Friday 26 March 2021
Friday of the 5th week of Lent
Vespers (Evening Prayer)
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
Sole hope of all the world and Lord,
Bestower of the great reward,
Receive the prayers thy servants raise
Mixed with meet psalms and chants of praise.
And though our conscience doth proclaim
Our deep transgressions and our shame,
Cleanse us, O God, we humbly plead,
From sins of thought and word and deed.
Our sins remember thou no more;
Forgive: thou art of mighty pow’r:
So take upon thee, Lord, our care
That pure in heart we make our prayer.
Therefore accept, O Lord, this tide
Of fast which thou hast sanctified,
That we may reach by mystic ways
The sacraments of Easter days.
________
Psalm 40 (41)
Prayer in time of sickness
“One of you will betray me – one who is eating with me” (Mk 14:18).
Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
Happy the man who considers the poor and the weak.
The Lord will save him in the day of evil,
will guard him, give him life, make him happy in the land
and will not give him up to the will of his foes.
The Lord will help him on his bed of pain,
he will bring him back from sickness to health.
As for me, I said: ‘Lord, have mercy on me,
heal my soul for I have sinned against you.’
My foes are speaking evil against me.
‘How long before he dies and his name is forgotten?’
They come to visit me and speak empty words,
their hearts full of malice, they spread it abroad.
My enemies whisper together against me.
They all weigh up the evil which is on me.
‘Some deadly thing has fastened upon him,
he will not rise again from where he lies.’
Thus even my friend, in whom I trusted,
who ate my bread, has turned against me.
But you, O Lord, have mercy on me.
Let me rise once more and I will repay them.
By this I shall know that you are my friend,
if my foes do not shout in triumph over me.
If you uphold me I shall be unharmed
and set in your presence for ever more.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel
from age to age. Amen. Amen.
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, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
Psalm-prayer
Lord Jesus, healer of soul and body, you said: Blessed are the merciful, they will obtain mercy. Teach us to come to the aid of the needy in a spirit of brotherly love, that we in turn may be received and strengthened by you.
________
Psalm 45 (46)
God, our refuge and our strength
“They will call his name ‘Immanuel’, which means ‘God with us’” (Mt 1:23).
The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
God is for us a refuge and strength,
a helper close at hand, in time of distress,
so we shall not fear though the earth should rock,
though the mountains fall into the depths of the sea;
even though its waters rage and foam,
even though the mountains be shaken by its waves.
The Lord of hosts is with us:
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
The waters of a river give joy to God’s city,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within, it cannot be shaken;
God will help it at the dawning of the day.
Nations are in tumult, kingdoms are shaken:
he lifts his voice, the earth shrinks away.
The Lord of hosts is with us:
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
Come, consider the works of the Lord,
the redoubtable deeds he has done on the earth.
He puts an end to wars over all the earth;
the bow he breaks, the spear he snaps.
He burns the shields with fire.
‘Be still and know that I am God,
supreme among the nations, supreme on the earth!’
The Lord of hosts is with us:
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
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 of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
Psalm-prayer
All-powerful Father, the refuge and strength of your people, you protect in adversity and defend in prosperity those who put their trust in you. May they persevere in seeking your will and find their way to you through obedience.
Or:
Lord God, when the restless powers of this world and the waters of hell rise up against your holy city, the new Jerusalem, you keep watch over it and it is safe, founded on solid rock. May the river that flows from the throne of the Lamb so purify this city as to make it shine out before men as your chosen dwelling, the unfailing sign of your greatness.
________
Canticle
Apocalypse 15
A hymn of adoration
All the peoples will come and adore you, Lord.
Great and wonderful are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the ages!
Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord?
For you alone are holy.
All nations shall come and worship you,
for your judgements have been revealed.
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.
All the peoples will come and adore you, Lord.
________
Short Reading
1 Peter 2
Christ suffered for you and left an example for you to follow the way he took. He had not done anything wrong, and there had been no perjury in his mouth. He was insulted and did not retaliate with insults; when he was tortured he made no threats but he put his trust in the righteous judge. He was bearing our faults in his own body on the cross, so that we might die to our faults and live for holiness; through his wounds you have been healed.
________
Short Responsory
I said: ‘Lord, have mercy on me.’
– I said: ‘Lord, have mercy on me.’
‘Heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.’
– I said: ‘Lord, have mercy on me.’
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– I said: ‘Lord, have mercy on me.’
________
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
If you refuse to believe in me, believe in the works which I do in my Father’s name.
My soul glorifies the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
He looks on his servant in her lowliness;
henceforth all ages will call me blessed.
The Almighty works marvels for me.
Holy his name!
His mercy is from age to age,
on those who fear him.
He puts forth his arm in strength
and scatters the proud-hearted.
He casts the mighty from their thrones
and raises the lowly.
He fills the starving with good things,
sends the rich away empty.
He protects Israel, his servant,
remembering his mercy,
the mercy promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his sons for ever.
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.
If you refuse to believe in me, believe in the works which I do in my Father’s name.
________
Prayers and intercessions
Let us pray to the Lord Jesus, who sanctified his people by his own blood.
– Lord, have mercy on your people.
Christ our Redeemer, through your suffering help us to mortify our bodies and stand firm in every trial;
may we be ready to celebrate your rising from the dead.
– Lord, have mercy on your people.
As prophets of God’s kingdom may Christians make you known throughout the world,
and may they confirm their message by lives of faith, hope and love.
– Lord, have mercy on your people.
Lord, give strength to the afflicted;
and give us the will to do everything to help and comfort them.
– Lord, have mercy on your people.
Teach the faithful to be united with your passion in times of trouble and distress;
let the power of your salvation shine forth in their lives.
– Lord, have mercy on your people.
Lord, giver of life, remember those who have died;
grant them the glory of your resurrection.
– Lord, have mercy on your people.
________
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
________
Lord, break the bonds of sin
which our weaknesses have forged to enchain us,
and in your loving mercy
forgive your people’s guilt.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
________
The Lord bless us, and keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
Copyright © 1996-2021 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.