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


The royal banners forward go,
The cross shines forth in mystic glow;
Where He in flesh, our flesh Who made,
Our sentence bore, our ransom paid.

Where deep for us the spear was dyed,
Life's torrent rushing from His side,
To wash us in that precious flood,
Where mingled water flowed, and blood.

Fulfilled is all that David told
In true prophetic song of old,
Amidst the nations, God, saith he,
Hath reigned and triumphed from the tree.

O tree of beauty, tree of light!
O tree with royal purple dight!
Elect on whose triumphal breast
Those holy limbs should find their rest.

Blest tree, whose chosen branches bore
The wealth that did the world restore,
The price of humankind to pay,
And spoil the spoiler of his prey.

Upon its arms, like balance true,
He weighed the price for sinners due,
The price which none but He could pay,
And spoiled the spoiler of his prey.

O cross, our one reliance, hail!
Still may thy power with us avail
To give new virtue to the saint,
And pardon to the penitent.

To Thee, eternal Three in One,
Let homage meet by all be done:
As by the cross Thou dost restore,
So rule and guide us evermore.


PSALMODY

Antiphon 1: In holy splendor the Lord will send forth you holy sceptre from Zion.

The Lord's revelation to my Master:
"Sit on my right:
your foes I will put beneath your feet."
The Lord will yield from Zion
your scepter of power:
rule in the midst of all your foes.

A prince from the day of your birth
on the holy mountains;
from the womb before the dawn I begot you.

The Lord has sworn an oath he will not change.
"You are a priest for ever,
a priest like Melchizedeck of old."

The Master standing at your right hand
will shatter kings in the day of his wrath.

He shall drink from the stream by the wayside
and therefore he shall lift up his head. Glory...

Antiphon 1 In holy splendor the Lord will send forth you holy sceptre from Zion.


Antiphon 2 We worship the one true God who made heaven and earth.

Antiphon 3 God did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all.


READING      Acts 13:26-30
'My brothers, you descendants of Abraham's family, and others who fear God, to us the message of this salvation has been sent. Because the residents of Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize him or understand the words of the prophets that are read every sabbath, they fulfilled those words by condemning him. Even though they found no cause for a sentence of death, they asked Pilate to have him killed. When they had carried out everything that was written about him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead.


RESPONSORY
We worship you, O Christ and we praise you.
- We worship you, O Christ and we praise you.
Because by your cross you have redeemed the world.
- We praise you.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
- We worship you, O Christ and we praise you.


MAGNIFICAT (Canticle of Mary)
Antiphon: It is written, I will strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered. But when I have risen, I will go before you into Galillee. There you shall see me, says the Lord.


INTERCESSIONS
The savior of mankind by dying destroyed death and by rising restored life. Let us humbly ask him:

                      Sanctify your people, redeemed by your blood.

Redeemer of the world, give us a greater share of your passion through a deeper spirit of repentance,
 - so that we may share the glory of your resurrection.

May your Mother, comfort of the afflicted, protect us,
 - may we console others as you console us.

Look with love on those who suffer because of our indifference,
 - come to their aid, and turn our uncaring hearts to justice and charity.

You humbled yourself by being obedient even to accepting death, death on a cross,
 - give all who serve you the gifts of obedience and patient endurance.

Transform the bodies of the dead to be like your own in glory,
 - and bring us at last into their fellowship.


Our Father...


PRAYER
Almighty and ever-living God,
you have given the human race Jesus Christ our Savior as a model of humility.
He fulfilled your will by becoming man
and giving his life on the cross.
Help us to bear witness to you
by following his example of suffering
and make us worthy to share in his resurrection.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.


Alternative Prayer

Father of light,
in you is found no shadow of change
but only the fullness of life and limitless truth.
Open our hearts to the voice of your Word
and free us from the original darkness
that shadows our vision.
Restore our sight that we may look upon your Son
who calls us to repentance and a change of heart,
for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.


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