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
Sing we triumphant hymns of praise,
New hymns to heaven exulting raise:
Christ, by a road before untrod,
Ascendeth to the throne of God.
The holy Apostolic band
Upon the Mount of Olives stand,
And with the Virgin Mother see
Jesu’s resplendent majesty.
O grant us thitherward to tend,
And with unwearied hearts ascend
Toward thy kingdom’s throne, where thou
(As is our faith) art seated now.
All glory, Lord, to thee we pay,
Ascending o’er the stars to-day;
All glory, as is ever meet,
To Father and to Paraclete.
Psalm 109 (110)
The Messiah, king and priest
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. 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.
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. Alleluia.
Psalm 46 (47)
The Lord is King
God goes up with shouts of joy; the Lord ascends with trumpet blast. Alleluia.
All nations, clap your hands;
cry out to God in exultation,
for the Lord, the Most High, is greatly to be feared,
and King over all the earth.
He has made whole peoples our subjects,
put nations beneath our feet.
He has chosen our inheritance for us,
the pride of Jacob, whom he loved.
God ascends amid rejoicing,
the Lord goes up with trumpet blast.
Sing to God, sing praise.
Sing to our king, sing praise.
God is king over the whole earth:
sing to him with all your skill.
God reigns over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.
The nobles of the peoples join together
with the people of the God of Abraham,
for to God belong the armies of the earth;
he is high above all things.
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 goes up with shouts of joy; the Lord ascends with trumpet blast. Alleluia.
Canticle
Apocalypse 11
The Judgement
Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and in him God has been glorified, alleluia.
We thank you,
Lord God Almighty,
who are and who were,
that you have taken up your great power and begun to reign.
The nations were angered,
but your anger came, the time for the dead to be judged,
the time to reward the prophets and saints, your servants,
and those who feared your name, both great and small.
Now have come the salvation and might and kingdom of our God,
and the power of his Anointed,
for the accuser of our brethren has been brought down,
who accused them day and night in the sight of God.
But they vanquished him through the blood of the Lamb
and through their own witness.
They did not cling to life,
even in the face of death.
Therefore rejoice, heavens,
and you who dwell in them.
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.
Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and in him God has been glorified, alleluia.
Short Reading
1 Peter 3:18,21-22
©
Christ himself, innocent though he was, had died once for sins, died for the guilty, to lead us to God. In the body he was put to death, in the spirit he was raised to life. And now you are saved, not by the washing off of physical dirt but by a pledge made to God from a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has entered heaven and is at God’s right hand, now that he has made the angels and Dominations and Powers his subjects.
Short Responsory
I am ascending to my Father and your Father, alleluia, alleluia.
– I am ascending to my Father and your Father, alleluia, alleluia.
I go to my God and your God.
– I am ascending to my Father and your Father, alleluia, alleluia.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– I am ascending to my Father and your Father, alleluia, alleluia.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
King of Glory, Lord Almighty, today you have ascended victoriously above the heavens. Do not leave us as orphans without a guide, but send us the one whom you promised, the gift of the Father, the Spirit of Truth. 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.
King of Glory, Lord Almighty, today you have ascended victoriously above the heavens. Do not leave us as orphans without a guide, but send us the one whom you promised, the gift of the Father, the Spirit of Truth. Alleluia.
Prayers and intercessions
Rejoicing, let us pray to Christ who is seated at the right hand of the Father.
– You, Christ, are the king of glory.
King of glory, in you our mortal flesh has been lifted to the heights:
deliver us from the corruption of sin and restore us to immortal life.
– You, Christ, are the king of glory.
Following the path of love, you came down to us from heaven:
let us follow that same path in our ascent to you.
– You, Christ, are the king of glory.
You promised to draw all men to yourself:
do not let any of us be separated from your body.
– You, Christ, are the king of glory.
You have ascended into heaven:
let us be there with you in our minds and hearts.
– You, Christ, are the king of glory.
We await your coming in majesty on the great day of judgement:
may we then gaze upon your glory, with all the faithful departed.
– You, Christ, are the king of glory.
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.
Almighty God,
fill us with a holy joy;
teach us how to thank you with reverence and love
on account of the ascension of Christ your Son.
You have raised us up with him:
where he, the head, has preceded us in glory,
there we, the body, are called in hope.
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.
