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.
Hymn
The royal banners forward go,
The Cross shines forth in radiant glow;
Where he, the Life, did death endure,
And yet by death did life procure.
His feet and hands outstretching there,
He willed the piercing nails to bear,
For us and our redemption’s sake
A victim of himself to make.
There whilst he hung, his sacred side
By soldier’s spear was opened wide,
To cleanse us in the precious flood
Of water mingled with his blood.
Fulfilled is now what David told
In true prophetic song of old,
To all the nations, ‘Lo,’ said he,
‘Our God is reigning from the tree.’
Blest Three in One, our praise we sing
To thee from whom all graces spring:
As by the cross thou dost restore,
So rule and guide us evermore.
Psalm 61 (62)
Peace in God
The wicked men said: ‘Let us oppress the just man, since his ways are contrary to ours.’
My soul, find peace in God alone:
from him comes my salvation.
It is he who is my refuge and my safeguard,
my stronghold: I shall never be shaken.
How long will you assail a man
and band together to crush him,
like a toppling wall or a falling fence?
They plan to thrust him down from his high place.
They delight in lies:
with their lips they bless, but a curse is in their hearts.
My soul, find peace in God alone,
for he gives me strength to endure.
It is he who is my God and my safeguard,
my stronghold: I shall never be shaken.
In God is my salvation and my glory,
God is my strength – my refuge is with God.
Trust in him, all you people together,
pour out your hearts before him;
God is our refuge.
The children of Adam are as nothing;
the children of men are a deceit.
Weigh them in the scales, and they rise:
they are lighter than a puff of smoke.
Put no trust in violence,
do not be seduced into robbery;
and if riches come, do not count upon them.
God has spoken once and for all.
Two things have I heard him say:
that strength belongs to God,
and that mercy, Lord, belongs to you.
For to each of us you give
whatever our actions have deserved.
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 wicked men said: ‘Let us oppress the just man, since his ways are contrary to ours.’
Psalm 66 (67)
All peoples, praise the Lord
He bore the sins of many and interceded for sinners.
O God, take pity on us and bless us,
and let your face shine upon us,
so that your ways may be known across the world,
and all nations learn of your salvation.
Let the peoples praise you, O God,
let all the peoples praise you.
Let the nations be glad and rejoice,
for you judge the peoples with fairness
and you guide the nations of the earth.
Let the peoples praise you, O God,
let all the peoples praise you.
The earth has produced its harvest:
may God, our God, bless us.
May God bless us,
may the whole world revere him.
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.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for sinners.
Canticle
(Colossians 1)
Christ, firstborn of all creatures and firstborn from the dead
In Christ we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our sins, through the shedding of his blood.
Let us give thanks to God the Father,
who has made us worthy to share in the light that is the saints’ inheritance.
He has rescued us from the power of the shadows
and brought us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption
and the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God,
the first-born of all creation,
for in him all things were created,
in heaven and on earth,
visible and invisible,
thrones and dominations,
principalities and powers.
All things were created through him and for him:
he is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
And he is the head of the body, the Church.
He is the beginning, the first-born from the dead,
and so he is pre-eminent above all.
For it was the Father’s will that the fullness of God should dwell in him,
and that through him all things should be reconciled to himself.
Through the blood of the Cross he brought peace to all things,
both on Earth and in the heavens.
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.
In Christ we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our sins, through the shedding of his blood.
Short Reading
Ephesians 4:32-5:2
©
Be friends with one another, and kind, forgiving each other as readily as God forgave you in Christ. Try to imitate God as children of his that he loves and follow Christ loving as he loved you, giving himself up in our place as a fragrant offering and a sacrifice to God.
Short Responsory
We worship you, Christ, and we bless you.
– We worship you, Christ, and we bless you.
By your cross you have redeemed the world.
– We worship you, Christ, and we bless you.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– We worship you, Christ, and we bless you.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
The Master says: My time is near. It is at your house that I am keeping the Passover with my disciples.
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 Master says: My time is near. It is at your house that I am keeping the Passover with my disciples.
Prayers and intercessions
Let us turn in prayer to the Saviour of all men. By dying he destroyed our death and by rising he restored our life.
– Sanctify the people you redeemed by your blood.
Christ, our Redeemer, let us share in your passion by works of penance,
let us attain the glory of your resurrection.
– Sanctify the people you redeemed by your blood.
Grant us the protection of your Mother, the comforter of the afflicted,
help us to extend to others the consolation you have given us.
– Sanctify the people you redeemed by your blood.
Unite the faithful to your passion in times of trouble and distress
and let the power of your salvation shine forth in their lives.
– Sanctify the people you redeemed by your blood.
You humbled yourself even to accepting death, death on a cross;
grant to your servants obedience and patience.
– Sanctify the people you redeemed by your blood.
Share with the dead your bodily glory;
let us rejoice one day with them in the fellowship of the saints.
– Sanctify the people you redeemed by your blood.
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.
By your will, Lord God,
your Son underwent the agony of the cross
to break the power of Satan over man.
Give your people grace to rise again with Christ,
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.
