Posted on 02/28/2006 7:23:45 AM PST by Salvation
Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Reading I
1 Pt 1:10-16
Beloved:
Concerning the salvation of your souls
the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours
searched and investigated it
investigating the time and circumstances
that the Spirit of Christ within them indicated
when it testified in advance
to the sufferings destined for Christ
and the glories to follow them.
It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you
with regard to the things that have now been announced to you
by those who preached the Good News to you
through the Holy Spirit sent from heaven,
things into which angels longed to look.
Therefore, gird up the loins of your mind, live soberly,
and set your hopes completely on the grace to be brought to you
at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Like obedient children,
do not act in compliance with the desires of your former ignorance
but, as he who called you is holy,
be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct,
for it is written, Be holy because I am holy.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4
R. (2a) The Lord has made known his salvation.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has made known his salvation.
Gospel
Mk 10:28-31
Peter began to say to Jesus,
“We have given up everything and followed you.”
Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you,
there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters
or mother or father or children or lands
for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel
who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age:
houses and brothers and sisters
and mothers and children and lands,
with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come.
But many that are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
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From: 1 Peter 1:10-16
Praise and Thanksgiving to God (Continuation)
From: Mark 10:28-31
Poverty and Renunciation (Continuation)
O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 101 (102) |
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| Prayers and vows of an exile |
| Lord, listen to my prayer and let my cry come to you. Do not hide your face from me: whenever I am troubled, turn to me and hear me. Whenever I call on you, hurry to answer me. For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones are dry as tinder. My heart is cut down like grass, it is dry – I cannot remember to eat. The sound of my groaning makes my bones stick to my flesh. I am lonely as a pelican in the wilderness, as an owl in the ruins, as a sparrow alone on a rooftop: I do not sleep. All day long my enemies taunt me, they burn with anger and use my name as a curse. I make ashes my bread, I mix tears with my drink, because of your anger and reproach – you, who raised me up, have dashed me to the ground. My days fade away like a shadow: I wither like grass. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Psalm 101 (102) |
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| But you, Lord, remain for ever and your name lasts from generation to generation. You will rise up and take pity on Sion, for it is time that you pitied it, indeed it is time: for your servants love its very stones and pity even its dust. Then, Lord, the peoples will fear your name. All the kings of the earth will fear your glory, when the Lord has rebuilt Sion and appeared there in his glory; when he has listened to the prayer of the destitute and not rejected their pleading. These things shall be written for the next generation and a people yet to be born shall praise the Lord. Because he has looked down from his high sanctuary, – the Lord has looked down from heaven to earth – and heard the groans of prisoners and freed the children of death so that they could proclaim the Lord’s name in Sion and sing his praises in Jerusalem, where people and kingdoms gather together to serve the Lord. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Psalm 101 (102) |
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| He has brought down my strength in the midst of my journey; he has shortened my days. I will say, “My God, do not take me away half way through the days of my life. Your years last from generation to generation: in the beginning you founded the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will pass away but you will remain; all will grow old, like clothing, and like a cloak you will change them, and they will be changed. “But you are always the same, your years will never run out. The children of your servants shall live in peace, their descendants will endure in your sight”. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Reading | Job 3:1 - 26 © |
|---|---|
