Lord, open my lips.
 - And my mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Psalm 95 is the traditional Invitatory Psalm. Psalm 24, 67, or 100 may be substituted.

Antiphon: Christ has appeared to us. Come let us adore him.

Psalm 95

Psalm 24

Psalm 67

Psalm 100

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

This day God gives me
Strength of high heaven.
Sun and moon shining.
Flame in my hearth.
Flashing of lightning.
Wind in its swiftness.
Deeps of the ocean.
Firmness of earth.

This day God sends me
Strength as my steersman,
Might to uphold me.
Wisdom as guide.
Your eyes are watchful.
Your ears are listening.
Your lips are speaking.
Friend at my side.

God's way is my way,
God's shield is round me.
God's host defends me.
Saving from ill.
Angels of heaven,
Drive from me always
All that would harm me.
Stand by me still.

Rising, I thank you.
Mighty and strong one.
King of creation,
Giver of rest.
Firmly confessing
Threeness of persons,
Oneness of Godhead,
Trinity blest.
Text: James Quinn, SJ; Music: Old Gaelic Melody, Bunessan 55.54.D; Midi: Cyberhymnal


PSALMODY

Antiphon 1: Lord, send forth your light and your truth.

Defend me, O God, and plead my cause
against a godless nation.
From deceitful and cunning men
rescue me, O God.

Since you, O God, are my stronghold,
why have you rejected me?
Why do I go mourning
oppressed by the foe?

O send forth your light and your truth;
let these be my guide.
Let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.

And I will come to the altar of God,
the God of my joy.
My redeemer, I will thank you on the harp,
O God, my God.

Why are you cast down my soul,
why groan within me?
Hope in God; I will praise him still,
my savior and my God.  Glory

Psalm Prayer: Almighty Father, source of everlasting light, send forth your truth into our hearts and pour over us the brightness of your light.

Antiphon 1 Lord, send forth your light and your truth.


Antiphon 2 : Lord, keep us safe all the days of our life.

Once I said,
"In the noontime of life I must depart!
To the gates of the nether world I shall be consigned
for the rest of my years."

I said, "I shall see the Lord no more
in the land of the living.
No longer shall I behold my fellow men
among those who dwell in the world."

My dwelling, like a shepherd's tent,
is struck down and borne away from me;
You have folded up my life,
like a weaver who severs the last thread.

Day and night you give me over to torment;
I cry out until the dawn.
Like a lion he breaks all my bones;
day and night you give me over to torment.

Like a swallow I utter shrill cries;
I moan like a dove.
My eyes grow weak, gazing heavenward:
O Lord, I am in straits; be my surety!

You have preserved my life
from the pit of destruction,
When you cast behind your back
all my sins.

For it is not the nether world that gives you thanks,
nor death that praises you;
Neither do those who go down into the pit
await your kindness.

The living, the living give you thanks,
as I do today.
Fathers declare to their sons,
O God, your faithfulness.

The Lord is our savior;
we shall sing to stringed instruments
In the house of the Lord
all the days of our life.  Glory...

Antiphon 2 : Lord, keep us safe all the days of our life.


Antiphon 3 To you, O God, our praise is due in Zion.

To you our praise is due
in Zion, O God.
To you we pay our vows,
you who hear our prayer.

To you all flesh will come
with its burden of sin.
Too heavy for us, our offenses,
but you wipe them away.

Blessed is he whom you choose and call
to dwell in your courts.
We are filled with the blessings of your house,
of your holy temple.

You keep your pledge with wonders,
O God our savior,
the hope of all the earth
and of far distant isles.

You uphold the mountains with your strength,
you are girded with power.
You still the roaring of the seas,
(the roaring of their waves,)
and the tumult of the peoples.

The ends of the earth stand in awe
at the sight of your wonders.
The lands of sunrise and sunset
you fill with your joy.

You care for the earth, give it water;
you fill it with riches.
Your river in heaven brims over
to provide its grain.

And thus you provide for the earth;
you drench its furrows;
you level it, soften it with showers;
you bless its growth.

You crown the year with your goodness.
Abundance flows in your steps;
in the pastures of the wilderness it flows.

The hills are girded with joy,
the meadows covered with flocks,
the valleys are decked with wheat.
They shout for joy, yes they sing.  Glory...

Psalm Prayer: Lord God, hope of all the earth, hear the humble prayer of your children as we sing your praises. Pour out your Spirit on us so that our lives may bear fruit abundantly.

Antiphon 3 To you, O God, our praise is due in Zion.


READING           Isaiah 4:2-3
On that day,
The branch of the Lord will be luster and glory,
  and the fruit of the earth will be honor and splendor
  for the survivors of Israel.
He who remains in Zion
  and he that is left in Jerusalem
Will be called holy:
  every one marked down for life in Jerusalem.


RESPONSORY
All the kings of the earth will bow down in worship.
    -    All the kings of the earth will bow down in worship.
men and women of every race will serve him.
    -    They will bow down in worship.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
    -    All the kings of the earth will bow down in worship.


BENEDICTUS (Canticle of Zechariah)
Antiphon: The wise men offered gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to the Lord, the Son of God and King most high, alleluia.


INTERCESSIONS
Let us rejoice in the compassion of Christ, who came to free mankind from the slavery of corruption and to give us the freedom of the sons of God. Trusting in this divine compassion, we plead:

                    By your birth, deliver us from evil.

Lord, you existed before the ages, yet you entered into a new life,
 - renew us continually through the mystery of your birth.

Without surrendering your divinity, you wondrously took on our humanity,
 - grant that our lives may press on to a fuller participation in your divinity.

You came to be a light to the nations, the teacher of holiness,
 - let your words be a light along our way.

Word of God made flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary, you entered this world,
 - live in our hearts always through faith.


Our Father...


COLLECT
O God, whose Only Begotten Son
has appeared in our very flesh,
grant, we pray, that we may be inwardly transformed
through him whom we recognize as outwardly like ourselves.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.


May the Lord bless us, protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.