Posted on 10/12/2003 4:14:35 PM PDT by Litany
Vespers (Evening 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.
(A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.)
Psalm 109(110)
The Messiah, king and priest
The Lord has said to my lord: "Sit at my right hand while I make your enemies into your footstool".
From Sion the Lord will give you a sceptre, and you will rule in the midst of your foes. Royal power is yours in the day of your strength, glorious and holy; from the time of your birth, before the dawn.
The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent: "You are a priest for ever, a priest of the priesthood of Melchisedech". The Lord is at your right hand, and on the day of his anger he will shatter kings.
He will judge the nations, he will pile high their skulls; he will drink from the stream as he goes - he will hold his head high.
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 111(112)
How blessed are the just
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord and loves his commands above all things. His seed will be powerful on earth: the descendants of the just will be blessed. Glory and riches will fill his house, and his righteousness will stand firm for ever.
He rises up in the darkness, a light for the upright, compassionate, generous, and just. Happy the man who takes pity and lends, who directs his affairs with wisdom - he will never be shaken.
The just man will be remembered for ever, no slander will he fear. His heart is ready, hoping in the Lord; his heart is strong, it will not fear, until he looks down on his defeated enemies. He gives alms and helps the poor: his righteousness will endure for ever, his future will be glorious.
The transgressor will see, and be enraged: he will grind his teeth and fade away. The desires of the wicked will perish.
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 19
The wedding of the Lamb
Alleluia. Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, because his judgements are true and just. Alleluia.
Alleluia. Praise our God, all his servants, and you who fear him, small and great. Alleluia.
Alleluia. For the Lord reigns, our God, the Almighty: let us rejoice and exult and give him glory. Alleluia.
Alleluia. The marriage of the Lamb has come, and his spouse has made herself ready. Alleluia.
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: Magnificat
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
(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
At General Audience
VATICAN CITY, OCT. 8, 2003 (Zenit.org).- John Paul II pointed to the importance of vespers as a time of thanksgiving to God and a chance to ask for forgiveness, as he began catecheses on evening prayer.
"The evening is a propitious time to consider in prayer before God, the day that has ended. It is the time 'to render thanks for what has been given and for what we did with rectitude,'" the Pope said at today's general audience, quoting St. Basil.
"It is also the time to ask forgiveness for the evil we have done, imploring from divine mercy that Christ will shine again in our hearts," he added during his meeting with some 15,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square.
John Paul II seemed to have recovered from his trip on Tuesday to the Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary in Pompeii. He read his meditation, skipping a few paragraphs, and received the applause of the faithful whenever he paused.
His new cycle of catecheses, to be given at the midweek general audiences, focuses on the liturgy of vespers, the evening prayer prayed by millions of lay and consecrated people throughout the world.
These papal commentaries imply a new stage in the wake of the series of meditations on the liturgy of lauds, the morning prayer that features passages from the Psalms and canticles of the Old Testament, which the Holy Father had offered since March 28, 2001.
"The rising of the sun and its setting are special moments of the day," the Pope told the audience. "They have an unmistakable character: The joyful beauty of dawn and the triumphal splendor of sunset mark the rhythm of the universe, in which the life of man is profoundly integrated."
The Pope reminded his listeners that morning and evening prayer have elements that refer to the mystery of the passion, death and resurrection of Christ.
Quoting St. Augustine of Hippo and other Church Fathers, he explained: "In the evening the Lord is on the cross; in the morning he rises. [...] In the evening I narrate the suffering endured by him in death; in the morning I proclaim the life that arises from him."
The Holy Father noted that for "ancient man, even more than for us, the succession of night and day regulated life, eliciting reflection on the great problems of life."
"Modern progress has altered in part the relation between human life and cosmic time," he added. "But the intense rhythm of human activities has not totally removed the people of today from the rhythms of the solar cycle."
Therefore, morning and evening continue to be "moments that are always opportune to dedicate to prayer, either in community or alone." The times of morning and evening prayer are "effective means to orient our daily way and direct it toward Christ, 'light of the world,'" John Paul II concluded.
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