Daily Readings (on USCCB site):
» May 07, 2009
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Collect: Father, in restoring human nature you have given us a greater dignity than we had in the beginning. Keep us in your love and continue to sustain those who have received new life in baptism. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

« May 07, 2009 »

Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter
Old Calendar: St. Stanislaus, bishop and martyr #cal_links li { padding: 0px; }

According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Stanislaus, the patron of Poland. He reproached King Boleslaus the Cruel for his dissolute life, and while saying Mass, was put to death by him in 1079. His feast in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite is celebrated on April 11.

Meditation - Christ, the Life of the Regenerated Soul
The ideal of perfection is to "live for God in Christ Jesus": Viventes Deo in Christo Jesu. We cannot attain it in a day; holiness, ingrafted in us at baptism, is only developed little by little, by successive stages. Let us try to act in such a way that each Easter, each day of this blessed season which extends from the Resurrection to Pentecost, may produce within us a more complete death to sin, to the creature, and a more vigorous and more abundant increase of the life of Christ.

Christ must reign in our hearts, and all within us must be subject to Him. He came in us as King on the day of our baptism, but sin disputes this dominion with Him. When we destroy sin, infidelities, attachment to the creature; when we live by faith in Him, in His word, in His merits; when we seek to please Him in all things, then Christ is Master, then He reigns within us; as He reigns in the bosom of the Father, so He lives in us. He can say of us to the Father "Behold this soul: I live and reign in her, O Father, that Thy name may be hallowed." — Christ in His Mysteries, Dom Columba Marmion

Lauds -- Morning Prayer

Morning Prayer (Lauds)

If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.

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 142 (143)
A prayer in time of trouble
For your name’s sake, Lord, you will give me life. Alleluia.
Lord, listen to my prayer: in your faithfulness turn your ear to my pleading; in your justice, hear me. Do not judge your servant: nothing that lives can justify itself before you. The enemy has hounded my spirit, he has crushed my life to the ground, he has shut me in darkness, like the dead of long ago. So my spirit trembles within me, my heart turns to stone. I remind myself of the days of old, I reflect on all your works, I meditate once more on the work of your hands. I stretch out my arms to you, I stretch out my soul, like a land without water. Come quickly and hear me, O Lord, for my spirit is weakening. Do not hide your face from me, do not let me be like the dead, who go down to the underworld. Show me your mercy at daybreak, because of my trust in you. Tell me the way I should follow, for I lift up my soul towards you. Rescue me from my enemies: Lord, I flee to you for refuge. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Your good spirit will lead me to the land of justice; for your name’s sake, Lord, you will give me life. In your righteousness you will lead my soul away from all tribulation. 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.
For your name’s sake, Lord, you will give me life. Alleluia.

Canticle	(Isaiah 66)
Comfort and joy in the holy city
I will see you again and your hearts will be glad. Alleluia.
Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad with her, all you who love her; rejoice with her, rejoice, all you who mourned for her. Suck and be filled at the breast of her consolation; draw on the nipples of her glory, and overflow with delights. For the Lord says this: Behold, I will bring her peace as if it were a river; like an overflowing torrent, the glory of the Gentiles. You will suck, be borne on her hips, and they will caress you as you lie in her lap. As a mother comforts its child, so shall I comfort you: you will be comforted in Jerusalem. You will see, and your heart will rejoice, and your bones will flourish like living 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.
I will see you again and your hearts will be glad. Alleluia.

Psalm 146 (147A)
The Lord's goodness and power
The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem; he heals broken hearts. Alleluia.
Praise the Lord! It is good to sing praise to our God; it is a joy to sing his praises. The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem: he will call back Israel from exile. He heals broken hearts and binds up their wounds. He counts all the stars; he calls each of them by name. Our God is great and great is his strength, his wisdom is not to be measured. The Lord supports the needy, but crushes the wicked to the ground. Sing out to the Lord in thanksgiving, sing praise to our God on the harp. He covers the sky with his clouds, he makes rain to refresh the earth. He makes grass grow on the hills, and plants for the service of man. He gives food to grazing animals, and feeds the young ravens that call on him. He takes no delight in the strength of the horse, no pleasure in the strength of a man. The Lord is pleased by those who honour him, by those who trust in his kindness. 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.
The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem; he heals broken hearts. Alleluia.

Short reading	Romans 8:10-11 ©
Though your body may be dead it is because of sin, but if Christ is in you then your spirit is life itself because you have been justified; and if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, then he who raised Jesus from the dead will give life to your own mortal bodies through his Spirit living in you.

Canticle	Benedictus
The Messiah and his forerunner
The disciple is not superior to his teacher; but if the disciple becomes like his teacher, he will be perfect. Alleluia.
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.
The disciple is not superior to his teacher; but if the disciple becomes like his teacher, he will be perfect. Alleluia.

Prayers and Intercessions	?
God the Father has sent Christ for the resurrection of his children. We pray to him in faith: – May the Lord Jesus himself be our life. By the pillar of fire you guided your people in the desert: through his resurrection may Christ today be the light that brings life. – May the Lord Jesus himself be our life. By the words of Moses you taught your people on the mountain: through his resurrection may Christ today be the word that brings life. – May the Lord Jesus himself be our life. By the gift of manna you fed your people on their pilgrimage: through his resurrection may Christ today be the bread that brings life. – May the Lord Jesus himself be our life. Out of the stone you brought water for your people to drink: through your Son’s resurrection grant us today the Spirit that gives life. – May the Lord Jesus himself be our life.

Prayers and Intercessions

God the Father has sent Christ for the resurrection of his children. We pray to him in faith: