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
Why, impious Herod, vainly fear
That Christ the Saviour cometh here?
He takes not earthly thrones away
Who gives the crown that lasts for aye.
To greet his birth the wise men went,
Led by the star before them sent;
Called on by light, towards Light they pressed,
And by their gifts their God confessed.
In holy Jordan’s purest wave
The heavenly Lamb vouchsafed to lave;
That he, to whom was sin unknown,
Might cleanse his people from their own.
New miracle of power divine,
The Water reddens into wine;
He spoke the word, and poured the wave
In other streams than nature gave.
All glory, Lord, to thee we pay
For thine Epiphany today;
All glory, as is ever meet,
To Father and to Paraclete.
Psalm 44 (45)
The wedding of the King
You are the fairest of the children of men, and graciousness is poured upon your lips.
My heart cries out on a joyful theme:
I will tell my poem to the king,
my tongue like the pen of the swiftest scribe.
You have been given more than human beauty,
and grace is poured out upon your lips,
so that God has blessed you for ever.
Strap your sword to your side, mighty one,
in all your greatness and splendour.
In your splendour go forth, mount your chariot,
on behalf of truth, kindness and justice.
Let your right hand show your marvels,
let your arrows be sharp against the hearts of the king’s enemies
– the peoples will fall before you.
Your throne is firm, O God, from age to age,
your royal sceptre is a sceptre of justice.
You love uprightness, hate injustice
– for God, your God has anointed you
with the oil of gladness, above all your companions.
Myrrh and aloes and cassia anoint your garments.
From ivory palaces the sound of harps delights you.
In your retinue go the daughters of kings.
At your right hand, the queen is adorned with gold of Ophir.
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 are the fairest of the children of men, and graciousness is poured upon your lips.
Psalm 44 (45)
The King's bride
Behold, the Bridegroom is coming: go out and meet him.
Listen, my daughter, and understand;
turn your ears to what I have to say.
Forget your people, forget your father’s house,
and the king will desire you for your beauty.
He is your lord, so worship him.
The daughters of Tyre will bring you gifts;
the richest of your subjects will beg you to look on them.
How great is the king’s daughter, within the palace!
She is clothed in woven gold.
She will be taken to the king in coloured garments,
her maidens will escort her to your presence.
In gladness and rejoicing they are brought
and led to the house of the king.
Instead of your fathers you will have sons:
you will make them rulers over all the world.
I will remember your name
from generation to generation.
And so your people will do you honour
for ever and 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.
Behold, the Bridegroom is coming: go out and meet him.
Canticle
Ephesians 1
God the Saviour
God planned to bring all things together under Christ when the fullness of time had come.
Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us, in Christ,
with every spiritual blessing in heaven.
In love, he chose us before the creation of the world,
to be holy and spotless in his sight.
He predestined us to be his adopted children through Jesus Christ,
simply because it pleased him to do so.
This he did for the praise of the glory of his grace,
of his free gift to us in his Beloved,
in whose blood we have gained redemption,
and the forgiveness of our sins.
This he did according to the riches of his grace,
which he gave us in abundance,
with all wisdom and discernment,
revealing to us the mysteries of his will,
because it pleased him to do so.
In this action he has planned, in the fulfilment of time,
to bring all things together in Christ,
from the heavens and from the earth.
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 planned to bring all things together under Christ when the fullness of time had come.
Short Reading
(2 Peter 1:3-4)
©
By his divine power, Christ has given us all the things that we need for life and for true devotion, bringing us to know God himself, who has called us by his own glory and goodness. In making these gifts, he has given us the guarantee of something very great and wonderful to come: through them you will be able to share the divine nature and to escape corruption in a world that is sunk in vice.
Short Responsory
All the peoples will be blessed in him.
– All the peoples will be blessed in him.
All nations will praise him.
– All the peoples will be blessed in him.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– All the peoples will be blessed in him.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they gave the Lord gold, frankincense and myrrh.
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.
The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they gave the Lord gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Prayers and intercessions
Blessed be Christ the Lord, who came to be with us, to give light to those who live in darkness and the shadow of death.
– Christ, rising Sun, shed your light on all men.
Christ our Lord, at your coming your body the Church was born:
may it ever grow on earth and build itself up in love.
– Christ, rising Sun, shed your light on all men.
You hold heaven and earth in your hands:
let all races and nations proclaim you as their Lord.
– Christ, rising Sun, shed your light on all men.
Through your incarnation you became our eternal High Priest:
renew in all your priests the grace of proclaiming your redemption.
– Christ, rising Sun, shed your light on all men.
You were born of a virgin mother;
bless all religious women and make them the living sign of the Church which is your bride.
– Christ, rising Sun, shed your light on all men.
By taking mortal flesh you ended the power of death:
unite the departed with yourself in everlasting life.
– Christ, rising Sun, shed your light on all men.
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, may the radiance of your glory light up our hearts
and bring us through the shadows of this world
until we reach our homeland of everlasting light.
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.
