PRAYER FOR THIS EVENING (FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5)
Prayer for the Evening
Let us take up the cup of salvation
and call on the name 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. Alleluia!
HYMN
Bleeding and bound in the prison, behold!
Peter restored the sweet lamb to his fold;
Gladly she faces the torture again,
Rising in triumph o’er evil and pain.
Even the strangers, who knew not the Lord,
Flying destruction, were saved by her word;
Surely to those who are marked with his seal,
She will bring graces to help and to heal.
Glorious Agatha, now as a bride,
Raised by your Savior, you stand at his side;
Hear us and plead for us, keeping your day,
Lift us and lead us to Jesus, we pray.
PSALM 116:10-19
Jesus said, “The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized.” (cf. Mk 10:39)
The Lord strengthened Saint Agatha to take up with courage the cup of salvation, the cup of his blood, the blood of the new covenant, poured out for our redemption. Let us pray that he will grant us a share in her courage and her fidelity.
I trusted, even when I said:
“I am sorely afflicted,”
and when I said in my alarm:
“No man can be trusted.”
How can I repay the Lord
for his goodness to me?
The cup of salvation I will raise;
I will call on the Lord’s name.
My vows to the Lord I will fulfill
before all his people.
O precious in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his faithful.
Your servant, Lord, your servant am I;
you have loosened my bonds.
A thanksgiving sacrifice I make:
I will call on the Lord’s name.
My vows to the Lord I will fulfill
before all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Glory to the Father….
Word of God (2 Corinthians 4:17–5:2)
This momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to what is seen but to what is unseen; for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal.
For we know that if our earthly dwelling, a tent, should be destroyed, we have a building from God, a dwelling not made with hands, eternal in heaven. For in this tent we groan, longing to be further clothed with our heavenly habitation.
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. (Ps 25:1)
CANTICLE OF MARY
I am already being poured out like a libation. (2 Tm 4:6)
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father…
INTERCESSIONS (cf. Litany of the Precious Blood)
Redeemed by the blood of Christ, we pray:
R/Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world:
have mercy on us!
Blood of Christ, Only Begotten Son of the eternal Father, save us. R/
Blood of Christ, Incarnate Word of God, save us. R/
Blood of Christ, of the new and eternal covenant,
save us. R/
Blood of Christ, poured out on the cross, save us. R/
Blood of Christ, price of our salvation, save us. R/
Blood of Christ, shed anew in the martyrs, save us. R/
(Personal intentions)
Our Father….
May the all-powerful God protect us from all evil and bring us to life everlasting. Amen.
MARIAN ANTIPHON
Antiphon for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, February 2
Today the Blessed Virgin Mary
presented the Child Jesus in the Temple;
and Simeon, filled with the Holy Spirit,
took him into his arms,
and blessed God forever.
Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae;
vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve.
Ad te clamamus, exsules filii Evae.
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
in hac lacrimarum valle.
Eia ergo, advocata nostra,
illos tuos misericordes oculos
ad nos converte.
Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui,
nobis post hoc exsilium ostende.
O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria.
Hail, holy Queen, mother of mercy,
our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
To you do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve.
To you do we send up our sighs,
mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, O most gracious advocate,
your eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this our exile
show unto us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
V/ Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,
R/ That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Ave, Regina caelorum,
Ave, Domina angelorum,
Salve, radix, salve, porta,
Ex qua mundo lux est orta.
Gaude, Virgo gloriosa,
Super omnes speciosa;
Vale, O valde decora,
Et pro nobis Christum exora.
Hail, O Queen of heaven enthroned.
Hail, by angels mistress owned.
Root of Jesse, Gate of morn
Whence the world’s true light was born:
Glorious Virgin, joy to thee,
Loveliest whom in heaven they see;
Fairest thou, where all are fair,
Plead with Christ our souls to spare.
