Monday 24 August 2020
Saint Bartholomew, Apostle - Feast
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 18 (19)
Praise of God, the Lord of the law
“Be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Mt 5:48).
The Lord’s precepts are right and good: joy for the heart, light for the eyes.
The law of the Lord is perfect,
it revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,
it gives wisdom to the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right,
they gladden the heart.
The command of the Lord is clear,
it gives light to the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is holy,
abiding for ever.
The decrees of the Lord are truth
and all of them just.
They are more to be desired than gold,
than the purest of gold
and sweeter are they than honey,
than honey from the comb.
So in them your servant finds instruction;
great reward is in their keeping.
But who can detect all his errors?
From hidden faults acquit me.
From presumption restrain your servant
and let it not rule me.
Then shall I be blameless,
clean from grave sin.
May the spoken words of my mouth,
the thoughts of my heart,
win favour in your sight, O Lord,
my rescuer, my rock!
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.
The Lord’s precepts are right and good: joy for the heart, light for the eyes.
Psalm-prayer
May our words in praise of your commandments find favour with you, Lord. May our faith prove we are not slaves, but sons, not so much subjected to your law as sharing your power.
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Psalm 7
Prayer of the just man under persecution
“Behold, the judge is standing at the door” (James 5:9).
The Lord will arise as righteous judge of the peoples.
Lord God, I take refuge in you.
From my pursuer save me and rescue me,
lest he tear me to pieces like a lion
and drag me off with no one to rescue me.
Lord God, if my hands have done wrong,
if I have paid back evil for good,
I who saved my unjust oppressor:
then let my foe pursue me and seize me,
let him trample my life to the ground
and lay my soul in the dust.
Lord, rise up in your anger,
rise against the fury of my foes;
my God, awake! You will give judgement.
Let the company of nations gather round you,
taking your seat above them on high.
The Lord is judge of the peoples.
Give judgement for me, Lord; I am just
and innocent of heart.
Put an end to the evil of the wicked!
Make the just stand firm,
you who test mind and heart,
O just God!
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.
The Lord will arise as righteous judge of the peoples.
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Psalm 7
How just a judge God is, how strong: he saves the upright of heart.
God is the shield that protects me,
who saves the upright of heart.
God is a just judge
slow to anger;
but he threatens the wicked every day,
men who will not repent.
God will sharpen his sword;
he has braced his bow and taken aim.
For them he has prepared deadly weapons;
he barbs his arrows with fire.
Here is one who is pregnant with malice,
conceives evil and brings forth lies.
He digs a pitfall, digs it deep;
and in the trap he has made he will fall.
His malice will recoil on himself;
on his own head his violence will fall.
I will thank the Lord for his justice:
I will sing to the Lord, the Most High.
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 just a judge God is, how strong: he saves the upright of heart.
Psalm-prayer
Father, you weigh what is in our hearts. Free us from oppressors, and, as we wait for your day of judgement, set a firm guard on our thoughts, so that while we return good for evil, we may still praise your kind of justice.
Or:
You know our hearts, Lord, but you are slow to anger and merciful in judging. Come, examine your Church, wash her clean of sin and great crowds will surround you with songs of praise.
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Short Reading
Acts 5:41-42
The apostles left the presence of the Sanhedrin glad to have had the honour of suffering humiliation for the sake of the name. They preached every day both in the Temple and in private houses, and their proclamation of the Good News of Christ Jesus was never interrupted.
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℣. Rejoice and be glad,
℟. Because your names are written in heaven.
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Let us pray.
Almighty Lord and Father,
strengthen us in that faith
with which Saint Bartholomew gave himself wholeheartedly to Christ your Son.
Grant, at his intercession,
that your Church may become the sacrament of salvation
for all the nations of the earth.
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.