| In the end it was Job who broke the silence and cursed the day of his birth. This is what he said: May the day perish when I was born, and the night that told of a boy conceived. May that day be darkness, may God on high have no thought for it, may no light shine on it. May murk and deep shadow claim it for their own, clouds hang over it, eclipse swoop down on it. Yes, let the dark lay hold of it, to the days of the year let it not be joined, into the reckoning of months not find its way. May that night be dismal, no shout of joy come near it. Let them curse it who curse the day, who are prepared to rouse Leviathan. Dark be the stars of its morning, let it wait in vain for light and never see the opening eyes of dawn. Since it would not shut the doors of the womb on me to hide sorrow from my eyes. Why did I not die new-born, not perish as I left the womb? Why were there two knees to receive me, two breasts for me to suck? Had there not been, I should now be lying in peace, wrapped in a restful slumber, with the kings and high viziers of earth who build themselves vast vaults, or with princes who have gold and to spare and houses crammed with silver. Or put away like a still-born child that never came to be, like unborn babes that never see the light. Down there, bad men bustle no more, there the weary rest. Prisoners, all left in peace, hear no more the shouts of the gaoler. Down there, high and low are all one, and the slave is free of his master. Why give light to a man of grief? Why give life to those bitter of heart, who long for a death that never comes, and hunt for it more than for a buried treasure? They would be glad to see the grave-mound and shout with joy if they reached the tomb. Why make this gift of light to a man who does not see his way, whom God baulks on every side? My only food is sighs, and my groans pour out like water. Whatever I fear comes true, whatever I dread befalls me. For me, there is no calm, no peace; my torments banish rest. |
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| Reading | The Confessions of St Augustine |
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| Whoever I may be, Lord, I lie exposed to your scrutiny | |
| Let me know you, O you who know me; then shall I know even as I am known. You are the strength of my soul; make your way in and shape it to yourself, that it may be yours to have and to hold, free from stain or wrinkle. I speak because this is my hope, and whenever my joy springs from that hope it is joy well founded. As for the rest of this life’s experiences, the more tears are shed over them the less they are worth weeping over, and the more truly worth lamenting the less do we bewail them while mired in them. You love the truth because anyone who “does truth” comes to the light. Truth it is that I want to do, in my heart by confession in your presence, and with my pen before many witnesses. But the abyss of the human conscience lies naked to your eyes, O Lord, so would anything be secret even if I were unwilling to confess to you? I would be hiding you from myself, but not myself from you. But now that my groans bear witness that I find no pleasure in myself, you shed light upon me and give me joy, you offer yourself, lovable and longed for, that I may thrust myself away in disgust and choose you, and be pleasing no more either to you or to myself except in what I have from you. To you, then, Lord, I lie exposed, exactly as I am. I have spoken of what I hope to gain by confessing to you. My confession to you is made not with words of tongue and voice, but with the words of my soul and the clamour of my thought, to which your ear is attuned; for when I am bad, confession to you is simply disgust with myself, but when I am good, confession to you consists in not attributing my goodness to myself, because though you, Lord, bless the person who is just, it is only because you have first made him just when he was sinful. This is why, O Lord, my confession in your presence is silent, yet not altogether silent: there is no noise to it, but it shouts by love. For it is you, Lord, who judge me. No-one knows what he himself is made of, except his own spirit within him, yet there is still some part of him which remains hidden even from his own spirit; but you, Lord, know everything about a human being because you have made him. And though in your sight I may despise myself and reckon myself dust and ashes, I know something about you which I do not know about myself. It is true that we now see only a tantalising reflection in a mirror, and so it is that while I am on pilgrimage far from you I am more present to myself than to you; yet I do know that you cannot be defiled in any way whatever, whereas I do not know which temptations I may have the strength to resist, and to which ones I shall succumb. Our hope is that, because you are trustworthy, you do not allow us to be tempted more fiercely than we can bear, but along with the temptation you ordain the outcome of it, so that we can endure. Let me, then, confess what I know about myself, and confess too what I do not know, because what I know of myself I know only because you shed light on me, and what I do not know I shall remain ignorant about until my darkness becomes like bright noon before your face. |
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| A concluding prayer may follow here. |
| Tuesday, February 28, 2006 Feria |
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O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 100 (101) |
|---|
| The declaration of a just ruler |
