Morning Prayer (Lauds)
If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.
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
We bless you, Father, Lord of Life,
To whom all living beings tend,
The source of holiness and grace,
Our first beginning and our end.
We give you thanks, Redeeming Christ,
Who bore our weight of sin and shame;
In dark defeat you conquered sin,
And death, by dying, overcame.
Come, Holy Spirit, searching fire,
Whose flame all evil burns away.
Come down to us with light and love,
In silence and in peace to stay.
We praise you, Trinity in One,
Sublime in majesty and might,
Who reign for ever, Lord of all,
In splendour and unending light.
Stanbrook Abbey Hymnal
Psalm 50 (51)
God, have mercy on me
Lord, you will be pleased with lawful sacrifice offered on your altar.
Take pity on me, Lord, in your mercy;
in your abundance of mercy wipe out my guilt.
Wash me ever more from my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know how guilty I am:
my sin is always before me.
Against you, you alone have I sinned,
and I have done evil in your sight.
Know this, so that you may give just sentence
and an unbiased judgement.
See, I was conceived in guilt,
in sin my mother conceived me;
but you love truth in the heart,
and deep within me you have shown me your wisdom.
You will sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be made clean;
you will wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
You will make me hear the sound of joy and gladness;
the bones you have crushed will rejoice.
Turn your face away from my sins
and wipe out all my transgressions;
create a pure heart in me, God,
put a steadfast spirit into me.
Do not send me away from your presence,
or withdraw your holy spirit from me;
give me again the joy of your salvation,
and be ready to strengthen me with your spirit.
I will teach the unjust your ways,
and the impious will return to you.
Free me from the guilt of bloodshed, God, God my saviour,
and my voice will glory in your justice.
Open my lips, Lord,
and my mouth will proclaim your praise;
for you do not delight in sacrifices:
if I offered you a burnt offering, it would not please you.
The true sacrifice is a broken spirit:
a contrite and humble heart, O God, you will not refuse.
Be pleased, Lord, to look kindly on Zion,
so that the walls of Jerusalem can be rebuilt,
Then indeed you will accept the proper sacrifices, gifts and burnt offerings;
then indeed will bullocks be laid upon your altar.
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, you will be pleased with lawful sacrifice offered on your altar.
Canticle
Isaiah 45
All peoples, turn to the Lord
All the descendants of Israel shall glory in victory through the Lord.
In truth you are a hidden God,
the God and Saviour of Israel.
They were dismayed and ashamed, all the makers of idols,
all of them fled in dismay.
Israel has been saved by the Lord, saved for ever;
you will not be dismayed or ashamed,
to the end of time.
For thus says the Lord, the God
who made the heavens,
who made the earth, shaped it, set it firm –
he did not make it to be empty,
but to be full of life –
“I am the Lord, there is no other.
I have not spoken secretly,
in some dark corner of the earth.
I have not said to the children of Jacob, ‘seek me in vain.’
I am the Lord who speaks justice, who proclaims uprightness.
“Gather together, come, approach me
all you who have been rescued from the Gentiles.
They were ignorant, who raised up wooden idols
and begged favours of a god without power.
Announce it – come, ponder it together –
who was saying this from the beginning, who foretold this from the start?
Am I not the Lord?
Is there any other God but me?
Do you seek a just God who will save you? There is no other.
“Turn to me and you will be saved, all you ends of the earth;
for I am God, there is no other.
“I have sworn by my own being,
I have decreed a judgement that will not be revoked;
for every knee will bend to me,
every tongue swear by my name.”
“Only in the Lord,” they will say,
“are there justice and strength!”
All who resisted him will come to him, and be dismayed;
but in the Lord all descendants of Israel
will receive justice and glory.
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 descendants of Israel shall glory in victory through the Lord.
Psalm 99 (100)
Enter the Temple with joy
Come before the Lord, singing for joy.
Rejoice in the Lord, all the earth,
and serve him with joy.
Exult as you enter his presence.
Know that the Lord is God.
He made us and we are his
– his people, the sheep of his flock.
Cry out his praises as you enter his gates,
fill his courtyards with songs.
Proclaim him and bless his name;
for the Lord is our delight.
His mercy lasts for ever,
his faithfulness through all the ages.
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.
Come before the Lord, singing for joy.
Short Reading
Ephesians 4:29-32
©
Guard against foul talk; let your words be for the improvement of others, as occasion offers, and do good to your listeners, otherwise you will only be grieving the Holy Spirit of God who has marked you with his seal for you to be set free when the day comes. Never have grudges against others, or lose your temper, or raise your voice to anybody, or call each other names, or allow any sort of spitefulness. Be friends with one another, and kind, forgiving each other as readily as God forgave you in Christ.
Short Responsory
In the morning let me know your love.
– In the morning let me know your love.
Make me know the way I should walk.
– In the morning let me know your love.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– In the morning let me know your love.
Canticle
Benedictus
The Messiah and his forerunner
The Lord has visited his people, he has come to redeem them.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption.
He has raised up the sign of salvation
in the house of his servant David,
as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones,
his prophets through the ages:
to rescue us from our enemies
and all who hate us,
to take pity on our fathers,
to remember his holy covenant
and the oath he swore to Abraham our father,
that he would give himself to us,
that we could serve him without fear
– freed from the hands of our enemies –
in uprightness and holiness before him,
for all of our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High:
for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path,
to let his people know their salvation,
so that their sins may be forgiven.
Through the bottomless mercy of our God,
one born on high will visit us
to give light to those who walk in darkness,
who live in the shadow of death;
to lead our feet in the path of peace.
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 visited his people, he has come to redeem them.
Prayers and intercessions
Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you. Through your cross and resurrection you offer freedom and hope to those ready to receive them.
– Lord, show us your loving-kindness.
We are children of the day:
help us to live in the light of your presence.
– Lord, show us your loving-kindness.
Guide our thoughts, our words, our actions:
so that what we do today may be pleasing to you.
– Lord, show us your loving-kindness.
Help us to avoid wrongdoing:
show us your mercy and love.
– Lord, show us your loving-kindness.
Through your passion and death you have won life for us:
give us the strength of your Holy Spirit.
– Lord, show us your loving-kindness.
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 God,
you hold out the light of your Word
to those who do not know you.
Strengthen in our hearts the faith you have given us,
so that no trials may quench the fire your Spirit has kindled within us.
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.
