Office of Readings
INVITATORY
The Invitatory is said when this is the first ‘hour’ of the day.
Go to the Hymn
Go to the Psalmody
Lord, + open my lips.
— And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
The antiphon is repeated. In individual recitation, the antiphon may be said only at the beginning of the psalm; it need not be repeated after each strophe.
Psalm 24
Psalm 67
Psalm 100
Psalm 95
A call to praise God
Encourage each other daily while it is still today (Hebrews 3:13).
Come, let us sing to the Lord *
and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us.
Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving *
and sing joyful songs to the Lord.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
The Lord is God, the mighty God, *
the great king over all the gods.
He holds in his hands the depths of the earth *
and the highest mountains as well.
He made the sea; it belongs to him, *
the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Come, then, let us bow down and worship, *
bending the knee before the Lord, our maker.
For he is our God and we are his people, *
the flock he shepherds.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Today, listen to the voice of the Lord: †
Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did
in the wilderness, *
when at Meriba and Massah
they challenged me and provoked me, *
Although they had seen all of my works.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Forty years I endured that generation. *
I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray
and they do not know my ways.”
So I swore in my anger, *
“They shall not enter into my rest.”
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
If the Invitatory is not said, then the following is used:
God, + come to my assistance.
— Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
HYMN
Alternate Hymn
During the night or at dawn:
The wingèd herald of the day
foretells in song that dawn is near,
and Christ, who rouses souls from sleep,
now summons us to life once more:
“Away with these,” he cries, “away
with beds of sickness, sleep, and sloth;
keep watch, be sober, chaste, and just,
for I am here and close at hand.”
May he, when dawn emits and casts
her shimm’ring breath across the sky,
bestow full strength on all who toil
and make them firm in hope of light.
With sober prayers and fervent tears,
let us stir Jesus with our cries,
for earnest pleas with keen intent
preserve the pure of heart from sleep.
O Christ, dispel and scatter sleep,
break through the bondage of the night,
release us from deep-rooted sin,
and with new light now flood our hearts.
O Christ, to you, most loving King,
and to the Father glory be,
one with the Spirit Paraclete,
from age to age for evermore. Amen.
Tune: ABENDS, 8 8 8 8
Music: Herbert Stanley Oakley, 1830-1903
or Mode II, melody 43; Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983
Text: Ales diei nuntius, Prudentius, ca. 348-405, © 2023 ICEL
During the day:
Awaken us to love for you,
who grant us pardon for our faults,
that you may have compassion, Lord,
on hearts you cleanse from guilt and sin.
As outcasts here, we come to you
and, exiled, grieve with sighs and tears;
you are our haven and our home:
Lord, guide us to the halls of life.
O Truth, how happy is the love
that thirsts for you, the font of life,
and highly blest the eyes of those
who gaze upon you face to face.
How great the glory of your name,
the wondrous mem’ry of your praise,
which they whose hearts rise from the depths
now celebrate for evermore.
Most loving Father, hear our prayer,
and you, O Christ coequal Son,
who with the Spirit Paraclete
now reign for all eternity. Amen.
Tune: As above
Text: Amoris sensus erige, ca. 10th c., © 2023 ICEL
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever.
Psalm 44
The misfortune of God’s people
We triumph over all these things through him who loved us (Romans 8:37).
I
We heard with our own ears, O God, *
our fathers have told us the story
of the things you did in their days, *
you yourself, in days long ago.
To plant them you uprooted the nations: *
to let them spread you laid peoples low.
No sword of their own won the land; *
no arm of their own brought them victory.
It was your right hand, your arm *
and the light of your face: for you loved them.
It is you, my king, my God, *
who granted victories to Jacob.
Through you we beat down our foes; *
in your name we trampled down our aggressors.
For it was not in my bow that I trusted *
nor yet was I saved by my sword:
it was you who saved us from our foes, *
it was you who put our foes to shame.
All day long our boast was in God *
and we praised your name without ceasing.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever.
Ant. 2 Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt.
II
Yet now you have rejected us, disgraced us: *
you no longer go forth with our armies.
You make us retreat from the foe *
and our enemies plunder us at will.
You make us like sheep for the slaughter *
and scatter us among the nations.
You sell your own people for nothing *
and make no profit by the sale.
You make us the taunt of our neighbors, *
the laughing stock of all who are near.
Among the nations, you make us a byword, *
among the peoples a thing of derision.