| I will sing of kindness and justice – to you, Lord, will I sing. My thoughts shall follow the way of perfection: when will you come to me, Lord? I will walk with an innocent heart through the halls of my palace. I will allow no evil thing in my sight. I will hate the man who retreats from perfection: he may not stay near me. The wicked of heart must leave me; the plotter of evil I will not acknowledge. The man who plots against his neighbour in secret: I will suppress him. The haughty of eye, the puffed-up and proud – I will not support them. I will turn my eyes to the faithful of the land: they shall sit with me. Whoever walks in the way of perfection – he shall be my servant. The haughty shall not live in my palace; the slanderer shall not stand in my sight. Each morning I will suppress all the wicked of the land. I will rid the city of the Lord of all that do evil. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Canticle | Daniel 3 |
|---|---|
| The prayer of Azariah in the furnace | |
| Blessed are you, Lord God of our fathers: your name is glorious for ever for you are just in all you have done to us. For we have sinned and done wrong, we have deserted you and done all things wrong. Do not give us up for ever, for your name’s sake we beg you, do not dissolve your covenant. Take not your loving kindness from us, for the sake of Abraham, your beloved; and Isaac your servant, and Israel your holy one. You told them you would multiply their seed like the stars of the sky like the sand on the shores of the sea. But we, Lord, are made the least of all nations. Today we are brought low over all the earth on account of our sins. Today there is no prince no prophet, no leader, no holocaust, no sacrifice. No offering, no incense, no first-fruits offered to you – no way to obtain your mercy. But in our contrite souls, in a spirit of humility, accept us, Lord. Like a holocaust of rams and bulls, like fat sheep in their thousands, let our sacrifice be like these before you today. Bring to fruition the quest of those who follow you, for those who trust in you can never be confounded. And now we follow you with all our heart and we revere you and seek your face. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Psalm 143 (144) |
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| For victory and peace |
| Blessed be the Lord, my help, who trains my hands for battle, my fingers for war. The Lord is kindness and strength, my refuge and my liberator. He is my shield, and I trust in him – he places my people under his rule. Lord, what is man, that you should take notice of him? The son of man, that you should give him respect? For man is as nothing, his day is like a shadow that passes. Lord, descend from your heavens, touch the mountains so that they smoke. Brandish your lightnings and scatter my enemies, fire your arrows, sow confusion among them. Send down your power from above, raise me and free me from the flooding waters, from the power of those of foreign race, whose speeches are not to be trusted, who lift up their hands in perjury. I will sing a new song to you, God: I will sound your praise on the ten-stringed harp. You give victory to kings, you rescue David your servant from the swords of his enemies. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| A short Bible reading and responsory may follow here. |
| Canticle | Benedictus |
|---|---|
| The Messiah and his forerunner | |
| Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption. He has raised up the sign of salvation in the house of his servant David, as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones, his prophets through the ages: to rescue us from our enemies and all who hate us, to take pity on our fathers, to remember his holy covenant and the oath he swore to Abraham our father, that he would give himself to us, that we could serve him without fear – freed from the hands of our enemies – in uprightness and holiness before him, for all of our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High: for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path, to let his people know their salvation, so that their sins may be forgiven. Through the bottomless mercy of our God, one born on high will visit us to give light to those who walk in darkness, who live in the shadow of death; to lead our feet in the path of peace. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Some short prayers may follow here, to offer up the day's work to God. |
| Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those that trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. |
| A concluding prayer may follow here. |
| May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life. |
| A M E N |
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February 28, 2006    Tuesday of the Eighth Week of Ordinary Time
On April 17th, 1958, His Holiness Pope Pius XII confirmed the Feast of the Holy Face of Jesus on Shrove Tuesday (Tuesday before Ash Wednesday) for all the dioceses and religious orders who would ask for the Indult from Rome in order to celebrate it. You can learn more about this devotion at Holy Face Devotion and at the Holy Face Association.
