PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (SUNDAY, AUGUST 23)

Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayer for the Morning

Come, let us worship the Lord,

our rock, our fortress, our deliverer.

Glory to the Father…. Alleluia!

HYMN

O where are kings and empires now

Of old that went and came

But, Lord, thy Church is praying yet,

Two thousand years the same.

We mark her goodly battlements,

And her foundations strong:

We hear within the solemn voice

Of her unending song.

For not like kingdoms of the world,

Thy holy Church, O God:

Though earthquake shocks are threat’ning her,

And tempests are abroad;

Unshaken as eternal hills,

Immovable she stands,

A mountain that shall fill the earth,

A house not made by hands.

PSALM 18:2-7, 32-34, 36, 47-48

I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. (Mt 16:18)

The Church stands firm upon the rock of Peter. Peter’s faith stands firm upon the rock of God’s Word made flesh in Jesus Christ.

I love you, Lord, my strength,

my rock, my fortress, my savior.

My God is the rock where I take refuge;

my shield, my mighty help, my stronghold.

The Lord is worthy of all praise:

when I call I am saved from my foes.

The waves of death rose about me;

the torrents of destruction assailed me;

the snares of the grave entangled me;

the traps of death confronted me.

In my anguish I called to the Lord;

I cried to my God for help.

From his temple he heard my voice;

my cry came to his ears.

For who is God but the Lord?

Who is a rock but our God?

The God who girds me with strength

and makes the path safe before me.

My feet you made swift as the deer’s;

you have made me stand firm on the heights.

You gave me your saving shield;

you upheld me, trained me with care.

Long life to the Lord, my rock!

Praised be the God who saves me,

the God who gives me redress

and subdues people under me.

Glory to the Father….

Word of God (Isaiah 28:16)

See, I am laying a stone in Zion,/ a stone that has been tested,/ A precious cornerstone as a sure foundation;/ he who puts his faith in it shall not be shaken.

Come to the living stone, precious in God’s eyes.

(cf. 1 Pt 2:4)

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH 

Peter, I have prayed that your own faith may not fail; and once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brothers. (cf. Lk 22:32)

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;

he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior,

born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old

that he would save us from our enemies,

from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers

and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:

to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

free to worship him without fear,

holy and righteous in his sight

all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet

of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

to give his people knowledge of salvation

by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

to shine on those who dwell in darkness

and the shadow of death,

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father…

INTERCESSIONS

As members of Saint Peter’s flock, we pray:

R/In your kindness, be mindful of your people.

On the night before you were betrayed, you prayed that Peter’s faith would not fail;

– strengthen today the faith of your people. R/

After your Resurrection, you showed yourself to Peter;

– enlighten our hearts so that we may own you as the Living One. R/

In your mercy, you forgave Peter his betrayal;

– forgive us our sins also. R/

(Personal intentions)

Our Father….

Lord Jesus Christ, you have built your Church upon the rock of Saint Peter’s faith. Grant that nothing may cause our faith to waver or to fail, for you live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.