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.



When in his own image
God created man,
He included freedom
In creation's plan.
For he loved us even
From before our birth:
By his grace he made us
Freemen of this earth.

God to man entrusted
Life as gift and aim.
Sin became our prison,
Turning hope to shame.
Man against his brother
Lifted hand and sword,
And the Father's pleading
Went unseen, unheard.

Then in time our maker
Chose to intervene:
Set his love in person
In the human scene:
Jesus broke the circle
Of repeated sin,
So that man's devotion
Newly might begin.

Choose we now in freedom
Where we should belong.
Let us turn to Jesus,
Let our choice be strong.
May the great obedience
Which in Christ we see
Perfect all our service
Then we shall be free!
Text: Fred Kaan; Melody: King's Weston 65.65. D


PSALMODY

Antiphon 1: Great is the Lord our God, transcending all other gods.

Praise the name of the Lord,
praise him, servants of the Lord,
who stand in the house of the Lord
in the courts of the house of our God.

Praise the Lord for the Lord is good.
Sing a psalm to his name for he is loving.
For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself
and Israel for his own possession.

For I know that the Lord is great,
that our Lord is high above all gods.
The Lord does whatever he wills,
in heaven, on earth, in the seas.

He summons clouds from the ends of the earth;
makes lightning produce the rain;
from his treasuries he sends forth the wind.

The first-born of the Egyptians he smote,
of man and beast alike.
Signs and wonders he worked
in the midst of your land, O Egypt,
against Pharaoh and all his servants.

Nations in their greatness he struck
and kings in their splendor he slew.
Sihon, king of the Amorites,
Og, the king of Bashan,
and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
He let Israel inherit their land;
on his people their land he bestowed. Glory...

Antiphon 1 Great is the Lord our God, transcending all other gods.


Antiphon 2 House of Israel, bless the Lord! Sing psalms to him for he is merciful.

Lord, your name stands for ever,
unforgotten from age to age,
for the Lord does justice for his people;
the Lord takes pity on his servants.

Pagan idols are silver and gold,
the work of human hands.
They have mouths but they cannot speak;
they have eyes but they cannot see.

They have ears but they cannot hear;
there is never a breath on their lips.
Their makers will come to be like them
and so will all who trust in them!

Sons of Israel, bless the Lord!
Sons of Aaron, bless the Lord!
Sons of Levi, bless the Lord!
You who fear him, bless the Lord!

From Zion may the Lord be blessed,
he who dwells in Jerusalem! Glory...

Mighty and wonderful are your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Righteous and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!

Who would dare refuse you honor,
or the glory due your name, O Lord?

Since you alone are holy,
all nations shall come
and worship in your presence.
Your mighty deeds are clearly seen. Glory...

Antiphon 3 All nations will come and worship before you, O Lord.


READING      James 1:2-8
Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. But if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and he will be given it. But he should ask in faith, not doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed about by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, since he is a man of two minds, unstable in all his ways.


RESPONSORY
Christ loved us and washed away our sins in his own blood.
 - Christ loved us and washed away our sins in his own blood.
He made us a nation of kings and priests
 - in his own blood.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
 - Christ loved us and washed away our sins in his own blood.

            Have mercy on your people Lord

Hear our prayers and spare us as we confess our sins,
 - grant us forgiveness and peace.

Your Apostle said: "Where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more,"
 - forgive us our transgressions.

Lord, we have sinned, yet we have also acknowledged your infinite mercy,
 - bring us to conversion.

Save your people from their sins, Lord,
 - make them pleasing to you.

You opened Paradise to the thief who believed in you,
 - do not close the gates of heaven to the faithful departed.

Our Father...


PRAYER
Father,
In your loving plan
Christ your Son became the price of our salvation.
May we be united with him in his suffering
so that we may experience
the power of his resurrection
in the kingdom
Where he lives and reigns with you and 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.



The English translation of Psalm Responses, Alleluia Verses, Gospel Verses from Lectionary for Mass © 1969, 1981, 1997, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation (ICEL); the English translation of Antiphons, Invitatories, Responsories, Intercessions, Psalm 95, the Canticle of the Lamb, Psalm Prayers, Non-Biblical Readings from The Liturgy of the Hours © 1973, 1974, 1975, ICEL; excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 2010, ICEL. All rights reserved. Used with permission.