Preparing for Lent No Lent is worthy of the name without a personal effort of self-reformation, of leading a life more in accordance with God's commands and an attempt by some kind of voluntary self-denial to make reparation for past negligence. But the Church, together with the personal effort which she requires of all of us, her children, sets up in the sight of God the cross of Christ, the Lamb of God who took upon Himself the sins of man and who is the price of our redemption. As Holy Week approaches the thought of the passion becomes increasingly predominant until it occupies our whole attention, but from the very beginning of Lent it is present, for it is in union with the sufferings of Christ that the whole army of Christians begins on the holy "forty days", setting out for Easter with the glad certitude of sharing in His resurrection. "Behold, now is the acceptable time, behold, now is the day of salvation." The Church puts Lent before us in the very same terms that formerly she put it before the catechumens and public penitents who were preparing for the Easter graces of baptism and sacramental reconciliation. For us, as it was for them, Lent should be a long retreat, one in which under the guidance of the Church we are led to the practice of a more perfect Christian life. She shows us the example of Christ and by fasting and penance associates us with his sufferings that we may have a share in His redemption. We should remember that Lent is not an isolated personal affair of our own. The Church avails herself of the whole of the mystery of redemption. We belong to an immense concourse, a great body in which we are united to the whole of humanity which has been redeemed by Christ. The liturgy of this season does not fail to remind us of it. This, then, is the meaning of Lent for us: a season of deepening spirituality in union with the whole Church which thus prepares to celebrate the Paschal mystery. Each year, following Christ its Head, the whole Christian people takes up with renewed effort its struggle against evil, against Satan and the sinful man that each one of us bears within himself, in order at Easter to draw new life from the very springs of divine life and to continue its progress towards heaven. Excerpted from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal. Shrove Tuesday Here are a few suggestions to help you celebrate the final day before Lent.
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1 Peter 1:10-16 / Mk 10:28-31 There is something of the squirrel in all of us, gathering up things and “squirreling” them away in assorted hiding places. There’s something of the bird in us as well, scooping up all sorts of things at random to weave into its nest. Many objects end up in nests simply because they’re brightly colored or shiny. How like our nests, full of useless stuff we just can’t say goodbye to! We have a hard time letting go, not just of things, but of ideas, habits, places, relationships, grievances, angers, griefs, and oh so much more. Letting go is hard, but the very fact of our mortality and of the limited time that is available to any one of us is an unmistakable cue that we need to learn to let go, not just of bad things but of many wonderful things as well. Just like the man on the flying trapeze, we have to let go of one thing that is very secure in order to get to where we need to go next. God has important work for us at each stage in our lives. The challenge is to know when one work is done and when and where the next is to begin. We’ll never find out if we don’t listen to the Spirit. We’ll never find out, if we don’t let go and go with the Spirit. Let go and your life will blossom. Let go and you’ll discover what Jesus meant when he said: “The first shall be last, and the last shall be first.” |
Thank you for posting these commentaries.
What did you decide about the car?
| Mk 10:28-31 | ||
|---|---|---|
| # | Douay-Rheims | Vulgate |
| 28 | And Peter began to say unto him: Behold, we have left all things and have followed thee. | coepit Petrus ei dicere ecce nos dimisimus omnia et secuti sumus te |
| 29 | Jesus answering said: Amen I say to you, there is no man who hath left house or brethren or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, | respondens Iesus ait amen dico vobis nemo est qui reliquerit domum aut fratres aut sorores aut matrem aut patrem aut filios aut agros propter me et propter evangelium |
| 30 | Who shall not receive an hundred times as much, now in this time: houses and brethren and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions: and in the world to come life everlasting. | qui non accipiat centies tantum nunc in tempore hoc domos et fratres et sorores et matres et filios et agros cum persecutionibus et in saeculo futuro vitam aeternam |
| 31 | But many that are first shall be last: and the last, first. | multi autem erunt primi novissimi et novissimi primi |
***
This tale from the life of St Peter is recorded in the collection of legends written down by Jacobus a Voragine in the 13th century. It tells how the apostle, having triumphed over Simon Magus, was persuaded by the Christians of Rome to leave town. Jacobus a Voragine relates how Peter encountered Christ on the Appian way and asked "Quo vadis domine" (Whither goest thou, master?), to which Christ replied "To Rome, to be crucified anew."
