Office of Readings
INVITATORY
The Invitatory is said when this is the first ‘hour’ of the day.
Go to the Psalmody
Go to the Hymn
Lord, + open my lips.
— And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
When this antiphon is used, this strophe begins with the words: as your fathers.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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.
HYMN
Alternate Hymns
Behold, the accepted time has come:
a holy gift from God shines forth
to cure the sick and weary world
with healing balm of abstinence.
The day of our salvation dawns
resplendent with the light of Christ,
as wounded hearts are freed from sin,
restored by fasting and restraint.
O God, perfect our firm resolve
to fast with body, mind, and heart,
that filled with longing we may seek
and safely reach the eternal Pasch.
Let all your works adore you, Lord,
O merciful and Triune God.
Renewed by pardon, let us sing
a new song to your holy name. Amen.
Tune: ERHALT UNS HERR, 8 8 8 8
Music: later form of melody from Joseph Klug’s Geistiche Lieder
or Mode I, melody 28; Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983*
Text: Nunc tempus acceptabile, ca. 10th c., © 2023 ICEL
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Let us praise the Lord for his mercy and for the wonderful things he has done for men.
Psalm 107
Thanksgiving for deliverance
This is God’s message to the sons of Israel; the good news of peace proclaimed through Jesus Christ (Acts 10:36).
I
“O give thanks to the Lord for he is good; *
for his love endures for ever.”
Let them say this, the Lord’s redeemed, *
whom he redeemed from the hand of the foe
and gathered from far-off lands, *
from east and west, north and south.
Some wandered in the desert, in the wilderness, *
finding no way to a city they could dwell in.
Hungry they were and thirsty; *
their soul was fainting within them.
Then they cried to the Lord in their need *
and he rescued them from their distress
and he led them along the right way *
to reach a city they could dwell in.
Let them thank the Lord for his love, *
for the wonders he does for men.
For he satisfies the thirsty soul; *
he fills the hungry with good things.
Some lay in darkness and in gloom, *
prisoners in misery and chains,
Having defied the words of God *
and spurned the counsels of the Most High.
He crushed their spirit with toil; *
they stumbled; there was no one to help.
Then they cried to the Lord in their need *
and he rescued them from their distress.
He led them forth from darkness and gloom *
and broke their chains to pieces.
Let them thank the Lord for his goodness, *
for the wonders he does for men:
for he bursts the gates of bronze *
and shatters the iron bars.
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. Let us praise the Lord for his mercy and for the wonderful things he has done for men.
Ant. 2 Men have seen the works of God, the marvels he has done.
II
Some were sick on account of their sins *
and afflicted on account of their guilt.
They had a loathing for every food; *
they came close to the gates of death.
Then they cried to the Lord in their need *
and he rescued them from their distress.
He sent forth his word to heal them *
and saved their life from the grave.
Let them thank the Lord for his love, *
for the wonders he does for men.
Let them offer a sacrifice of thanks *
and tell of his deeds with rejoicing.
Some sailed to the sea in ships *
to trade on the mighty waters.
These men have seen the Lord’s deeds, *
the wonders he does in the deep.
For he spoke; he summoned the gale, *
raising up the waves of the sea.
Tossed up to heaven, then into the deep; *
their soul melted away in their distress.
They staggered, reeled like drunken men, *
for all their skill was gone.
Then they cried to the Lord in their need *
and he rescued them from their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper: *
all the waves of the sea were hushed.
They rejoiced because of the calm *
and he led them to the haven they desired.
Let them thank the Lord for his love, *
the wonders he does for men.
Let them exalt him in the gathering of the people *
and praise him in the meeting of all the elders.
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. Men have seen the works of God, the marvels he has done.
Ant. 3 Those who love the Lord will see and rejoice; they will understand his loving kindness.
III
He changes streams into a desert, *
springs of water into thirsty ground,
fruitful land into a salty waste, *
for the wickedness of those who live there.
But he changes desert into streams, *
thirsty ground into springs of water.
There he settles the hungry *
and they build a city to dwell in.
