Saturday 26 September 2020
Saturday of week 25 in Ordinary Time
or Saints Cosmas and Damian, Martyrs
or Saturday memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary
(First Vespers of tomorrow, 26th Sunday 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.
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Hymn
Bless’d be the Lord our God!
With joy let heaven ring;
Before his presence let all earth
Its songs of homage bring!
His mighty deeds be told;
His majesty be praised;
To God, enthroned in heavenly light,
Let every voice be raised!
All that has life and breath,
Give thanks with heartfelt songs!
To him let all creation sing
To whom all praise belongs!
Acclaim the Father’s love,
Who gave us God his Son;
Praise too the Spirit, given by both,
With both for ever one!
James Quinn SJ
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Psalm 118 (119): 105-112
Meditating the word of the Lord in the Law
“This is my commandment, that you love one another” (Jn 15:12).
Your word is a lamp for my steps, Lord. Alleluia.
Your word is a lamp for my steps
and a light for my path.
I have sworn and have made up my mind
to obey your decrees.
Lord, I am deeply afflicted;
by your word give me life.
Accept, Lord, the homage of my lips
and teach me your decrees.
Though I carry my life in my hands,
I remember your law.
Though the wicked try to ensnare me,
I do not stray from your precepts.
Your will is my heritage for ever,
the joy of my heart.
I set myself to carry out your statutes
in fullness, 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.
Your word is a lamp for my steps, Lord. Alleluia.
Psalm-prayer
Let your Word, Father, be a lamp for our feet and a light to our path, so that we may understand what you wish to teach us and follow the path your light marks out for us.
________
Psalm 15 (16)
The Lord, my inheritance
“God raised up Jesus, freeing him from the pains of death” (Acts 2:24).
O Lord, you will show me the fullness of joy in your presence. Alleluia.
Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you.
I say to the Lord: ‘You are my God.
My happiness lies in you alone.’
He has put into my heart a marvellous love
for the faithful ones who dwell in his land.
Those who choose other gods increase their sorrows.
Never will I offer their offerings of blood.
Never will I take their name upon my lips.
O Lord, it is you who are my portion and cup;
it is you yourself who are my prize.
The lot marked out for me is my delight:
welcome indeed the heritage that falls to me!
I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel,
who even at night directs my heart.
I keep the Lord ever in my sight:
since he is at my right hand, I shall stand firm.
And so my heart rejoices, my soul is glad;
even my body shall rest in safety.
For you will not leave my soul among the dead,
nor let your beloved know decay.
You will show me the path of life,
the fullness of joy in your presence,
at your right hand happiness 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.
O Lord, you will show me the fullness of joy in your presence. Alleluia.
Psalm-prayer
Lord Jesus, uphold those who hope in you and give us your counsel, so that we may know the joy of your resurrection and deserve to be among the saints at your right hand.
Or:
Father, in the mysterious plan of your love, you offered your Son the bitter cup of death, and yet you would not let your Holy One know decay, but opened to him the way of life. Help us to look for happiness in you alone and to share one day the glory of your Son’s resurrection.
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Canticle
Philippians 2
Christ, God's servant
Let every creature, in heaven and on earth, bend the knee at the name of Jesus. Alleluia.
Though he was in the form of God,
Jesus did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.
He emptied himself,
taking the form of a servant,
being born in the likeness of men.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself and became obedient unto death,
even death on a cross.
Therefore God has highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name which is above every name,
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
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.
Let every creature, in heaven and on earth, bend the knee at the name of Jesus. Alleluia.
________
Short Reading
Colossians 1:2-6
Grace and peace to you from God our Father. We have never failed to remember you in our prayers and to give thanks for you to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ever since we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you show towards all the saints because of the hope which is stored up for you in heaven. It is only recently that you heard of this, when it was announced in the message of the truth. The Good News which has reached you is spreading and bearing fruit all over the world.
________
Short Responsory
From the rising of the sun to its setting, great is the name of the Lord.
– From the rising of the sun to its setting, great is the name of the Lord.
High above the heavens is his glory.
– From the rising of the sun to its setting, great is the name of the Lord.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– From the rising of the sun to its setting, great is the name of the Lord.
________
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
‘When a wicked man renounces his wickedness and does what is lawful and right, he will live, he will not die,’ says the Lord. (Year A)
Or: It is not the man who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the man who does the will of my Father. Alleluia.
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.
‘When a wicked man renounces his wickedness and does what is lawful and right, he will live, he will not die,’ says the Lord. (Year A)
Or: It is not the man who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the man who does the will of my Father. Alleluia.
________
Prayers and intercessions
God our Father leads us forward with great love towards the joyful day when we enter his rest.
– Our hope is all in you, Lord God.
Father, we pray for N., our Pope, and N., our bishop:
guide them and bless them in their work.
– Our hope is all in you, Lord God.
Help the sick to share their sufferings with Christ:
may they know in him the fullness of life and love.
– Our hope is all in you, Lord God.
Lord, you found nowhere to lay your head:
make us aware of the needs of the homeless today.
– Our hope is all in you, Lord God.
Bless those who work on the land:
may we receive the fruits of the earth with thankfulness.
– Our hope is all in you, Lord God.
Father, have mercy on those who have died in the peace of Christ:
receive them into the home you have prepared for them.
– Our hope is all in you, Lord God.
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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,
you reveal your mighty power
most of all by your forgiveness and compassion:
fill us constantly with your grace
as we hasten to share the joys you have promised us in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
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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.