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
O Christ, the heavens’ eternal King,
Creator, unto thee we sing,
With God the Father ever One,
Co-equal, co-eternal Son.
Thy hand, when first the world began,
Made in thine own pure image man,
And linked to fleshly form of earth
A living soul of heavenly birth.
And when the envious crafty foe
Had marred thy noblest work below,
Thou didst our ruined state repair
By deigning flesh thyself to wear.
Once of a virgin born to save,
And now new born from death’s dark grave,
O Christ, thou bidd’st us rise with thee
From death to immortality.
Eternal Shepherd, thou art wont
To cleanse Thy sheep within the font,
That mystic bath, that grave of sin,
Where ransomed souls new life begin.
Divine Redeemer, thou didst deign
To bear for us the cross of pain,
And freely pay the precious price
Of all thy blood in sacrifice.
Jesu, do thou to every heart
Unceasing Paschal joy impart;
From death of sin and guilty strife
Set free the new born sons of life.
All praise be thine, O risen Lord,
From death to endless life restored;
All praise to God the Father be
And Holy Ghost eternally.
Psalm 125 (126)
Gladness and hope in the Lord
Your sorrow will be turned into joy, alleluia.
When the Lord gave Zion back her captives, we became like dreamers.
Our mouths were filled with gladness and our voices cried in exultation.
Among the Gentiles they were saying,
“By his deeds the Lord has shown himself great.”
The Lord’s deeds showed forth his greatness,
and filled us with rejoicing.
Give us back our captives, O Lord,
as you renew the dry streams in the desolate South.
Those who sow in tears will rejoice at the harvest.
They wept as they went, went with seed for the sowing;
but with joy they will come, come bearing the sheaves.
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.
Your sorrow will be turned into joy, alleluia.
Psalm 126 (127)
Without the Lord, we labour in vain
Whether we live or whether we die, we belong to the Lord. Alleluia.
If the Lord does not build the house,
its builders labour in vain.
If the Lord does not watch over a city,
its watchmen guard it in vain.
It is vain for you to rise before the dawn
and go late to your rest,
eating the bread of toil –
to those he loves, the Lord gives sleep.
The Lord bestows sons as an heirloom,
the fruit of the womb as a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior –
so are the sons of one’s youth.
Happy the man who fills his quiver thus:
when he disputes with his enemies at the gate,
he will not be the loser.
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.
Whether we live or whether we die, we belong to the Lord. Alleluia.
Canticle
(Colossians 1)
Christ, firstborn of all creatures and firstborn from the dead
From him, through him and in him are all things that exist: to him be glory for ever. Alleluia.
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.
From him, through him and in him are all things that exist: to him be glory for ever. Alleluia.
Short Reading
Hebrews 7:24-27
©
Jesus, because he remains for ever, can never lose his priesthood. It follows, then, that his power to save is utterly certain, since he is living for ever to intercede for all who come to God through him. To suit us, the ideal high priest would have to be holy, innocent and uncontaminated, beyond the influence of sinners, and raised up above the heavens; one who would not need to offer sacrifices every day, as the other high priests do for their own sins and then for those of the people, because Jesus Christ our Lord has done this once and for all by offering himself.
Short Responsory
The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.
– The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.
They saw the Lord, alleluia, alleluia.
– The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I shall not turn away. Alleluia.
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.
All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I shall not turn away. Alleluia.
Prayers and intercessions
Let us pray to Christ, who rose from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
– Ever-living Christ, hear us.
Lord, remember those who are consecrated to your service;
may they set before your holy people the example of their lives.
– Ever-living Christ, hear us.
Grant to those who rule us your spirit of justice and peace;
May men be united, heart and soul.
– Ever-living Christ, hear us.
Make our daily life a pilgrimage of salvation;
let the earth be rich and plentiful to meet the needs of the poor.
– Ever-living Christ, hear us.
Christ, our Saviour, light of the world, you have called all mortal men to imperishable life;
shed eternal light on our departed brothers.
– Ever-living Christ, hear us.
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,
stand by your people
on whom you have bestowed the gift of faith.
Grant them their eternal heritage
in the resurrection of your only 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.
