Office of Readings

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

Introduction

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.

Hymn

Hail, of paradise the portal!

Tree of Life regained, immortal;

Whence, through thee, all sweetness floweth,

And salvation’s fruit still groweth.

Thou our hearts aright inclinest,

On our life’s way brightly shinest;

Us from God’s just anger savest,

Who to man our Saviour gavest.

Hail! Blest shrine of God the Father,

Thither sinners haste to gather;

Pardon for their guilt obtaining,

Freedom from the foe’s enchaining;

Strength from thee the weak shall borrow,

Comfort, thou, of all who sorrow;

From the final wrath tremendous,

Mother of our Christ, defend us.

Star of ocean! Mother fairest!

Who the name of Mary bearest;

In thy bright illumination

Pales each star and constellation.

Hail, O Father! Hail, sweet Mother!

Hail, O Son of God, our Brother!

Let the hosts of heaven adore thee,

Every spirit bow before thee.

Psalm 23 (24) The Lord comes to his temple

The Virgin Mary received blessings from the Lord and reward from the God who saved her. Alleluia.

The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,

the world and all who live in it.

He himself founded it upon the seas

and set it firm over the waters.

Who will climb the mountain of the Lord?

Who will stand in his holy place?

The one who is innocent of wrongdoing and pure of heart,

who has not given himself to vanities or sworn falsely.

He will receive the blessing of the Lord

and be justified by God his saviour.

This is the way of those who seek him,

seek the face of the God of Jacob.

Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors,

and let the king of glory enter.

Who is the king of glory?

The Lord of might and power.

The Lord, strong in battle.

Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors,

and let the king of glory enter.

Who is the king of glory?

The Lord of hosts

– he is the king of glory.

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 Virgin Mary received blessings from the Lord and reward from the God who saved her. Alleluia.

Psalm 45 (46) God, our refuge and our strength

The Most High has made holy the place where he dwells. Alleluia.

The Lord is our refuge and our strength,

a true help in our troubles.

Therefore we do not fear,

even when the earth is shaken and mountains fall into the depths of the sea,

the waves roar and foam

and rise up to shake the mountains.

The streams of the river give joy to the city of God,

the holy dwelling-place of the Most High.

God is within it, it will not be shaken;

God will give help as the day dawns.

The nations are in turmoil and kingdoms totter:

at the sound of his voice, the earth flows like water.

The Lord of strength is with us,

the God of Jacob is our refuge.

Come and see the works of the Lord,

who has done wonders on the earth.

He puts an end to wars over all the world:

he tramples the bow, shatters weapons, and burns the shields with fire.

Stop and see that I am God:

I will be exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth.

The Lord of strength is with us,

the God of Jacob is our refuge.

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 Most High has made holy the place where he dwells. Alleluia.

Psalm 86 (87) Jerusalem, mother of all nations

Of you are told glorious things, O Virgin Mary! Alleluia.

Its foundations are set on the sacred mountains –

the Lord loves the gates of Zion

more than all the tents of Jacob.

Glorious things are said of you, city of God!

I shall count Rahab and Babylon among those who acknowledge me.

The Philistines, Tyrians, Ethiopians –

all have their birthplace here.

Of Zion it will be said “Here is the birthplace of all people:

the Most High himself has set it firm.”

The Lord shall write in the book of the nations:

“Here is their birthplace.”

They will sing as in joyful processions:

“All my being springs from you.”

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.

Of you are told glorious things, O Virgin Mary! Alleluia.

Mary stored up all these words, alleluia,

– and pondered them in her heart. Alleluia.

Reading	Song of Songs 2:8-14,8:6-7 ©

I hear my Beloved.

See how he comes

leaping on the mountains,

bounding over the hills.

My Beloved is like a gazelle,

like a young stag.

See where he stands

behind our wall.

He looks in at the window,

he peers through the lattice.

My Beloved lifts up his voice,

he says to me,

‘Come then, my love,

my lovely one, come.

For see, winter is past,

the rains are over and gone.

The flowers appear on the earth.

The season of glad songs has come,

the cooing of the turtledove is heard

in our land.

The fig tree is forming its first figs

and the blossoming vines give out their fragrance.

Come then, my love,

my lovely one, come.

My dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock,

in the coverts of the cliff,

show me your face,

let me hear your voice;

for your voice is sweet

and your face is beautiful.’

Set me like a seal on your heart,

like a seal on your arm.

For love is strong as death,

jealousy as relentless as Sheol.

The flash of it is a flash of fire,

a flame of the Lord himself.

Love no floods can quench,

no torrents drown.

Were a man to offer all the wealth of his house to buy love,

contempt is all he would purchase.

Responsory

Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and cried out with a loud voice, Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Who am I, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? Alleluia.

I tell you, when your greeting sounded in my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Who am I, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? Alleluia.

Reading	A sermon by St Bede the Venerable

Mary proclaims the greatness of the Lord working in her soul

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour. With these words Mary first acknowledges the special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God’s universal favours, bestowed unceasingly on the human race.