This apocryphal legend is in fact the beginning of Peter's own martyrdom. This would certainly explain the vigorous movements in Carracci's painting, with the apostle recoiling in terror. It is not the unexpected encounter with the risen Christ that has taken the apostle aback, but his awareness of his own human frailty. Annibale's magnificent rhetoric reminds the spectator of Christ's call to turn back.
(source)
They have not called me from the garage yet. It started this morning but I only got about a mile from home and it died.
??? It wasn't heated so I don't think the coil theory holds water. My tackometer stopped working before my car stalled out so I wonder if I lost an engine?? If I did I'm going to have to look for a "new to me" used car. (my car is a 1984 BMW with over 303,000 miles on it.
Tuesday February 28, 2006 Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Reading (1 Peter 1:10-16) Gospel (St. Mark 10:28-317)
In the first reading today, Saint Peter tells us that the prophets looked into the things that were to come, and in looking into these things, they prophesied beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and these sufferings have now been passed down to us and all of the glories that were to be given. And he tells us that these prophets realized they were not serving themselves, but rather they were serving us when they prophesied with regard to all of these events, as did also those who were preaching the Gospel. Therefore, Saint Peter tells us in this regard that what we have to do is make sure we are living according to the hopes of the grace that has been brought to us. This way, we are to be obedient children who do not act in compliance with the desires of our former ignorance, but as people who are called to be holy.
When we think about it, he is pointing out to us all of the things that have been prophesied in the past, as well as the Gospel that has now been preached, and all of them say the same thing: that the Messiah was going to come, He was going to suffer, He would die and rise on the third day, and, in so doing, He would call many to Himself. Because we have been incorporated into Christ, we are now, as Saint Paul says, not to inform ourselves of the present age but to transform our minds so that they are in conformity with Christ. This is, in essence, the same thing Saint Peter is telling us, that we have to put on the mind of Christ and we have to be holy. This is not something which is peripheral or optional for us; this is something which is central and is at the very heart of who we are and what we are about.
Our Lord tells us that if we are going to do this we are going to be persecuted, and He makes it absolutely clear in the Gospel today. He says that no one has given up all of these things for the sake of the Gospel who will not receive persecutions and eternal life in the age to come. So we are going to be persecuted in this life, but it will lead to eternal life. In other words, we are called to be just like Him. We are called to walk in this world serving God, but we are called to walk in this world, therefore, with our eyes set on heaven, and the people who want to focus on this world will not understand at all what it is that we are about if we are walking the way we are supposed to.
When we think about Saint Peter telling us that we have to be obedient children, all we have to do is think again about what Saint Paul had to say about Jesus: He was obedient even unto death, death on a Cross. He was obedient to the Father’s Will in all things. That included the suffering and the death that He would endure. If we are members of Jesus Christ, why should we expect that it is going to be any different? The suffering of the Mystical Body continues the suffering of the physical Person of Christ. If we are supposed to continue His suffering, as well as every other aspect of His life, then why should we be surprised when He tells us that we are going to be persecuted? He tells us in other places: If the world hates you, it is because they hated Me first. He made it very clear what is to be expected. Unless you take up your cross and follow Me, you cannot be My disciple. Remember, Jesus did not water things down. He did not hide the truth from us. He made it absolutely clear.
We have no excuse if we sit back and say, “But I didn’t know. I didn’t know that was what He was going to ask of me.” How could we not have known? How many times does He have to say it? In our humanness, we conveniently overlook the passages in Scripture that we do not like, but they are all the Word of God and we cannot be overlooking them. Perhaps to some degree we have all been influenced by some of the things that have been preached by others – the “gospel of health and wealth,” as I like to call it. If we have been influenced by these ideas, then of course we are going to have some odd ideas about what Scripture really says because we have listened to these people who have not told us the truth.
