Monday 20 April 2020
Monday of the 2nd week of Eastertide
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 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 44 (45)
The wedding of the King
“Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him” (Mt 25:6).
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Alleluia.
My héart overflóws with nóble wórds. †
To the kíng I must spéak the sóng I have máde, *
my tóngue as nímble as the pén of a scríbe.
Yóu are the fáirest of the chíldren of mén †
and gráciousness is póured upón your líps: *
because Gód has bléssed you for évermóre.
O míghty one, gírd your swórd upon your thígh; †
in spléndour and státe, ríde on in tríumph *
for the cáuse of trúth and góodness and ríght.
Take áim with your bów in your dréad right hánd. †
Your árrows are shárp, péoples fall benéath you. *
The fóes of the kíng fall dówn and lose héart.
Your thróne, O Gód, shall endúre for éver. †
A scéptre of jústice is the scéptre of your kíngdom. *
Your lóve is for jústice; your hátred for évil.
Therefore Gód, your Gód, has anóinted yóu †
with the óil of gládness abóve other kíngs: *
your róbes are frágrant with alóes and mýrrh.
From the ívory pálace you are gréeted with músic. †
The dáughters of kíngs are amóng your lóved ones. *
On your ríght stands the quéen in góld of Óphir.
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.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Alleluia.
________
Psalm 44 (45)
The King's bride
Blessed are those who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb. Alleluia.
Lísten, O dáughter, give éar to my wórds: *
forgét your own péople and your fáther’s hóuse.
Só will the kíng desíre your béauty: *
Hé is your lórd, pay hómage to hím.
And the péople of Týre shall cóme with gífts, *
the ríchest of the péople shall séek your fávour.
The dáughter of the kíng is clóthed with spléndour, *
her róbes embróidered with péarls set in góld.
She is léd to the kíng with her máiden compánions. †
Théy are escórted amid gládness and jóy; *
they páss withín the pálace of the kíng.
Sóns shall be yóurs in pláce of your fáthers: *
you will máke them prínces over áll the éarth.
May this sóng make your náme for éver remémbered. *
May the péoples práise you 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.
Blessed are those who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb. Alleluia.
Psalm-prayer
When you took on flesh, Lord Jesus, you made a marriage of mankind with God. Help us to be faithful to your word and endure our exile bravely, until we are called to the heavenly marriage feast, to which the Virgin Mary, exemplar of your Church, has preceded us.
________
Canticle
Ephesians 1
God the Saviour
From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. Alleluia.
Blessed be the God and Father *
of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ *
with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.
He chose us in him *
before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy *
and blameless before him.
He destined us in love *
to be his sons through Jesus Christ,
according to the purpose of his will, †
to the praise of his glorious grace *
which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood, *
the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace *
which he lavished upon us.
He has made known to us †
in all wisdom and insight *
the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose *
which he set forth in Christ.
His purpose he set forth in Christ *
as a plan for the fullness of time,
to unite all things in him, *
things in heaven and things on earth.
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 his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. Alleluia.
________
Short Reading
Hebrews 8:1-3
Our High Priest has his place at the right of the throne of divine Majesty in the heavens, and he is the minister of the sanctuary and of the true Tent of Meeting which the Lord, and not any man, set up. It is the duty of every high priest to offer gifts and sacrifices.
________
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
What is born of the flesh is flesh; what is born of the Spirit is spirit, alleluia.
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.
What is born of the flesh is flesh; what is born of the Spirit is spirit, alleluia.
________
Prayers and intercessions
Rejoicing, let us pray to Christ the Lord, who sheds glory on the universe through his resurrection.
– Christ, our life, hear us.
Lord Jesus, you joined your disciples on the way to Emmaus;
accompany your Church on her journey through life.
– Christ, our life, hear us.
May we, your faithful, not be slow to believe;
give us the courage to proclaim your victory over death.
– Christ, our life, hear us.
Look upon those who have not recognized your presence in their lives;
let their hearts rejoice in the knowledge of their Saviour.
– Christ, our life, hear us.
You are the judge of the living and the dead;
grant to the faithful departed forgiveness of their sins.
– Christ, our life, 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.
________
Almighty, ever-living God,
we confidently call you Father as well as Lord.
Renew your Spirit in our hearts:
make us ever more perfectly your children,
so that we may enter upon the inheritance you have promised us.
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.