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
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!
O come, now Wisdom from on high,
Who orders all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And teach us in her ways to go.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!
O come, O come, now Lord of might,
Who to your tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times you gave the law,
In cloud, and majesty, and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!
Psalm 89 (90)
Let the Lord's glory shine upon us
You, Bethlehem, will not be least among the towns of Judah: for the leader who will rule my people Israel will come from you.
Lord, you have been our refuge
from generation to generation.
Before the mountains were born,
before earth and heaven were conceived,
from all time to all time, you are God.
You turn men into dust,
you say to them “go back, children of men.”
A thousand years in your sight
are like yesterday, that has passed;
like a short watch in the night.
When you take them away, they will be nothing but a dream;
like the grass that sprouts in the morning:
in the morning it grows and flowers,
in the evening it withers and dries.
For we are made weak by your anger,
thrown into confusion by your wrath.
You have gazed upon our transgressions;
the light of your face illuminates our secrets.
All our days vanish in your anger,
we use up our years in a single breath.
Seventy years are what we have,
or eighty for the stronger ones;
and most of that is labour and sadness –
quickly they pass, and we are gone.
Who can comprehend the power of your wrath?
Who can behold the violence of your anger?
Teach us to reckon our days like this,
so that our hearts may be led at last to wisdom.
Turn to us, Lord, how long must we wait?
Let your servants call on you and be answered.
Fill us with your kindness in the morning,
and we shall rejoice and be glad all the days of our life.
Give us joy for as long as you afflicted us,
for all the years when we suffered.
Let your servants see your great works,
and let their children see your glory.
Let the glory of the Lord God be upon us:
make firm the work of your hands.
Make firm the work of your hands.
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, Bethlehem, will not be least among the towns of Judah: for the leader who will rule my people Israel will come from you.
Canticle
Isaiah 42
God, the victor and saviour
Lift up your heads, for your redemption is at hand.
Sing a new song to the Lord:
sing his praise from the ends of the earth.
Praise him, who go down to the sea;
and all that are in the sea,
islands and their inhabitants.
Let the desert rejoice,
and the cities of the desert,
the villages where the people of Kedar live.
Let those who dwell in Petra rejoice,
and cry out from the mountain-tops.
Let them give glory to the Lord,
and proclaim his praise among the islands.
The Lord will go forth like a warrior,
like a man of war he will stir up zeal;
he will shout and cry out;
he will prevail against his foes.
“I have always been silent,
I have kept silence and waited;
but now I shall cry out like a woman in labour,
I shall groan and tremble.
I shall lay waste the mountains and hills,
I shall wither their grass,
I shall turn rivers into deserts,
I shall dry up the marshes.
I shall lead the blind along a way they do not know;
in paths unknown to them I shall make them walk.
I shall make the darkness that is around them into light.
I shall make crooked things straight.”
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.
Lift up your heads, for your redemption is at hand.
Psalm 134 (135)
Praise the Lord, the wonder-worker
Tomorrow your salvation will be with you, says the Lord, God almighty.
Praise the name of the Lord:
praise it, servants of the Lord,
you who stand in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.
Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
sing to his name, for it brings happiness.
For the Lord chose Jacob for his own,
he chose Israel for his possession.
I know how great is the Lord,
how great is our God above all gods.
The Lord accomplishes all that he wills,
in the heavens and on the earth,
in the sea and the depths of the oceans.
He brings in clouds from the ends of the earth,
makes lightning for the rain-clouds,
from his storehouse he calls forth the winds.
He struck down the first-born of Egypt,
of man and of beast alike.
He sent signs and wonders among them,
to Pharaoh and all his servants.
He shattered nation after nation,
killed powerful kings:
Sihon, king of the Amorites,
Og, the king of Bashan,
all the kingdoms of Canaan.
He gave their lands as a birthright,
as a birthright for Israel his people.
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.
Tomorrow your salvation will be with you, says the Lord, God almighty.
Short Reading
Isaiah 11:1-3
©
A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse, a scion thrusts from his roots: on him the spirit of the Lord rests, a spirit of wisdom and insight, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is his delight.
Short Responsory
Tomorrow is the day on which the sins of the world will be wiped away.
– Tomorrow is the day on which the sins of the world will be wiped away.
The Saviour of the world will rule us himself.
– Tomorrow is the day on which the sins of the world will be wiped away.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– Tomorrow is the day on which the sins of the world will be wiped away.
Canticle
Benedictus
The Messiah and his forerunner
The time is now at hand for the Virgin Mary to give birth to her firstborn Son.
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 time is now at hand for the Virgin Mary to give birth to her firstborn Son.
Prayers and intercessions
Let us pray to Christ, whom the scriptures foretold, and whose coming we await in this holy season:
– Come, Jesus, our Saviour!
Isaiah foretold that the spirit of the Lord would rest upon you:
come to us bringing wisdom and understanding.
– Come, Jesus, our Saviour!
The spirit of counsel and power is given to you;
move the hearts of all who govern or rule.
– Come, Jesus, our Saviour!
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
teach us to know the Father as he is.
– Come, Jesus, our Saviour!
As now we live with you in faith and hope,
prepare us to see the Father face to face.
– Come, Jesus, our Saviour!
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.
Come, Lord Jesus, come soon.
In this time of your coming,
support and console us who trust in your love.
Who live and reign with God the Father
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.
