Friday 6 December 2019
Friday of the 1st week of Advent
or Saint Nicholas, Bishop
Morning Prayer (Lauds)
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
Hark! a herald voice is calling
Through the shadows of the night
‘Cast away the dreams of darkness
Christ descends with heavenly light.’
Wakened by the solemn warning,
Let the earthbound soul arise;
Christ, her sun, all sloth dispelling,
Shines upon the morning skies.
Lo, the Lamb, so long expected,
Comes with pardon down from heav’n;
Let us haste, with tears of sorrow,
One and all to be forgiv’n;
So, when next he comes with glory,
And his judgement-day draws near,
Faithful he may find his servants,
Watching till their Lord appear.
Honour, glory, might, and blessing
To the Father and the Son,
With the everlasting Spirit,
While eternal ages run.
________
Psalm 50 (51)
God, have mercy on me
“You must be made new in mind and spirit, and put on the new nature of God’s creating” (Eph 4:23,24).
Lord, you will be pleased with lawful sacrifice offered on your altar.
Have mércy on me, Gód, in your kíndness. *
In your compássion blot óut my offénce.
O wásh me more and móre from my gúilt *
and cléanse me fróm my sín.
My offénces trúly I knów them; *
my sín is álways befóre me.
Against yóu, you alóne, have I sínned; *
what is évil in your síght I have dóne.
That you may be jústified whén you give séntence *
and be withóut repróach when you júdge,
O sée, in gúilt I was bórn, *
a sínner was Í concéived.
Indéed you love trúth in the héart; *
then in the sécret of my héart teach me wísdom.
O púrify me, thén I shall be cléan; *
O wásh me, I shall be whíter than snów.
Make me héar rejóicing and gládness, *
that the bónes you have crúshed may revíve.
From my síns turn awáy your fáce *
and blót out áll my gúilt.
A púre heart creáte for me, O Gód, *
put a stéadfast spírit withín me.
Do not cást me awáy from your présence, *
nor depríve me of your hóly spírit.
Give me agáin the jóy of your hélp; *
with a spírit of férvour sustáin me,
that I may téach transgréssors your wáys *
and sínners may retúrn to yóu.
O réscue me, Gód, my hélper, *
and my tóngue shall ríng out your góodness.
O Lórd, ópen my líps *
and my móuth shall decláre your práise.
For in sácrifice you táke no delíght, *
burnt óffering from mé you would refúse,
my sácrifice, a cóntrite spírit. *
A húmbled, contrite héart you will not spúrn.
In your góodness, show fávour to Síon: *
rebúild the wálls of Jerúsalem.
Thén you will be pléased with lawful sácrifice, *
hólocausts óffered on your áltar.
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, you will be pleased with lawful sacrifice offered on your altar.
Psalm-prayer
Father, he who knew no sin was made sin for us, to save us and restore us to your friendship. Look upon our contrite heart and afflicted spirit and heal our troubled conscience, so that in the joy and strength of the Holy Spirit we may proclaim your praise and glory before all the nations.
________
Canticle
Isaiah 45
All peoples, turn to the Lord
“Every knee must bow at the name of Jesus” (Phil 2:10).
All the descendants of Israel shall glory in victory through the Lord.
Truly, God of Israel, the Saviour, *
you are a God who lies hidden.
They will be put to shame and disgraced, *
all who resist you.
They will take themselves off in dismay, *
the makers of idols.
But Israel is saved by the Lord, *
saved for evermore.
You will never be ashamed or disgraced *
through endless ages.
For this is the word of the Lord, *
the creator of heaven,
the God who made earth and shaped it, *
he who made it firm.
He did not create it in vain, *
he made it to be lived in.
‘I am the Lord, there is no other. *
I have not spoken in secret, in some dark place,
I have not said to Jacob’s sons *
“Search for me in vain.”
I am the Lord, I speak the truth, *
I proclaim what is right.
Assemble, all of you, draw near *
you who have escaped from the nations.
They know nothing, who carry around *
their idols made of wood
and keep on praying to a god *
that cannot save them.
State your case and bring your proofs, *
consult among yourselves.
Who proclaimed this beforehand, *
who foretold it long ago?