They sow fields and plant their vines; *
these yield crops for the harvest.
He blesses them; they grow in numbers. *
He does not let their herds decrease.
He pours contempt upon princes, *
makes them wander in trackless wastes.
They diminish, are reduced to nothing *
by oppression, evil and sorrow.
But he raises the needy from distress; *
makes families numerous as a flock.
The upright see it and rejoice *
but all who do wrong are silenced.
Whoever is wise, let him heed these things *
and consider the love of the Lord.
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
You fill the hungry with good things, Lord God, and break the sinner’s chains. Hear your people who call to you in their need, and lead your Church from the shadows of death. Gather us from sunrise to sunset, that we may grow together in faith and love and give lasting thanks for your kindness.
Ant. Those who love the Lord will see and rejoice; they will understand his loving kindness.
The man of God welcomes the light.
— So that all may see that his deeds are true.
READINGS
FIRST READING
From the book of Exodus
40:16-38
The tabernacle is erected. The cloud of the Lord.
Moses did exactly as the Lord commanded him.
On the first day of the first month of the second year the Dwelling was erected. It was Moses who erected the Dwelling. He placed the pedestals, set up its boards, put in its bars, and set up its columns. He spread the tent over the Dwelling and put the covering on top of the tent, as the Lord had commanded him. He took the commandments and put them in the ark; he placed poles alongside the ark and set the propitiatory upon it. He brought the ark into the Dwelling and hung the curtain veil, thus screening off the ark of the commandments, as the Lord had commanded him. He put the table in the meeting tent, on the north side of the Dwelling, outside the veil, and arranged the bread on it before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded him. He placed the lampstand in the meeting tent, opposite the table, on the south side of the Dwelling, and he set up lamps before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded him.
He placed the golden altar in the meeting tent, in front of the veil, and on it he burned fragrant incense, as the Lord had commanded him. He hung the curtain at the entrance of the Dwelling. He put the altar of holocausts in front of the entrance of the Dwelling of the meeting tent, and offered holocausts and cereal offerings on it, as the Lord had commanded him. He placed the laver between the meeting tent and the altar, and put water in it for washing. Moses and Aaron and his sons used to wash their hands and feet there, for they washed themselves whenever they went into the meeting tent or approached the altar, as the Lord had commanded Moses. Finally, he set up the court around the Dwelling and the altar and hung the curtain at the entrance of the court. Thus Moses finished all the work.
Then the cloud covered the meeting tent, and the glory of the Lord filled the Dwelling. Moses could not enter the meeting tent, because the cloud settled down upon it and the glory of the Lord filled the Dwelling.
Whenever the cloud rose from the Dwelling, the Israelites would set out on their journey. But if the cloud did not lift, they would not go forward; only when it lifted did they go forward. In the daytime the cloud of the Lord was seen over the Dwelling; whereas at night, fire was seen in the cloud by the whole house of Israel in all the stages of their journey.
RESPONSORY
1 Corinthians 10:1, 2; Exodus 40:32, 33, 34
Our fathers were all under the cloud
and all of them passed through the Red Sea.
— All were baptized into Moses in the cloud.
The cloud covered the meeting tent,
and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
— All were baptized into Moses in the cloud.
SECOND READING
From a sermon by Saint Gregory of Nazianzen, bishop
(Oratio 14, De pauperum amore, 38. 40: PG 35, 907. 910)
Serve Christ in the poor
Blessed are the merciful, because they shall obtain mercy, says the Scripture. Mercy is not the least of the beatitudes. Again: Blessed is he who is considerate to the needy and the poor. Once more: Generous is the man who is merciful and lends. In another place: All day the just man is merciful and lends. Let us lay hold of this blessing, let us earn the name of being considerate, let us be generous.
Not even night should interrupt you in your duty of mercy. Do not say: Come back and I will give you something tomorrow. There should be no delay between your intention and your good deed. Generosity is the one thing that cannot admit of delay.
Share your bread with the hungry, and bring the needy and the homeless into your house, with a joyful and eager heart. He who does acts of mercy should do so with cheerfulness. The grace of a good deed is doubled when it is done with promptness and speed. What is given with a bad grace or against one’s will is distasteful and far from praiseworthy.
