Welcome to the ULC Minister's Network

Arch Bishop Micheal Ralph Vendegna S.O.S.M.A.

Office Readings


  • Sunday 25 October 2020

    30th Sunday in Ordinary Time 


    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. Alleluia.


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    Hymn

    This day at thy creating Word
    First o’er the earth the light was poured:
    O Lord, this day upon us shine
    And fill our souls with light divine.

    This day the Lord for sinners slain
    In might victorious rose again:
    O Jesus, may we raisèd be
    From death of sin to life in thee!

    This day the Holy Spirit came
    With fiery tongues of cloven flame:
    O Spirit, fill our hearts this day
    With grace to hear and grace to pray.

    O day of light and life and grace,
    From earthly toil a resting-place,
    The hallowed hours, blest gift of love,
    Give we again to God above.

    All praise to God the Father be,
    All praise, eternal Son, to thee,
    Whom, with the Spirit, we adore
    For ever and for evermore.


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    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. Alleluia.

    Bless the Lord, my soul!
    Lord God, how great you are,
    clothed in majesty and glory,
    wrapped in light as in a robe!

    You stretch out the heavens like a tent.
    Above the rains you build your dwelling.
    You make the clouds your chariot,
    you walk on the wings of the wind,
    you make the winds your messengers
    and flashing fire your servant.

    You founded the earth on its base,
    to stand firm from age to age.
    You wrapped it with the ocean like a cloak:
    the waters stood higher than the mountains.

    At your threat they took to flight;
    at the voice of your thunder they fled.
    They rose over the mountains and flowed down
    to the place which you had appointed.
    You set limits they might not pass
    lest they return to cover the earth.

    You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
    they flow in between the hills.
    They give drink to all the beasts of the field;
    the wild-asses quench their thirst.
    On their banks dwell the birds of heaven;
    from the branches they sing their song.

    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. Alleluia.


    ________

    Psalm 103 (104)

    The Lord brought forth bread from the earth and wine, to cheer man’s heart. Alleluia.

    From your dwelling you water the hills;
    earth drinks its fill of your gift.
    You make the grass grow for the cattle
    and the plants to serve man’s needs,

    that he may bring forth bread from the earth
    and wine to cheer man’s heart;
    oil, to make his face shine
    and bread to strengthen man’s heart.

    The trees of the Lord drink their fill,
    the cedars he planted on Lebanon;
    there the birds build their nests;
    on the tree-top the stork has her home.
    The goats find a home on the mountains
    and rabbits hide in the rocks.

    You made the moon to mark the months;
    the sun knows the time for its setting.
    When you spread the darkness it is night
    and all the beasts of the forest creep forth.
    The young lions roar for their prey
    and ask their food from God.

    At the rising of the sun they steal away
    and go to rest in their dens.
    Man goes forth to his work,
    to labour till evening falls.

    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. Alleluia.


    ________

    Psalm 103 (104)

    God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good. Alleluia.

    How many are your works, O Lord!
    In wisdom you have made them all.
    The earth is full of your riches.

    There is the sea, vast and wide,
    with its moving swarms past counting,
    living things great and small.
    The ships are moving there
    and the monsters you made to play with.

    All of these look to you
    to give them their food in due season.
    You give it, they gather it up:
    you open your hand, they have their fill.

    You hide your face, they are dismayed;
    you take back your spirit, they die,
    returning to the dust from which they came.
    You send forth your spirit, they are created;
    and you renew the face of the earth.

    May the glory of the Lord last for ever!
    May the Lord rejoice in his works!
    He looks on the earth and it trembles;
    the mountains send forth smoke at his touch.

    I will sing to the Lord all my life,
    make music to my God while I live.
    May my thoughts be pleasing to him.
    I find my joy in the Lord.
    Let sinners vanish from the earth
    and the wicked exist no more.
    Bless the Lord, my soul.

    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. Alleluia.


    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.


    ________

    ℣. Blessed are your eyes, for they see.
    ℟. Blessed are your ears, for they hear.


    ________

    The one-year and two-year cycles of readings are identical today.

    First Reading
    Wisdom 1:1-15
    Praise of the Wisdom of God


    Love virtue, you who are judges on earth,
    let honesty prompt your thinking about the Lord,
    seek him in simplicity of heart;
    since he is to be found by those who do not put him to the test,
    he shows himself to those who do not distrust him.
    But selfish intentions divorce from God;
    and Omnipotence, put to the test, confounds the foolish.
    No, Wisdom will never make its way into a crafty soul
    nor stay in a body that is in debt to sin;
    the holy spirit of instruction shuns deceit,
    it stands aloof from reckless purposes,
    is taken aback when iniquity appears.

