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

Liturgy of the Hours


  • Thursday 24 February 2022

    Thursday of week 7 in Ordinary Time 


    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. Alleluia.


    ________

    Hymn

    When God had filled the earth with life
    And blessed it, to increase,
    Then cattle dwelt with creeping things,
    And lion with lamb, at peace.

    He gave them vast, untrodden lands,
    With plants to be their food;
    Then God saw all that he had made
    And found it very good.

    Praise God the Father of all life,
    His Son and Spirit blest,
    By whom creation lives and moves,
    In whom it comes to rest.

    Stanbrook Abbey Hymnal

    ________

    Psalm 131 (132):1-10
    God's promise to the house of David


    “The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father” (Lk 1:32).

    Your faithful shall ring out their joy as they enter your dwelling-place, Lord.

    O Lord, remember David
    and all the many hardships he endured,
    the oath he swore to the Lord,
    his vow to the Strong One of Jacob.

    ‘I will not enter the house where I live
    nor go to the bed where I rest.
    I will give no sleep to my eyes,
    to my eyelids I will give no slumber
    till I find a place for the Lord,
    a dwelling for the Strong One of Jacob.’

    At Ephrata we heard of the ark;
    we found it in the plains of Yearim.
    ‘Let us go to the place of his dwelling;
    let us go to kneel at his footstool.’

    Go up, Lord, to the place of your rest,
    you and the ark of your strength.
    Your priests shall be clothed with holiness;
    your faithful shall ring out their joy.
    For the sake of David your servant
    do not reject your anointed.

    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.

    Your faithful shall ring out their joy as they enter your dwelling-place, Lord.


    ________

    Psalm 131 (132):11-18

    The Lord has chosen Sion as his dwelling-place.

    The Lord swore an oath to David;
    he will not go back on his word:
    ‘A son, the fruit of your body,
    will I set upon your throne.

    ‘If they keep my covenant in truth
    and my laws that I have taught them,
    their sons also shall rule
    on your throne from age to age.’

    For the Lord has chosen Sion;
    he has desired it for his dwelling:
    ‘This is my resting-place for ever;
    here have I chosen to live.

    ‘I will greatly bless her produce,
    I will fill her poor with bread.
    I will clothe her priests with salvation
    and her faithful shall ring out their joy.

    ‘There David’s stock will flower;
    I will prepare a lamp for my anointed.
    I will cover his enemies with shame
    but on him my crown shall shine.’

    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 has chosen Sion as his dwelling-place.


    Psalm-prayer

    You are our King, Lord God. Help us to find a place for you in our hearts. Clothe your priests with saving power, fill the needy with bread, and let your holiness shine on us all.


    Or:

    You have chosen the new Zion as your dwelling place, Lord God, the Church as your place of rest. You have kindled in her a lamp that will burn brightly for ever before Christ your Anointed One. Make our hearts your tabernacle, clothe your priests with justice, your faithful with holiness and give bread to the poor. May all rejoice with you in heaven.


    ________

    Canticle
    Apocalypse 11
    The Judgement

    The Lord has given him power and honour and empire, and all peoples will serve him.

    We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
    who are and who were,
    that you have taken your great power
    and begun to reign.

    The nations raged,
    but your wrath came,
    and the time for the dead to be judged,
    for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
    and those who fear your name,
    both small and great.

    Now the salvation and the power
    and the kingdom of our God
    and the authority of his Christ have come,
    for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down,
    who accuses them day and night before our God.

    And they have conquered him
    by the blood of the Lamb
    and by the word of their testimony,
    for they loved not their lives even unto death.
    Rejoice, then, O heaven,
    and you that dwell therein.

    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 has given him power and honour and empire, and all peoples will serve him.


    ________

    Short Reading
    1 Peter 3:8-9

    You should all agree among yourselves and be sympathetic; love the brothers, have compassion and be self-effacing. Never pay back one wrong with another, or an angry word with another one; instead, pay back with a blessing. That is what you are called to do, so that you inherit a blessing yourself.


    ________

    Short Responsory

    The Lord fed us with finest wheat.
    – The Lord fed us with finest wheat.
    He filled us with honey from the rock.
    – The Lord fed us with finest wheat.
    Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
    – The Lord fed us with finest wheat.


    ________

    Canticle
    Magnificat
    My soul rejoices in the Lord

    The Lord brought down the mighty from their seats, and raised up the lowly.

    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.

    The Lord brought down the mighty from their seats, and raised up the lowly.


    ________

    Prayers and intercessions

    Christ is the high priest of his people: it is in him that we come together to make our prayer to the Father of us all.
    – Father, put new hearts within us.

    We thank you for calling us into the Church:
    bless us with constant faith, and make it a source of life for others.
    – Father, put new hearts within us.

    Lord, bless N., our Pope:
    we pray that his faith may not fail, and that he may strengthen his brothers.
    – Father, put new hearts within us.

    Turn sinners back to you:
    grant us a humble and contrite heart.
    – Father, put new hearts within us.

    Your Son knew what it was to be excluded from his homeland.
    Be mindful of those who must live far from their family and country.
    – Father, put new hearts within us.

    Give eternal rest to the dead:
    bring the whole Church together in heaven.
    – Father, put new hearts within us.


    ________

    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.


    ________


    We offer you, Lord, our thanksgiving
    at the close of this day.
    In your mercy, forgive the faults we have committed
    through human frailty.
    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 © 1996-2022 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.