But we need to look at the truth. The truth, remember, is a person, the Person of Jesus Christ. We have to live in truth, which is to live His life, to allow Him to continue to live in us and through us. That is why Saint Peter is asking us to be obedient children, to be obedient to God Who asks only what is the very best, to be obedient to God Who will ask us to unite ourselves with His Son in His suffering and death. Now we have to ask the question: Are we really willing to do this? Are we willing to take up our cross and follow Him to Calvary? Are we willing to be hated by the world? Are we willing to be persecuted by the worldly types? These are the things that are going to happen to any true follower of Christ, to anyone who is going to be an obedient child of God. It is what He sent His own Son to do, and it is what the rest of His sons and daughters will continue to do. So we know what the outlay is; the blueprint is pretty obvious. Now the question has to do not with God’s side of things, but with ours. He promises that we will receive a hundred times more than anything we have given up – and eternal life. When we look at the little bit of suffering we have, by comparison to eternal life it is worth every bit of it. And Saint Paul makes the same point when he says: I consider the sufferings of the present to be as nothing compared to the glory to be revealed in us. When we see it that way, we need to look at ourselves again in prayer. Go before the Lord and ask yourself seriously: Am I really willing to follow Christ?
* This text was transcribed from the audio recording with minimal editing.
O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 136 (137) |
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| By the rivers of Babylon |
| By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept remembering Sion. On the willow-trees of Babylon we hung up our harps. In that place they asked us, those who had captured us, to sing them a song: “Sing us”, they said, “a song of Sion”. They had brought us affliction and asked us for joy. How shall we sing the songs of the Lord in a foreign land? Jerusalem, if I forget you, send my right hand to oblivion; let my tongue stick in my throat if I do not remember – if I do not rank Jerusalem the first of my joys. Remember, Lord, the Edomites on the day of Jerusalem: “Raze it”, they said, “to the ground”. Babylon’s daughter, destroyer – blessed be he that takes his revenge, that smashes your child on a rock. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Psalm 137 (138) |
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| Thanksgiving |
| I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth. In the presence of the angels I will make music to you, worship before your holy temple. I will praise your name because of your mercy and faithfulness: high above all other names is the greatness of your word. Each day that I call on you, Lord, listen to me, strengthen my spirit. All the kings of the earth will proclaim your glory, Lord, when they hear your word. They will sing of the paths of the Lord, so great is his glory. For the Lord is on high but he cares for the humble; and he knows the proud from afar. If I walk in the midst of troubles, you will give me life. If my enemies rise up against me, your right hand will keep me safe. The Lord does all that I need. Lord, your kindness lasts for ever: do not forsake the work of your hands. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Canticle | Apocalypse 4,5 |
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| The song of the redeemed | |
| You are worthy, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honour and power; for you made all things, and it is by your will that they existed and were created. You are worthy, Lord, to receive the book and open its seals, for you were killed, and with your blood you have ransomed people from every tribe and language and people and nation, and made them rulers and priests for God; and they will rule over the earth. The Lamb is worthy, who was killed, to receive power and riches and wisdom, strength and honour, glory and blessing. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| A short Bible reading and responsory may follow here. |
| Canticle | Magnificat |
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| My soul rejoices in the Lord | |
| My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation. For he has shown me such favour – me, his lowly handmaiden. Now all generations will call me blessed, because the mighty one has done great things for me. His name is holy, his mercy lasts for generation after generation for those who revere him. He has put forth his strength: he has scattered the proud and conceited, torn princes from their thrones; but lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things; the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel, he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Some short prayers may follow here, to offer up the day's work to God. |
| Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those that trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. |
| A concluding prayer may follow here. |
| May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life. |
| A M E N |
