PRAYER FOR THIS EVENING (MONDAY, DECEMBER 28)
Prayer for the Evening
Jesus Christ is our life:
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
The hymn for conquering martyrs raise,
The victor innocents we praise,
Whom in their woe earth cast away,
But heav’n with joy received today;
Whose angels see the Father’s face
World without end, and hymn his grace;
And while they chant unceasing lays,
The hymn for conquering martyrs raise.
A voice from Ramah there was sent,
A voice of weeping and lament,
When Rachel mourned the children’s care
Whom for the tyrant’s sword she bare.
Triumphal is their glory now,
Whom earthly torments could not bow,
What time, both far and near that went,
A voice from Ramah there was sent.
PSALM 86:1-4, 14-17
The Lord will give strength to his people,/ the Lord will bless his people with peace. (Ps 29:11)
The peace of Bethlehem was shattered by the cries of the slaughtered children and the weeping of their mothers. The peace of the world was shattered by the single cry from the cross. Yet through that death and mourning, peace was reborn, indestructible now, in the Resurrection of the slain Christ.
Turn your ear, O Lord, and give answer
for I am poor and needy.
Preserve my life, for I am faithful:
save the servant who trusts in you.
You are my God, have mercy on me, Lord,
for I cry to you all the day long.
Give joy to your servant, O Lord,
for to you I lift up my soul.
The proud have risen against me;
ruthless men seek my life:
to you they pay no heed.
But you, God of mercy and compassion,
slow to anger, O Lord,
abounding in love and truth,
turn and take pity on me.
O give your strength to your servant
and save your handmaid’s son.
Show me a sign of your favor
that my foes may see to their shame
that you console me and give me your help.
Glory to the Father….
Word of God (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10)
For God did not destine us for wrath, but to gain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live together with him.
Save your handmaid’s children! (cf. Ps 86:16)
CANTICLE OF MARY
Blessed are they who mourn,/ for they will be comforted. (Mt 5:4)
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
We rejoice in the glory of Jesus Christ, who conquered the enemy with a white-robed army of children.
R/MGive your strength to your servants.
The Holy Innocents bore witness not in word but in death:
– give us courage to bear witness to you in word and in deed. R/
The Holy Innocents washed their robes clean in your own blood:
– cleanse us from all sin. R/
The Holy Innocents gave their lives for you:
– grant peace to all those who have given their lives into your hands. R/
Personal intentions
Our Father….
May God, who sent his angels to the shepherds, fill us with joy and make us heralds of his Gospel. 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.
Translated by James Monti
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.
