Vespers (Evening Prayer)
INTRODUCTION
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
For all the saints who from their labours rest,
Who thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesu, be for ever blest.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Thou wast their rock, their fortress and their might;
Thou, Lord, their captain in the well-fought fight;
Thou in the darkness drear their one true Light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O may thy soldiers, faithful, true and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,
And win, with them, the victor’s crown of gold.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O blest communion! fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
Yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Psalm 109 (110)
The Messiah, king and priest
I saw a vast throng, which no man could number, from every nation, standing before the throne.
The Lord has said to my lord:
“Sit at my right hand
while I make your enemies your footstool.”
From Zion the Lord will give you a sceptre,
and you will rule in the midst of your foes.
Royal power is yours in the day of your strength,
among the sacred splendours.
Before the dawn, I begot you from the womb.
The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent:
“You are a priest for ever,
a priest of the priesthood of Melchisedech.”
The Lord is at your right hand,
and on the day of his anger he will shatter kings.
He will drink from the stream as he goes –
he will hold his head high.
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.
I saw a vast throng, which no man could number, from every nation, standing before the throne.
Psalm 115 (116B)
Thanksgiving in the Temple
God has tried them and found them worthy of himself. Royal splendour shall be theirs from the Lord.
Still I trusted, even when I said
“I am greatly afflicted,”
when I said in my terror,
“all men are liars.”
How shall I repay the Lord
for all he has done for me?
I will take up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord.
I will fulfil my vows to the Lord
before all his people.
Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his faithful.
O Lord, I am your servant,
your maidservant’s son.
You have torn apart my chains:
I will make you a sacrifice of praise,
I will call on the name of the Lord.
I will fulfil my vows to the Lord
before all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord,
within your walls, Jerusalem.
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 has tried them and found them worthy of himself. Royal splendour shall be theirs from the Lord.
Canticle
Apocalypse 4,5
The song of the redeemed
You have redeemed us, Lord God, in your blood, from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made us a kingdom for our God.
You are worthy, our Lord and our God,
to receive glory and honour and power;
for you made all things,
and it is by your will that they exist and were created.
You are worthy, Lord,
to receive the book and open its seals,
for you were killed,
and with your blood you have ransomed people
from every tribe and language and people and nation,
and made them rulers and priests for God;
and they will rule over the earth.
The Lamb is worthy, who was killed,
to receive power and riches and wisdom,
strength and honour, glory and blessing.
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.
You have redeemed us, Lord God, in your blood, from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made us a kingdom for our God.
Short Reading
2 Corinthians 6:16,7:1
©
You are the temple of the living God. We have God’s word for it: I will make my home among them and live with them; I will be their God and they shall be my people. With promises like these made to us, dear brothers, let us wash off all that can soil either body or spirit, to reach perfection of holiness in the fear of God.
Short Responsory
Let the saints rejoice in the Lord.
– Let the saints rejoice in the Lord.
God has chosen you for his own.
– Let the saints rejoice in the Lord.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– Let the saints rejoice in the Lord.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
How full of splendour is the kingdom where all the saints exult with Christ! The white-robed throng follows the Lamb of God in all his ways.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation.
For he has shown me such favour –
me, his lowly handmaiden.
Now all generations will call me blessed,
because the mighty one has done great things for me.
His name is holy,
his mercy lasts for generation after generation
for those who revere him.
He has put forth his strength:
he has scattered the proud and conceited,
torn princes from their thrones;
but lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel,
he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children 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.
How full of splendour is the kingdom where all the saints exult with Christ! The white-robed throng follows the Lamb of God in all his ways.
Prayers and intercessions
With so many witnesses in a great cloud on every side of us, we are encouraged to run steadily in the race we have started. We pray to Christ, for he is the author of our faith, and he will bring it to fulfilment:
– With all the saints we praise and thank you, Lord.
Lord, you chose the apostles to be the foundation of your Church:
keep us faithful to all that you left in their care.
– With all the saints we praise and thank you, Lord.
Your martyrs testified to you, even to the shedding of their blood:
make all Christians faithful witnesses to your word.
– With all the saints we praise and thank you, Lord.
Lord, be with those who have consecrated their lives to you in virginity:
may their hope and generosity be a sign to the world of the glorious life they await at the end of time.
– With all the saints we praise and thank you, Lord.
In the saints you reveal your presence and your care:
as we venerate them, may we be drawn closer to you.
– With all the saints we praise and thank you, Lord.
Welcome our departed brothers and sisters into the company of Mary, Joseph and all the saints:
through their intercession, grant us a place in your kingdom.
– With all the saints we praise and thank you, Lord.
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.
Almighty, ever-living God,
we are celebrating with joy
the triumph of your grace in all the saints.
With so vast a multitude praying for us,
may we receive from you
the fullness of mercy we have always desired.
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.
The Lord bless us, and keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