All day long my disgrace is before me: *
my face is covered with shame
at the voice of the taunter, the scoffer, *
at the sight of the foe and avenger.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt.
Ant. 3 Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful.
III
This befell us though we had not forgotten you; *
though we had not been false to your covenant,
though we had not withdrawn our hearts; *
though our feet had not strayed from your path.
Yet you have crushed us in a place of sorrows *
and covered us with the shadow of death.
Had we forgotten the name of our God *
or stretched out our hands to another god
would not God have found this out, *
he who knows the secrets of the heart?
It is for you that we face death all day long *
and are counted as sheep for the slaughter.
Awake, O Lord, why do you sleep? *
Arise, do not reject us for ever!
Why do you hide your face from us *
and forget our oppression and misery?
For we are brought down low to the dust; *
our body lies prostrate on the earth.
Stand up and come to our help! *
Redeem us because of your love!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm Prayer
Lord, rise up and come to our aid; with your strong arm lead us to freedom, as you mightily delivered our forefathers. Since you are the king who knows the secrets of our hearts, fill them with the light of truth.
Ant. Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful.
Lord, to whom shall we go?
— You have the words of eternal life.
READINGS
FIRST READING
From the first book of Chronicles
22:5-19
David prepares for the building of the temple
David said: “My son Solomon is young and immature; but the house that is to be built for the Lord must be made so magnificent that it will be renowned and glorious in all countries. Therefore I will make preparations for it.” Thus before his death David laid up materials in abundance. Then he called for his son Solomon and commanded him to build a house for the Lord, the God of Israel. David said to Solomon: “My son, it was my purpose to build a house myself for the honor of the Lord, my God. But this word of the Lord came to me: ‘You have shed much blood, and you have waged great wars. You may not build a house in my honor, because you have shed too much blood upon the earth in my sight. However, a son is to be born to you. He will be a peaceful man, and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. For Solomon shall be his name, and in his time I will bestow peace and tranquility on Israel. It is he who shall build a house in my honor; he shall be a son to me, and I will be a father to him, and I will establish the throne of his kingship over Israel forever.’
“Now, my son, the Lord be with you, and may you succeed in building the house of the Lord your God, as he has said you shall. May the Lord give you prudence and discernment when he brings you to rule over Israel, so that you keep the law of the Lord, your God. Only then shall you succeed, if you are careful to observe the precepts and decrees which the Lord gave Moses for Israel. Be brave and steadfast; do not fear or lose heart. See, with great effort I have laid up for the house of the Lord a hundred thousand talents of gold, a million talents of silver, and bronze and iron in such great quantities that they cannot be weighed. I have also stored up wood and stones, to which you must add. Moreover, you have available an unlimited supply of workmen, stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and every kind of craftsman skilled in gold, silver, bronze, and iron. Set to work, therefore, and the Lord be with you!”
David also commanded all of Israel’s leaders to help his son Solomon: “Is not the Lord your God with you? Has he not given you rest on every side? Indeed, he has delivered the occupants of the land into my power, and the land is subdued before the Lord and his people. Therefore, devote your hearts and souls to seeking the Lord your God. Proceed to build the sanctuary of the Lord God, that the ark of the covenant of the Lord and God’s sacred vessels may be brought into the house built in honor of the Lord.”
RESPONSORY
1 Chronicles 22:19; Psalm 132:7; Isaiah 56:7
Offer your hearts and souls in seeking the Lord;
rise up and build a sanctuary for the Lord your God.
— Let us enter into his dwelling place;
let us worship at his footstool.
The Lord said: My house shall be called a house of prayer
for all the nations.
— Let us enter into his dwelling place;
let us worship at his footstool.
SECOND READING
From an exposition of psalm 118 by Saint Ambrose, bishop
(Nn. 12.13-14: CSEL 62, 258-259)
God’s temple is holy; you are his temple
My Father and I will come and make our home with him. Let your door stand open to receive him, unlock your soul to him, offer him a welcome in your mind, and then you will see the riches of simplicity, the treasures of peace, the joy of grace. Throw wide the gate of your heart, stand before the sun of the everlasting light that shines on every man. This true light shines on all, but if anyone closes his window he will deprive himself of eternal light. If you shut the door of your mind, you shut out Christ. Though he can enter, he does not want to force his way in rudely, or compel us to admit him against our will.
