Compline (Night Prayer)
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.
Now that the daylight dies away,
By all thy grace and love,
Thee, Maker of the world, we pray
To watch our bed above.
Let dreams depart and phantoms fly,
The offspring of the night,
Keep us, like shrines, beneath thine eye,
Pure in our foe’s despite.
This grace on thy redeemed confer,
Father, co-equal Son,
And Holy Ghost, the Comforter,
Eternal Three in One.
Psalm 15 (16)
The Lord, my inheritance |
My body will rest in calm and hope.
Preserve me, Lord,
I put my hope in you.
I have said to the Lord
“You are my Lord,
in you alone is all my good.”
As for the holy and noble men of the land,
in them is all my delight.
But for those who run to alien gods,
their sorrows are many.
I will not share in their libations of blood.
I will not speak their names.
You, Lord, are my inheritance and my cup.
You control my destiny,
the lot marked out for me is of the best,
my inheritance is all I could ask for.
I will bless the Lord who gave me understanding;
even in the night my heart will teach me wisdom.
I will hold the Lord for ever in my sight:
with him at my side I can never be shaken.
Thus it is that my heart rejoices,
heart and soul together;
while my body rests in calm hope.
You will not leave my soul in the underworld.
You will not let your chosen one see decay.
You will show me the paths of life,
the fullness of joy before your face,
and delights at your right hand until the end of time.
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.
My body will rest in calm and hope.
| Reading |
1 Thessalonians 5:23 |
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you in every way and preserve your life and your soul and your body without blemish, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Let us pray.
Lord our God, we are tired by the work of the day. Refresh us with peaceful sleep and, forever renewed by the help you give, let us always be dedicated to you in body and mind.
Through Christ our Lord, Amen.
May the almighty Lord grant us a quiet night and a perfect end.
A M E N
Hail to you, O Queen, mother of loving kindness,
our life, our happiness, our hope.
Hear us cry out to you,
children of Eve in our exile.
Hear as we sigh, with groaning and weeping
in this life, this valley of tears.
Come then, our Advocate, turn towards us
the gaze of your kind and loving eyes.
And show us Jesus, the blessed fruit of your womb,
when at last our exile here is ended.