    Wisdom is a spirit, a friend to man,
    though she will not pardon the words of a blasphemer,
    since God sees into the innermost parts of him,
    truly observes his heart,
    and listens to his tongue.
    The spirit of the Lord, indeed, fills the whole world,
    and that which holds all things together knows every word that is said.
    The man who gives voice to injustice will never go unnoticed,
    nor shall avenging Justice pass him by.
    For the godless man’s deliberations will be examined,
    and a report of his words will reach the Lord
    to convict him of his crimes.
    There is a jealous ear that overhears everything,
    not so much as a murmur of complaint escapes it.
    Beware, then, of complaining about nothing,
    and keep your tongue from finding fault;
    since the most secret word will have repercussions,
    and a lying mouth deals death to the soul.

    Do not court death by the errors of your ways,
    nor invite destruction through your own actions.
    Death was not God’s doing,
    he takes no pleasure in the extinction of the living.
    To be – for this he created all;
    the world’s created things have health in them,
    in them no fatal poison can be found,
    and Hades holds no power on earth;
    for virtue is undying.


    Responsory
    Pr 3:13-14; Jm 3:17

    ℟. Wisdom walks on pleasant ways, on paths of peace.* Happy the man who discovers wisdom, that pearl beyond price.
    ℣. The wisdom that comes down from above is essentially something pure, making for peace; is kindly and considerate, full of compassion and fruitful in good deeds.* Happy the man who discovers wisdom, that pearl beyond price.


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    Second Reading
    From a letter of Pope St Clement I to the Corinthians
    In his goodness to all, God gives order and harmony to the world

    Let us fix our gaze on the Father and Creator of the whole world, and let us hold on to his peace and blessings, his splendid and surpassing gifts. Let us contemplate him in our thoughts and with our mind’s eye reflect upon the peaceful and restrained unfolding of his plan; let us consider the care with which he provides for the whole of his creation.
    By his direction the heavens are in motion, and they are subject to him in peace. Day and night fulfil the course he has established without interfering with each other. The sun, the moon and the choirs of stars revolve in harmony at his command in their appointed paths without deviation. By his will the earth blossoms in the proper seasons and produces abundant food for men and animals and all the living things on it without reluctance and without any violation of what he has arranged.
    Yet unexplored regions of the abysses and inexpressible realms of the deep are subject to his laws. The mass of the boundless sea, joined together by his ordinance in a single expanse, does not overflow its prescribed limits but flows as he commanded it. For he said: Thus far shall you come, and your waves will be halted here. The ocean, impassable for men, and the worlds beyond it are governed by the same edicts of the Lord.
    The seasons, spring, summer, autumn and winter, follow one another in harmony. The quarters from which the winds blow function in due season without the least deviation. And the ever-flowing springs, created for our health as well as our enjoyment, unfailingly offer their breasts to sustain human life. The tiniest of living creatures meet together in harmony and peace. The great Creator and Lord of the universe commanded all these things to be established in peace and harmony, in his goodness to all, and in overflowing measure to us who seek refuge in his mercies through our Lord Jesus Christ; to him be glory and majesty for ever and ever. Amen.


    Responsory

    ℟. Master of heaven and earth, Creator of the waters, King of your whole creation,* hear the prayers of your servants.
    ℣. Lord, God of heaven, relieve our distress;* hear the prayers of your servants.


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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.


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    Canticle
    Te Deum

    We praise you, O God:
    we acclaim you as the Lord.

    Everlasting Father,
    all the world bows down before you.

    All the angels sing your praise,
    the hosts of heaven and all the angelic powers,

    all the cherubim and seraphim
    call out to you in unending song:

    Holy, Holy, Holy,
    is the Lord God of angel hosts!

    The heavens and the earth are filled
    with your majesty and glory.

    The glorious band of apostles,
    the noble company of prophets,

    the white-robed army who shed their blood for Christ,
    all sing your praise.

    And to the ends of the earth
    your holy Church proclaims her faith in you:

    Father, whose majesty is boundless,
    your true and only Son, who is to be adored,
    the Holy Spirit sent to be our Advocate.

    You, Christ, are the king of glory,
    Son of the eternal Father.

    When you took our nature to save mankind
    you did not shrink from birth in the Virgin’s womb.

    You overcame the power of death
    opening the Father’s kingdom to all who believe in you.

    Enthroned at God’s right hand in the glory of the Father,
    you will come in judgement according to your promise.

    You redeemed your people by your precious blood.
    Come, we implore you, to our aid.

    Grant us with the saints
    a place in eternal glory.

    The final part of the hymn may be omitted:

    Lord, save your people
    and bless your inheritance.

    Rule them and uphold them
    for ever and ever.

    Day by day we praise you:
    we acclaim you now and to all eternity.

    In your goodness, Lord, keep us free from sin.
    Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.

    May your mercy always be with us, Lord,
    for we have hoped in you.

    In you, Lord, we put our trust:
    we shall not be put to shame.


    ________

    Let us pray.

    Lord God, deepen our faith,
    strengthen our hope,
    enkindle our love;
    and so that we may obtain what you promise,
    make us love what you command.
    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.