Prayer for the Evening (Friday, December 31)
Prayer for the Evening
Vigil of the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God
Jesus Christ, son of Mary, is the Lord of all time:
come, let us adore him, alleluia!
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
O Theotokos, Mary blest,
Our human nature’s shining crest,
Now we are freed from slav’ry’s plight:
Through you made children of the light.
And you, O Mary, Virgin Queen,
Descended from King David’s line,
Your royal dignity has come
Not from your fathers, but your Son.
Remove us from the ancient root.
Graft us in him, the newborn shoot.
Through you may we become by grace
A royal, priestly, human race.
O offer holy prayers to win
Release from all our bonds of sin,
And with you to the heavens raise
The ones who sing your merits’ praise.
Psalm 150
In childbirth, she brought forth the King, whose name is eternal. She keeps a mother’s joy with a virgin’s honor. None like her was seen before, and none thereafter. (Traditional Christmas Antiphon)
Let us close this year with the final psalm of the psalter. With every living being, with every gift we possess, let us praise in joyful hope the Lord Jesus Christ, whose birth of the Virgin opened this, the final age; and whose return in glory will bring it to its wonderful conclusion at the appointed time, hidden in God’s plan.
Praise God in his holy place,
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his powerful deeds,
praise his surpassing greatness.
O praise him with sound of trumpet,
praise him with lute and harp.
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
praise him with strings and pipes.
O praise him with resounding cymbals,
praise him with clashing of cymbals.
Let everything that lives and that breathes
give praise to the Lord.
Glory to the Father….
Word of God. Revelation 22:13-14, 16b
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
Blessed are they who wash their robes so as to have the right to the tree of life and enter the city through its gates.
“I am the root and offspring of David, the bright morning star.”
The kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and for ever!
Te Deum
Christ yesterday and today, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega. All time belongs to him and all the ages. To him be glory and power through every age and for ever. (Easter Vigil Liturgy)
You are God: we praise you;
You are the Lord: we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father:
All creation worships you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you:
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free
you did not spurn the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death,
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God’s right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come, and be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints
to glory everlasting.
Intercessions
In thanksgiving for the time that has been, in hope for the time that is to come, let us pray through the intercession of Mary, the Holy Mother of God:
R/We praise you, O Lord, and we bless you.
For the years, the centuries, the millennia through which the world has lived since the birth of Christ: R/
For the gifts and burdens of the year that is past: R/
For the promise of the year that lies before us: R/
For the achievement of your reign of peace and justice in the new era upon which we embark in hope: R/
(Personal intentions)
Our Father….
May the Lord of peace himself give us peace at all times and in every way. Amen. (cf. 2 Thes 3:16)
Marian Antiphon
O Mary, ever Virgin, rejoice,
you who were worthy to bear Christ,
the Creator of heaven and earth;
for from your womb
you brought forth the Savior of the world, alleluia.
Alma Redemptoris Mater
Alma Redemptoris Mater, quæ pervia cæli
porta manes, et stella maris, succurre cadenti,
surgere qui curat, populo: tu quæ genuisti,
natura mirante, tuum sanctum Genitorem,
Virgo prius ac posterius, Gabrielis ab ore
sumens illud Ave, peccatorum miserere.
Loving mother of the Redeemer
Loving mother of the Redeemer,
gate of heaven, star of the sea,
assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again.
To the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator,
yet remained a virgin after as before.
You who received Gabriel’s joyful greeting,
have pity on us, poor sinners.
