Thursday 7 May 2020
Thursday of the 4th week of Eastertide
Afternoon Prayer (None)
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.
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Hymn
Eternal Father, loving God,
Who made us from the dust of earth,
Transform us by the Spirit’s grace,
Give value to our little worth.
Prepare us for that day of days
When Christ from heaven will come with might
To call us out of dust again,
Our bodies glorified in light.
O Godhead, here untouched, unseen,
All things created bear your trace;
The seed of glory sown in man
Will flower when we see your face.
Stanbrook Abbey Hymnal
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PSALMS OF THE DAY
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Psalm 118(119): 153-160
Meditating the word of the Lord in the Law
“You have the message of eternal life” (John 6:69)
Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.
See my affliction and save me
for I remember your law.
Uphold my cause and defend me;
by your promise, give me life.
Salvation is far from the wicked
who are heedless of your statutes.
Numberless, Lord, are your mercies;
with your decrees give me life.
Though my foes and oppressors are countless
I have not swerved from your will.
I look at the faithless with disgust;
they ignore your promise.
See how I love your precepts;
in your mercy give me life.
Your word is founded on truth,
your decrees are 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.
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Psalm 127 (128)
Peaceful life in the Lord
“’May the Lord bless you from Sion’, that is, from his Church” (Arnobius).
O blessed are those who fear the Lord
and walk in his ways!
By the labour of your hands you shall eat.
You will be happy and prosper;
your wife like a fruitful vine
in the heart of your house;
your children like shoots of the olive,
around your table.
Indeed thus shall be blessed
the man who fears the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Sion
all the days of your life!
May you see your children’s children
in a happy Jerusalem!
On Israel, peace!
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.
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Psalm 128 (129)
The renewed faith of an afflicted people
“The Church tells of the sufferings it endures” (St Augustine).
‘They have pressed me hard from my youth,’
this is Israel’s song.
‘They have pressed me hard from my youth
but could never destroy me.
They ploughed my back like ploughmen,
drawing long furrows.
But the Lord who is just, has destroyed
the yoke of the wicked.’
Let them be shamed and routed,
those who hate Sion!
Let them be like grass on the roof
that withers before it flowers.
With that no reaper fills his arms,
no binder makes his sheaves
and those passing by will not say:
‘On you the Lord’s blessing!
We bless you in the name of the Lord.’
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. Alleluia. Alleluia.
Psalm-prayer
Lord Jesus, living in glory as the Son of Man, remember that when our sins had ploughed long furrows on your back, your death broke the bonds of sin and Satan for ever. Bless your Church, wounded in her members, and strengthen her by your invincible power and grace.
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Short Reading
(Colossians 1:12-14)
We thank the Father who has made it possible for us to share in the saints’ inheritance of light. He has taken us out of the power of darkness and created a place for us in the kingdom of the Son that he loves. In him, we gain our freedom and the forgiveness of our sins.
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℣. Stay with us, Lord, alleluia.
℟. It is nearly evening and the day is drawing to a close, alleluia.
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Let us pray.
Lord God,
you restore our human nature
to a dignity higher than you gave it at creation.
Look with favour on the mystery of your love;
keep your gifts of grace intact
in those whose life you have renewed in baptism,
the sacrament of new birth.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
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Let us praise the Lord.
– Thanks be to God.
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.