Friday 29 November 2019
Friday of week 34 in Ordinary Time
Vespers (Evening Prayer)
Introduction (without Invitatory)
If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, use the version with the Invitatory Psalm instead.
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 gladsome light, O grace
Of God the Father’s face,
The eternal splendour wearing;
Celestial, holy, blest,
Our Saviour Jesus Christ,
Joyful in thine appearing.
Now, ere day fadeth quite,
We see the evening light,
Our wonted hymn outpouring;
Father of might unknown,
Thee, his incarnate Son,
And Holy Ghost adoring.
To thee of right belongs
All praise of holy songs,
O Son of God, Life-giver:
Thee therefore, O most High,
The world doth glorify,
And shall exalt for ever.
________
Psalm 114 (116A)
Thanksgiving
“We must experience many hardships before we can enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).
Lord, keep my soul from death, my feet from stumbling.
I love the Lórd for hé has héard *
the crý of my appéal;
for he túrned his éar to mé *
in the dáy when I cálled him.
They surróunded me, the snáres of déath, *
with the ánguish of the tómb;
they cáught me, sórrow and distréss. †
I cálled on the Lórd’s name. *
O Lórd, my Gód, delíver me!
How grácious is the Lórd, and júst; *
our Gód has compássion.
The Lórd protécts the simple héarts; *
I was hélpless so he sáved me.
Turn báck, my sóul, to your rést *
for the Lórd has been góod;
he has képt my sóul from déath, †
my éyes from téars, *
and my féet from stúmbling.
I will wálk in the présence of the Lórd *
in the lánd of the líving.
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.
Lord, keep my soul from death, my feet from stumbling.
Psalm-prayer
God of power and mercy, through your Son’s passion and resurrection you have freed us from the bonds of death and the anguish of separation from you. Be ever with us on our pilgrimage; then we shall sing rather than weep. Keep our feet from stumbling, so that we may be able to follow you until we come to eternal rest.
________
Psalm 120 (121)
The guardian of the people
“They will never hunger or thirst again; neither the sun nor the scorching wind will ever plague them” (Rev 7:16).
My help shall come from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
I líft up my éyes to the móuntains: *
from whére shall come my hélp?
My hélp shall cóme from the Lórd *
who made héaven and éarth.
May he néver állow you to stúmble! *
Let him sléep not, your gúard.
Nó, he sléeps not nor slúmbers, *
Ísrael’s gúard.
The Lórd is your gúard and your sháde; *
at your ríght side he stánds.
By dáy the sún shall not smíte you *
nor the móon in the níght.
The Lórd will gúard you from évil, *
he will gúard your sóul.
The Lord will gúard your góing and cóming *
both nów and for éver.
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.
My help shall come from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Psalm-prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, you have prepared a quiet place for us in your Father’s eternal home. Watch over our welfare on this perilous journey, shade us from the burning heat of day, and keep our lives free of evil until the end.
________
Canticle
Apocalypse 15
A hymn of adoration
Your ways are just and true, King of all the ages.
Great and wonderful are your deeds, *
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways, *
O King of the ages!
Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord? *
For you alone are holy.
All nations shall come and worship you, *
for your judgements have been revealed.
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 ways are just and true, King of all the ages.
________
Short Reading
1 Corinthians 2:7-10
The hidden wisdom of God which we teach in our mysteries is the wisdom that God predestined to be for our glory before the ages began. It is a wisdom that none of the masters of this age have ever known, or they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory; we teach what scripture calls: the things that no eye has seen and no ear has heard, things beyond the mind of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him. These are the very things that God has revealed to us through the Spirit.
________
Short Responsory
Christ died for our sins, that he might offer us to God.
– Christ died for our sins, that he might offer us to God.
In the body he was put to death; in the spirit he was raised to life.
– Christ died for our sins, that he might offer us to God.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– Christ died for our sins, that he might offer us to God.
________
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
Remember your mercy, O Lord; according to the promise you made to our fathers.
My soul glórifies the Lórd, *
my spirit rejóices in Gód, my Sáviour.
He looks on his sérvant in her lówliness; *
henceforth all áges will cáll me bléssed.
The Almíghty works márvels for me. *
Hóly his náme!
His mércy is from age to áge, *
on thóse who féar him.
He púts forth his árm in stréngth *
and scátters the proud-héarted.
He casts the míghty from their thrónes *
and ráises the lówly.
He fills the stárving with good thíngs, *
sends the rích away émpty.
He protects Ísrael, his sérvant, *
remémbering his mércy,
the mercy prómised to our fáthers, *
to Ábraham and his sóns for éver.
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.
Remember your mercy, O Lord; according to the promise you made to our fathers.
________
Prayers and intercessions
Christ comforted the widow who had lost her only son: let us pray to him, who will come at the last to wipe away every tear from our eyes.
– Come, Lord Jesus.
Lord Jesus, you consoled especially the poor and troubled:
look with mercy on those in any kind of need.
– Come, Lord Jesus.
The angel brought you the Father’s comfort on the eve of your passion:
we pray that your comfort may strengthen those who are dying.
– Come, Lord Jesus.
Let all exiles know your care for them;
may they find their homelands once more, and come one day in joy to the Father’s house.
– Come, Lord Jesus.
Look in love on all whose sins have separated them from you:
reconcile them to yourself and to your Church.
– Come, Lord Jesus.
The dead suffered the pain and loss of human life:
give them the fullness of life and joy in heaven.
– Come, Lord Jesus.
________
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,
the Cross reveals the mystery of your love:
a stumbling-block indeed for unbelief,
but the sign of your power and wisdom to us who believe.
Teach us so to contemplate your Son’s glorious Passion
that we may always believe and glory in his Cross.
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.
Copyright © 1996-2019 Universalis Publishing Limited: see www.universalis.com. Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible are published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. Text of the Psalms: Copyright © 1963, The Grail (England). Used with permission of A.P. Watt Ltd. All rights reserved.