Born of a virgin, he came forth from the womb as the light of the whole world in order to shine on all men. His light is received by those who long for the splendor of perpetual light that night can never destroy. The sun of our daily experience is succeeded by the darkness of night, but the sun of holiness never sets, because wisdom cannot give place to evil.
Blessed then is the man at whose door Christ stands and knocks. Our door is faith; if it is strong enough, the whole house is safe. This is the door by which Christ enters. So the Church says in the Song of Songs: The voice of my brother is at the door. Hear his knock, listen to him asking to enter: Open to me, my sister, my betrothed, my dove, my perfect one, for my head is covered with dew, and my hair with the moisture of the night.
When does God the Word most often knock at your door?—When his head is covered with the dew of night. He visits in love those in trouble and temptation, to save them from being overwhelmed by their trials. His head is covered with dew or moisture when those who are his body are in distress. That is the time when you must keep watch so that when the bridegroom comes he may not find himself shut out, and take his departure. If you were to sleep, if your heart were not wide awake, he would not knock but go away; but if your heart is watchful, he knocks and asks you to open the door to him.
Our soul has a door; it has gates. Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, eternal gates, and the King of glory will enter. If you open the gates of your faith, the King of glory will enter your house in the triumphal procession in honor of his passion. Holiness too has its gates. We read in Scripture what the Lord Jesus said through his prophet: Open for me the gates of holiness.
It is the soul that has its door, its gates. Christ comes to this door and knocks; he knocks at these gates. Open to him; he wants to enter, to find his bride waiting and watching.
RESPONSORY
Revelation 3:20; Matthew 24:46
Behold I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
— I will come into his house and share his supper,
he and I together.
Blessed is that servant who is found at work
when his master returns.
— I will come into his house and share his supper,
he and I together.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Let us pray.
Father,
through the obedience of Jesus,
your servant and your Son,
you raised a fallen world.
Free us from sin
and bring us the joy that lasts for ever.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
— Amen.
Or:
O God, who in the abasement of your Son
have raised up a fallen world,
fill your faithful with holy joy,
for on those you have rescued from slavery to sin
you bestow eternal gladness.
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.
ACCLAMATION
Let us praise the Lord.
— And give him thanks.
******
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Psalm 24
The Lord’s entry into his temple
Christ opened heaven for us in the manhood he assumed (Saint Irenaeus).
The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, *
the world and all its peoples.
It is he who set it on the seas; *
on the waters he made it firm.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord? *
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The man with clean hands and pure heart, †
who desires not worthless things, *
who has not sworn so as to deceive his neighbor.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
He shall receive blessings from the Lord *
and reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who seek him, *
seek the face of the God of Jacob.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Who is the king of glory? †
The Lord, the mighty, the valiant, *
the Lord, the valiant in war.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Who is he, the king of glory? †
He, the Lord of armies, *
he is the king of glory.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Continue with the Hymn
Psalm 67
People of all nations will worship the Lord
You must know that God is offering his salvation to all the world (Acts 28:28).
O God, be gracious and bless us *
and let your face shed its light upon us.
So will your ways be known upon earth *
and all nations learn your saving help.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Let the nations be glad and exult *
for you rule the world with justice.
With fairness you rule the peoples, *
you guide the nations on earth.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
The earth has yielded its fruit *
for God, our God, has blessed us.
May God still give us his blessing *
till the ends of the earth revere him.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Continue with the Hymn
Psalm 100
The joyful song of those entering God’s temple
The Lord calls his ransomed people to sing songs of victory (Saint Athanasius).
Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth. †
Serve the Lord with gladness. *
Come before him, singing for joy.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Know that he, the Lord, is God. †
He made us, we belong to him, *
we are his people, the sheep of his flock.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Go within his gates, giving thanks. †
Enter his courts with songs of praise. *
Give thanks to him and bless his name.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Indeed, how good is the Lord, †
eternal his merciful love. *
He is faithful from age to age.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Come into the Lord’s presence singing for joy.
Continue with the Hymn
O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast
And our eternal home;
Beneath the shadow of your throne
Your saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is your arm alone,
And our defense is sure.
Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting you are God,
To endless years the same.
A thousand ages in your sight
Are like an evening gone,
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.
Time, like an ever-rolling stream,
Bears all its sons away;
They fly forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the opening day.
O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Be now our guide while life shall last,
And our eternal home.
Tune: Saint Anne C.M.
Music: William Croft, 1708
Text: Isaac Watts, 1674-1748, alt. by Rev. William Bauman
Continue with the Psalmody