Was it not I, the Lord? *
There is no god but me,
a God of justice, a saviour. *
There is none but me.
Turn to me and be saved, *
all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, there is no other; *
by myself I swear it.
It is truth that goes forth from my mouth, *
a word beyond recall.
To me every knee shall bow, *
every tongue shall swear.
They will say: “In the Lord alone *
are victory and power.
And to him will come in dismay *
all who have resisted.
Through the Lord will come victory and glory *
for all Israel’s sons.”’
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 the descendants of Israel shall glory in victory through the Lord.
________
Psalm 99 (100)
Enter the Temple with joy
“The Lord calls all those he has redeemed to sing a hymn of victory” (St Athanasius).
Come before the Lord, singing for joy.
Cry out with jóy to the Lórd, all the éarth. †
Sérve the Lórd with gládness. *
Come befóre him, sínging for jóy.
Know that hé, the Lórd, is Gód. †
He máde us, we belóng to hím, *
we are his péople, the shéep of his flóck.
Gó within his gátes, giving thánks. †
Enter his cóurts with sóngs of práise. *
Give thánks to him and bléss his náme.
Indéed, how góod is the Lórd, †
etérnal his mérciful lóve. *
He is fáithful from áge to áge.
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.
Come before the Lord, singing for joy.
Psalm-prayer
With joy and gladness we cry out to you, Lord, and ask you: open our hearts to sing your praises and announce your goodness and truth.
Or:
God, devoted to us as a Father, you created us as a sign of your power and elected us your people to show your goodness. Accept the thanks your children offer that all men may enter your courts praising you in song.
________
Short Reading
Jeremiah 30:21,22
The Lord says this: Their prince will come from Jacob, their ruler come from their own people. I will let him come freely into my presence and he can come close to me. And you shall be my people and I will be your God.
________
Short Responsory
The glory of the Lord will shine on you, Jerusalem. Like the sun he will rise over you.
– The glory of the Lord will shine on you, Jerusalem. Like the sun he will rise over you.
His glory will appear in your midst.
– The glory of the Lord will shine on you, Jerusalem. Like the sun he will rise over you.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– The glory of the Lord will shine on you, Jerusalem. Like the sun he will rise over you.
________
Canticle
Benedictus
The Messiah and the one who was sent before him
Behold the one who is both God and man: he comes forth from the house of David and sits on the throne, alleluia.
Bléssed be the Lórd, the Gód of Ísrael! *
He has vísited his péople and redéemed them.
He has raised úp for ús a mighty sáviour *
in the hóuse of Dávid his sérvant,
as he prómised by the líps of holy mén, *
thóse who were his próphets from of óld.
A sáviour who would frée us from our fóes, *
from the hánds of áll who háte us.
So his lóve for our fáthers is fulfílled *
and his hóly covenant remémbered.
He swóre to Ábraham our fáther to gránt us, *
that frée from féar, and sáved from the hánds of our fóes,
we might sérve him in hóliness and jústice *
all the dáys of our lífe in his présence.
As for yóu, little chíld, *
you shall be cálled a próphet of Gód, the Most Hígh.
You shall go ahéad of the Lórd *
to prépare his wáys befóre him,
To make knówn to his péople their salvátion *
through forgíveness of áll their síns,
the loving-kíndness of the héart of our Gód *
who vísits us like the dáwn from on hígh.
He will give líght to those in dárkness, †
those who dwéll in the shádow of déath, *
and gúide us into the wáy of péace.
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.
Behold the one who is both God and man: he comes forth from the house of David and sits on the throne, alleluia.
________
Prayers and intercessions
It was the Father’s will that men should see him in the face of his beloved Son.
– Hallowed be your name!
Christ greeted us with good news:
may the world hear it through us, and find hope.
– Hallowed be your name!
We praise and thank you, Lord of heaven and earth:
the hope and joy of men in every age.
– Hallowed be your name!
May Christ’s coming transform the Church,
renewing its youth and vigour in the service of men.
– Hallowed be your name!
We pray for Christians who suffer for their beliefs:
sustain them in their hope.
– Hallowed be your name!
________
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.
________
Call forth your power, Lord:
come and save us from the judgement
that threatens us by reason of our sins.
Come, and set us free.
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.
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.