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
In the beginning God created heaven,
The dark and empty earth;
His Spirit moved across the sombre waters
And stirred them with his breath.
Then God created light, and with its coming
The dark was swept away;
The morning came, and then the quiet evening:
The end of God’s first day.
To God the Father of the world give glory,
With Christ his only Son,
Who with the Spirit govern all creation:
Blest Trinity in One.
Stanbrook Abbey Hymnal
Psalm 109 (110)
The Messiah, king and priest
The Lord’s revelation to my Master: ‘Sit on my right.’ Alleluia.
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.
The Lord’s revelation to my Master: ‘Sit on my right.’ Alleluia.
Psalm 110 (111)
Great are the works of the Lord
The Lord is full of merciful love: he makes us remember his wonders. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart
in the council of the upright and the assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord,
to be studied by all who delight in them.
His works are splendour and majesty,
his righteousness lasts for ever and ever.
He gives us a record of the wonders he has worked,
the Lord, the kind and compassionate.
He gives food to those who fear him:
for all ages he will remember his covenant.
He has shown to his people the power of his deeds,
he has given them the inheritance of the nations.
Steadfastness and justice
are the works of the Lord.
All his precepts are to be trusted,
they stand firm for ever and ever:
they were laid down in faithfulness and justice.
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has set up his covenant for ever.
Holy is his name, and much to be feared.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
To those who fear him comes true understanding,
and his praise endures for ever and 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 is full of merciful love: he makes us remember his wonders. Alleluia.
Canticle
(Apocalypse 19)
The wedding of the Lamb
The Lord our God Almighty is king, alleluia.
Alleluia.
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
because his judgements are true and just.
Alleluia.
Alleluia.
Praise our God, all his servants,
and you who fear him, small and great.
Alleluia.
Alleluia.
For the Lord reigns, our God, the Almighty:
let us rejoice and exult and give him glory.
Alleluia.
Alleluia.
The marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his spouse has made herself ready.
Alleluia.
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 our God Almighty is king, alleluia.
Short Reading
1 Peter 1:3-5
©
Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us a new birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt or soiled and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens. Through your faith, God’s power will guard you until the salvation which has been prepared is revealed at the end of time.
Short Responsory
Blessed are you, O Lord, in the vault of heaven.
– Blessed are you, O Lord, in the vault of heaven.
You are exalted and glorified above all else for ever.
– Blessed are you, O Lord, in the vault of heaven.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– Blessed are you, O Lord, in the vault of heaven.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
Jesus rolled up the scroll and began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ (Year C)
Or: The spirit of the Lord rests upon me; he has sent me to preach his Gospel to the poor.
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.
Jesus rolled up the scroll and began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ (Year C)
Or: The spirit of the Lord rests upon me; he has sent me to preach his Gospel to the poor.
Prayers and intercessions
God is ever creative. His love renews all things and is the source of our hope. Let us turn to him in confidence:
– Lord, accept our thanks and our prayers.
We give thanks for the order of created things:
you have blessed us with the resources of the earth and the gift of human life.
– Lord, accept our thanks and our prayers.
We give thanks for man’s share in your continuing work of creation:
we praise you for your gifts to him of inventive skill and creative vision.
– Lord, accept our thanks and our prayers.
We pray for all the nations of the world:
may those in authority work for peace and goodwill among men.
– Lord, accept our thanks and our prayers.
We pray for all who are homeless today:
we pray for families searching for a place to live, and for refugees driven from their homeland.
– Lord, accept our thanks and our prayers.
Life was your first gift to us:
may those who have died come to its fullness in you.
– Lord, accept our thanks and our prayers.
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.
All-powerful, ever-living God,
direct our steps in the way of your love,
so that our whole life may be fragrant
with all we do in the name of Jesus, your beloved 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.
