PRAYER FOR THIS EVENING (SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20)

Prayer for the Evening

God is the giver of all good gifts:

let us give thanks and praise!

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

Alas! and did my Savior bleed

And did my Sovereign die?

Would he devote that sacred Head

For sinners such as I?

Was it for crimes that I had done

He groaned upon the tree?

Amazing pity! grace unknown!

And love beyond degree!

Thus might I hide my blushing face

While his dear cross appears,

Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,

And melt my eyes to tears.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay

The debt of love I owe:

Here, Lord, I give my self away

’Tis all that I can do.

PSALM 112:5-9

Tell them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, ready to share. (1 Tm 6:18)

Just as God’s own love is without measure, so must be our love for one another and for all. To be sure, our own store of love is too small to match Christ’s generosity, but we are stewards of Christ’s bountiful love, as members of his body. Our very lives are at the service of the Gospel, as was Saint Paul’s.

The good man takes pity and lends,

he conducts his affairs with honor.

The just man will never waver:

he will be remembered for ever.

He has no fear of evil news;

with a firm heart he trusts in the Lord.

With a steadfast heart he will not fear;

he will see the downfall of his foes.

Open-handed, he gives to the poor;

his justice stands firm for ever.

His head will be raised in glory.

Glory to the Father….

Word of God (James 1:17)

All good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.

I will be more generous to you than in the ­beginning; thus you shall know that I am the Lord.

(cf. Ez 36:11)

CANTICLE OF MARY 

I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given himself up for me. (Gal 2:20)

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

God has given us all good gifts without stinting, even to giving us the gift of his Son for our salvation. In gratitude we pray:

R/We praise you, Lord our God!

For the gift of life: R/

For the gift of Jesus Christ, our salvation: R/

For the promise of life without end: R/

Personal intentions

Our Father….

May we live for ever in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

MARIAN ANTIPHON

Antiphon for the Feast of the Nativity

of the Blessed Virgin Mary,

8 September

With joy let us celebrate the nativity of blessed Mary,

that she may intercede for us

before the Lord Jesus Christ.

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.