When we perform an act of kindness we should rejoice and not be sad about it. If you undo the shackles and the thongs, says Isaiah, that is, if you do away with miserliness and counting the cost, with hesitation and grumbling, what will be the result? Something great and wonderful! What a marvelous reward there will be: Your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will rise up quickly. Who would not aspire to light and healing?
If you think that I have something to say, servants of Christ, his brethren and coheirs, let us visit Christ whenever we may; let us care for him, feed him, clothe him, welcome him, honor him, not only at a meal, as some have done, or by anointing him, as Mary did, or only by lending him a tomb, like Joseph of Arimathaea, or by arranging for his burial, like Nicodemus, who loved Christ half-heartedly, or by giving him gold, frankincense and myrrh, like the Magi before all these others.
The Lord of all asks for mercy, not sacrifice, and mercy is greater than myriads of fattened lambs. Let us then show him mercy in the persons of the poor and those who today are lying on the ground, so that when we come to leave this world they may receive us into everlasting dwelling places, in Christ our Lord himself, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
RESPONSORY
Matthew 25:35, 40; John 15:12
I was hungry and you gave me food;
I was thirsty and you gave me drink;
I was homeless and you took me in.
— Now I tell you this:
When you did these things for the most neglected of my brothers,
you did them for me.
This is what I command you:
love one another as I have loved you.
— Now I tell you this:
When you did these things for the most neglected of my brothers,
you did them for me.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Let us pray.
Lord,
may this lenten observance
of the suffering, death and resurrection of Christ
bring us to the full joy of Easter.
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:
Rejoicing in this annual celebration
of our Lenten observance,
we pray, O Lord,
that, with our hearts set on the paschal mysteries,
we may be gladdened by their full effects.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Who is the king of glory? †
The Lord, the mighty, the valiant, *
the Lord, the valiant in war.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Who is he, the king of glory? †
He, the Lord of armies, *
he is the king of glory.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Go within his gates, giving thanks. †
Enter his courts with songs of praise. *
Give thanks to him and bless his name.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Indeed, how good is the Lord, †
eternal his merciful love. *
He is faithful from age to age.
Ant. Come, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
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, let us worship Christ the Lord, who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.
Or: Today if you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.
Continue with the Hymn
Forty days and forty nights
You were fasting in the wild;
Forty days and forty nights
Tempted and yet undefiled.
Shall not we your sorrow share
And from worldly joys abstain,
Fasting with unceasing prayer,
Strong with you to suffer pain?
Then if Satan on us press,
Flesh or spirit to assail,
Victor in the wilderness,
Grant we may not faint nor fail!
So shall we have peace divine:
Holier gladness ours shall be;
Round us, too, shall angels shine,
Such as served you faithfully.
Keep, O keep us, Savior dear,
Ever constant by your side;
That with you we may appear
At the ’ternal Eastertide.
Tune: Heinlein 77.77
Music: Attributed to Martin Herbst, 1654-1681
Text: George H. Smyttan, 1822-1870, alt.
Continue with the Psalmody
Or:
O God of pity, turn to us your children;
Incline your ear in your great loving kindness.
And, as your people’s song is now ascending,
We beg you hear us.
Look down in mercy from your throne in glory;
Pour on our world the radiance of your presence;
Drive from our weary hearts the shades of darkness;
Lighten our footsteps.
O Christ, true light and goodness, life of all things,
Joy of the whole world, infinite in kindness,
Who by the crimson flowing of your lifeblood
To life restore us.
All praise to God the Father everlasting,
All praise for ever to the sole-begotten,
With whom the Holy Spirit, with them equal,
Reigns through the ages.
Tune: HERZRLIBSTER JESU, 11.11.11.5
Music: Johann Cruger, 1640; adapted by J. S. Bach, 1685-1750
Text: Aures ad nostras, Ante-Tridentine Breviary
Translation: Alan B McDougal, b. 1895, alt.
Continue with the Psalmody
