.’
Notice that he says first: You did not want what the Law lays down as the things to be offered, that is: the sacrifices, the oblations, the holocausts and the sacrifices for sin, and you took no pleasure in them; and then he says: Here I am! I am coming to obey your will. He is abolishing the first sort to replace it with the second. And this will was for us to be made holy by the offering of his body made once and for all by Jesus Christ.
All the priests stand at their duties every day, offering over and over again the same sacrifices which are quite incapable of taking sins away. He, on the other hand, has offered one single sacrifice for sins, and then taken his place forever, at the right hand of God, where he is now waiting until his enemies are made into a footstool for him. By virtue of that one single offering, he has achieved the eternal perfection of all whom he is sanctifying. The Holy Spirit assures us of this; for he says, first:
This is the covenant I will make with them
when those days arrive;
and the Lord then goes on to say:
I will put my laws into their hearts
and write them on their minds.
I will never call their sins to mind,
or their offences.
When all sins have been forgiven, there can be no more sin offerings.
Responsory
℟. You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings, but you have prepared a body for me. You do not ask for holocaust and victim; then I said:* ‘Here I am, O God, I come to do your will.’
℣. The blood of bulls and goats can never take sins away. For this reason, when Christ was about to come into the world, he said:* ‘Here I am, O God, I come to do your will.’
________
Second Reading
From the discourse "On the Palm Branches" by Saint Andrew of Crete
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; blessed is the King of Israel.
Let us go together to meet Christ on the Mount of Olives. Today he returns from Bethany and proceeds of his own free will towards his holy and blessed passion, to consummate the mystery of our salvation. He who came down from heaven to raise us from the depths of sin, to raise us with himself, we are told in Scripture, above every sovereignty, authority and power, and every other name that can be named, now comes of his own free will to make his journey to Jerusalem. He comes without pomp or ostentation. As the psalmist says: He will not dispute or raise his voice to make it heard in the streets. He will be meek and humble, and he will make his entry in simplicity.
Let us run to accompany him as he hastens towards his passion, and imitate those who met him then, not by covering his path with garments, olive branches or palms, but by doing all we can to prostrate ourselves before him by being humble and by trying to live as he would wish. Then we shall be able to receive the Word at his coming, and God, whom no limits can contain, will be within us.
In his humility Christ entered the dark regions of our fallen world and he is glad that he became so humble for our sake, glad that he came and lived among us and shared in our nature in order to raise us up again to himself. And even though we are told that he has now ascended above the highest heavens – the proof, surely, of his power and godhead – his love for man will never rest until he has raised our earthbound nature from glory to glory, and made it one with his own in heaven.
So let us spread before his feet, not garments or soulless olive branches, which delight the eye for a few hours and then wither, but ourselves, clothed in his grace, or rather, clothed completely in him. We who have been baptized into Christ must ourselves be the garments that we spread before him. Now that the crimson stains of our sins have been washed away in the saving waters of baptism and we have become white as pure wool, let us present the conqueror of death, not with mere branches of palms but with the real rewards of his victory. Let our souls take the place of the welcoming branches as we join today in the children’s holy song: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the king of Israel.
Responsory
℟. When the people heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, they went out to meet him. Great crowds of people spread their cloaks on the road while others spread branches in his path, and they shouted,* Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord!
℣. The crowds who went in front of him and those who followed all shouted aloud,* Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord!
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Vigils
If time allows, those who celebrate the Office of Readings of a Sunday (or solemnity, or feast of the Lord) on the evening before, or at the crack of dawn on the day itself, may enrich the celebration with three Old Testament canticles and a Gospel reading.
________
Let us pray.
Almighty, ever-living God,
you gave our Saviour the command
to become man and undergo the cross
as an example of humility for all men to follow.
We have the lessons of his sufferings:
give us also the fellowship of his resurrection.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
________
Let us praise the Lord.
– Thanks be to God.
Copyright © 1996-2020 Universalis Publishing Limited: see www.universalis.com. Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible are published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. Text of the Psalms: Copyright © 1963, The Grail (England). Used with permission of A.P. Watt Ltd. All rights reserved.