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Tuesday, February 28, 2006 Meditation Mark 10:28-31 We have left everything and followed you! (Mark 10:28) When Peter followed Jesus, he gave up his life as he knew it. Can you imagine doing what he did? Lent starts tomorrow. We’re about to dedicate forty days to preparing for Easter. So what will you “give up” or “do” for Lent that will help you follow Jesus and receive him with a pure heart? When we do give up or do something for Lent, it is important that we hold on to the spiritual reason why we are doing it. Imagine how much grace can flow, for instance, if we decided to fast so that we could have more time for intercession, strengthen our prayer, and develop a deeper hunger for Jesus. What would it be like if we gave up some special food, and we put the money we would have spent on that food in the poor box each week or bought items for a local homeless shelter? What would happen in our lives and in the lives of those around us if we were to develop some plan for almsgiving that was marked by a desire to be like Jesus, who became poor so we could become rich? How would our lives change if we gave up television and spent the time saying the rosary, reading Scripture, or visiting the sick? Could we give up the radio in the car and instead play a religious tape or even have silent time to reflect on God or time to pray for others traveling around us? Giving up something can be a powerful reminder that we want to draw closer to God. Take time today to pray about what you should do for Lent. Consider picking one or two sacrifices you can make that will help you draw closer to God and his people. Believe that if you do these things with a pure and humble heart, if you hold fast to the spiritual realities that these actions signify, you will become a vessel of Christ in ways so powerful that you will be speechless come Easter! “Holy Spirit, I want to grow closer to Jesus this Lent. Please give me your wisdom and guidance so that I will know the best way to prepare my heart for Easter.” 1 Peter 1:10-16; Psalm 98:1-4 |
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O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
| This is an excellent moment for an examination of conscience. In a communal celebration of Compline, one of the penitential acts given in the Missal may be recited. |
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 4 |
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| Thanksgiving |
| Take pity on me, Lord, and listen to my prayer. Alleluia. |
| When I called out, he heard me, the God of my righteousness. When I was in trouble, you gave me freedom: now, take pity on me and listen to my prayer. Sons of men, how long will your hearts be heavy? Why do you seek for vain things? Why do you run after illusions? Know that the Lord has done marvellous things for those he has chosen. When I call upon the Lord, he will hear me. Be vigorous, but do not sin: speak in the silence of your heart, in your bed, be at rest. Offer righteousness as a sacrifice, and put your trust in the Lord. Many are saying, Who will give us good things? Let your face shine on us, Lord, let the light of your face be a sign. You have given me a greater joy than the others receive from abundance of wheat and of wine. In peace shall I sleep, Lord, in peace shall I rest: firm in the hope you have given me. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Take pity on me, Lord, and listen to my prayer. Alleluia. |
| Psalm 133 (134) |
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| Evening prayer in the Temple |
| Bless the Lord through the night. Alleluia. |
| Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who stand through the night in the house of the Lord! Lift up your arms to the sanctuary and bless the Lord! May the Lord bless you from Sion – the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
| Bless the Lord through the night. Alleluia. |
| Reading | Deuteronomy 6:4-7 |
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| Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one God. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your strength. These words that I teach you today will remain in your hearts. You will teach them to your children; you will speak them as you sit at home and as you go on your journeys; you will speak them when you lie down and when you rise up. |
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| Short Responsory | ? |
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| Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit. - Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit. You have redeemed us, Lord, God of faithfulness. - Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. - Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit. |
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| Canticle | Nunc Dimittis |
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| Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia. | |
| Now, Master, you let your servant go in peace. You have fulfilled your promise. My own eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all peoples. A light to bring the Gentiles from darkness; the glory of your people Israel. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. |
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| Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia. | |
| Prayer | |
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| Let us pray. Come, Lord, to our dwelling, and drive the snares of the enemy far away from it. Let your holy angels dwell in it and keep us in peace; and may your blessing be with us always. Through Christ our Lord, Amen. |
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| May the almighty Lord grant us a quiet night and a perfect end. |
| A M E N |
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