Wednesday 5 February 2020
Saint Agatha, Virgin, Martyr
on Wednesday of week 4 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
All hail the power of Jesus’ name;
Let Angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem
To crown him Lord of all.
Crown him, ye Martyrs of your God,
Who from his altar call;
Praise him whose way of pain ye trod,
And crown him Lord of all.
Hail him, ye heirs of David’s line,
Whom David Lord did call;
The God Incarnate, Man Divine,
And crown him Lord of all.
Let every tribe and every tongue
To him their hearts enthral,
Lift high the universal song,
And crown him Lord of all.
________
Psalm 138 (139)
The Lord knows all things
“Who could ever know the mind of the Lord? Who could ever be his counsellor?” (Rom 11:34).
How wonderful is this knowledge of yours that you have shown me, Lord.
O Lord, you search me and you know me,
you know my resting and my rising,
you discern my purpose from afar.
You mark when I walk or lie down,
all my ways lie open to you.
Before ever a word is on my tongue
you know it, O Lord, through and through.
Behind and before you besiege me,
your hand ever laid upon me.
Too wonderful for me this knowledge,
too high, beyond my reach.
O where can I go from your spirit,
or where can I flee from your face?
If I climb the heavens, you are there.
If I lie in the grave, you are there.
If I take the wings of the dawn
and dwell at the sea’s furthest end,
even there your hand would lead me,
your right hand would hold me fast.
If I say: ‘Let the darkness hide me
and the light around me be night,’
even darkness is not dark for you
and the night is as clear as the day.
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.
How wonderful is this knowledge of yours that you have shown me, Lord.
________
Psalm 138 (139)
I am the Lord, who test the mind and heart; I give each man what his conduct deserves.
For it was you who created my being,
knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I thank you for the wonder of my being,
for the wonders of all your creation.
Already you knew my soul,
my body held no secret from you
when I was being fashioned in secret
and moulded in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw all my actions,
they were all of them written in your book;
every one of my days was decreed
before one of them came into being.
To me, how mysterious your thoughts,
the sum of them not to be numbered!
If I count them, they are more than the sand;
to finish, I must be eternal, like you.
O search me, God, and know my heart.
O test me and know my thoughts.
See that I follow not the wrong path
and lead me in the path of life eternal.
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.
I am the Lord, who test the mind and heart; I give each man what his conduct deserves.
Psalm-prayer
You watch over heaven and earth, Lord Jesus. Your death brought light to the dead; your resurrection gave joy to the saints; your ascension made the angels rejoice. Your power exceeds all power. Lead us to life eternal, and watch over us with your love. May your friends be filled with honour and join you in heaven.
Or:
Lord Jesus Christ, when you descended among the dead, you brought them the light of day; when you ascended into heaven, you brought it new radiance. May you remain with us and lead us along the paths of life until we come to rest with your friends in your holy dwelling place.
________
Canticle
(Colossians 1)
Christ, firstborn of all creatures and firstborn from the dead
All things were created in him and he holds all things in being.
Let us give thanks to the Father,
who has qualified us to share
in the inheritance of the saints in light.
He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness
and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption,
the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation,
for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth,
visible and invisible.
All things were created
through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the body, the Church;
he is the beginning,
the firstborn from the dead,
that in everything he might be pre-eminent.
For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile to himself all things,
whether on earth or in heaven,
making peace by the blood of his cross.
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 things were created in him and he holds all things in being.
________
Short Reading
1 Peter 4:13-14
Beloved, if you can have some share in the sufferings of Christ, be glad, because you will enjoy a much greater gladness when his glory is revealed. It is a blessing for you when they insult you for bearing the name of Christ, because it means that you have the Spirit of glory, the Spirit of God resting on you.
________
Short Responsory
You have tested us, God, and you have brought us out into freedom again.
– You have tested us, God, and you have brought us out into freedom again.
You have refined us like silver.
– You have tested us, God, and you have brought us out into freedom again.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– You have tested us, God, and you have brought us out into freedom again.
________
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
Lord Jesus Christ, my loving Master, I give you thanks for giving me the strength to overcome the torments which were brought against me; bid me come joyfully to your undying glory.
My soul glorifies the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
He looks on his servant in her lowliness;
henceforth all ages will call me blessed.
The Almighty works marvels for me.
Holy his name!
His mercy is from age to age,
on those who fear him.
He puts forth his arm in strength
and scatters the proud-hearted.
He casts the mighty from their thrones
and raises the lowly.
He fills the starving with good things,
sends the rich away empty.
He protects Israel, his servant,
remembering his mercy,
the mercy promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his sons 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.
Lord Jesus Christ, my loving Master, I give you thanks for giving me the strength to overcome the torments which were brought against me; bid me come joyfully to your undying glory.
________
Prayers and intercessions
Let us give thanks to the king of martyrs, for this is the hour when he offered himself in the last supper and laid down his life on the cross.
– We praise you, Christ the Lord.
We praise you, Christ our Saviour, example and strength of the martyrs, because you have loved us to the end;
– We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because you have promised repentant sinners the reward of eternal life,
– We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because you have called the Church to offer the blood of the new and eternal covenant, the blood shed for the remission of sins,
– We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because you have brought us to this day with the gift of faith intact,
– We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because of the many brothers who today have come to share in your saving death,
– We praise you, Christ the Lord.
________
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, let Saint Agatha,
who became precious in your sight through her pure life and valiant martyrdom,
plead for our forgiveness.
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 © 1996-2020 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.