Prayer for the Evening
Jesus Christ is the Sun of Justice:
come, let us adore him!
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 come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
R/Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!
PSALM 19:2-7
Night will be no more, nor will they need light from lamp or sun, for the Lord God shall give them light, and they shall reign forever and ever. (Rv 22:5)
In a darkened world, we place our trust in the promised Sun of Justice, whose rising we prepare to celebrate with joy.
The heavens proclaim the glory of God
and the firmament shows forth the work of his hands.
Day unto day takes up the story
and night unto night makes known the message.
No speech, no word, no voice is heard
yet their span extends through all the earth,
their words to the utmost bounds of the world.
There he has placed a tent for the sun;
it comes forth like a bridegroom coming from his tent,
rejoices like a champion to run its course.
At the end of the sky is the rising of the sun;
to the furthest end of the sky is its course.
There is nothing concealed from its burning heat.
Glory to the Father….
Word of God (Malachi 3:19-20)
Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven,/ when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble,/ And the day that is coming will set them on fire,/ leaving them neither root nor branch,/ says the Lord of hosts./ But for you who fear my name, there will arise/ the sun of justice with its healing rays.
On that day,/ The branch of the Lord
will be luster and glory. (Is 4:2)
CANTICLE OF MARY
O Rising Dawn, splendor of eternal Light and Sun of Justice: come and illuminate those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death. (Traditional O Antiphon)
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
In the darkness, we stand and pray in hope to the One whose life brings light to all the world:
R/Come, Lord Jesus!
The world lies under the thick clouds of warfare within us and among us:
– dispel our darkness with the light of your peace. R/
The world lies wrapped in ignorance:
– dispel our darkness with the light of your truth. R/
The world lies burdened beneath the shadow of death:
– dispel our darkness with the light of your life. R/
Personal intentions
Our Father….
Yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Marian Antiphon
Antiphon for the Solemnity of Christmas, December 25
This day a Virgin inviolate
has brought forth God for us,
clothed in tender members,
whom she was found worthy to suckle;
let us all adore him,
who has come to save us.
Alma Redemptoris Mater, quae pervia caeli
porta manes, et stella maris, succurre cadenti,
surgere qui curat, populo: tu quae genuisti,
natura mirante, tuum sanctum Genitorem,
Virgo prius ac posterius, Gabrielis ab ore
sumens illud Ave, peccatorum miserere.
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.
V/ Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,
R/ That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