When a man devotes all his thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord, he proclaims God’s greatness. His observance of God’s commands, moreover, shows that he has God’s power and greatness always at heart. His spirit rejoices in God his saviour and delights in the mere recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal salvation.

These words are often for all God’s creations, but especially for the Mother of God. She alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual love for the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints, she alone could truly rejoice in Jesus, her saviour, for she knew that he who was the source of eternal salvation would be born in time in her body, in one person both her own son and her Lord.

For the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Mary attributes nothing to her own merits. She refers all her greatness to the gift of the one whose essence is power and whose nature is greatness, for he fills with greatness and strength the small and the weak who believe in him.

She did well to add: and holy is his name, to warn those who heard, and indeed all who would receive his words, that they must believe and call upon his name. For they too could share in everlasting holiness and true salvation according to the words of the prophet: and it will come to pass, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. This is the name she spoke of earlier: and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour.

Therefore it is an excellent and fruitful custom of holy Church that we should sing Mary’s hymn at the time of evening prayer. By meditating upon the incarnation, our devotion is kindled, and by remembering the example of God’s Mother, we are encouraged to lead a life of virtue. Such virtues are best achieved in the evening. We are weary after the day’s work and worn out by our distractions. The time for rest is near, and our minds are ready for contemplation.

Responsory

’Blessed are you who have believed, because what has been promised to you by the Lord will be fulfilled.’ And Mary said, My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, alleluia.

Come and hear: I will tell what God has done for my soul. My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, alleluia.

Hymn	Te Deum

God, we praise you; Lord, we proclaim you!

You, the Father, the eternal –

all the earth venerates you.

All the angels, all the heavens, every power –

The cherubim, the seraphim –

unceasingly, they cry:

“Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts:

heaven and earth are full of the majesty of your glory!”

The glorious choir of Apostles –

The noble ranks of prophets –

The shining army of martyrs –

all praise you.

Throughout the world your holy Church proclaims you.

– Father of immeasurable majesty,

– True Son, only-begotten, worthy of worship,

– Holy Spirit, our Advocate.

You, Christ:

– You are the king of glory.

– You are the Father’s eternal Son.

– You, to free mankind, did not disdain a Virgin’s womb.

– You defeated the sharp spear of Death, and opened the kingdom of heaven to those who believe in you.

– You sit at God’s right hand, in the glory of the Father.

– You will come, so we believe, as our Judge.

And so we ask of you: give help to your servants, whom you set free at the price of your precious blood.

Number them among your chosen ones in eternal glory.

The final part of the hymn may be omitted:

Bring your people to safety, Lord, and bless those who are your inheritance.

Rule them and lift them high for ever.

Day by day we bless you, Lord: we praise you for ever and for ever.

Of your goodness, Lord, keep us without sin for today.

Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us.

Let your pity, Lord, be upon us, as much as we trust in you.

In you, Lord, I trust: let me never be put to shame.

Let us pray.

Almighty, ever-living God,

you inspired the Blessed Virgin Mary,

when she was carrying your Son,

to visit Elizabeth.

Grant that, always docile to the voice of the Spirit,

we may, together with Our Lady, glorify your Name.

[We make our prayer] through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Divine Intimacy Devotional

Conformity with Christ Through the Action of the Holy Spirit

Presence of God

O Holy Spirit, make me conformable to Jesus, make me an 'alter Christus', another Christ.

Meditation

1. The Holy Spirit is given to us to sanctify us, but how will He accomplish this mission? The Encyclical Mystici Corporis tells us that the divine Paraclete "is communicated to the Church … so that she and each of her members may become daily more and more like to our Saviour." The Holy Spirit comes into our souls to make us conformable and even assimilated to Christ: this is the immediate end of His action in us, this is the way by which He will lead us to sanctity.

All the elect are predestined by God "to be made conformable to the image of His Son" (Romans 8,29): we shall be saints according to the degree of our resemblance to Christ. The Holy Spirit has been given to us that He may imprint in us the traits of this divine resemblance and make us "daily more and more like to our Saviour." Oh! how necessary it is that no day should ever pass without some increase in this likeness! Sister Elizabeth of the Trinity, profoundly impressed by this truth, used to pray to the Holy Spirit to make of her "an added humanity wherein He may renew all His mystery" (Elevation to the Most Holy Trinity). If Jesus is the model to whom we should all be conformed, there is no presumption in aspiring to become so like Him that our life may be a "prolongation" of His, and that He may continue in us His work of unceasing adoration and glorification of the Father, as well as that of the redemption of mankind.

Of ourselves, we are unable to reach such perfect conformity with Christ, but the divine Spirit is in us to bring it about. Christ is the Holy One par excellence. In order to make us like Him, the Holy Spirit initially communicates to us Christ's sanctity by pouring grace into us; this grace penetrates our being, our activity and our life in such a way that it makes of each one of us an alter Christus, another Christ. Let it be noted that the grace given to us by the Holy Spirit is identical in its nature with the grace that sanctifies the soul of Jesus: although it is given to us in an infinitely lesser degree — Christ possessing it "without limit" — it is the same seed, the same principle of sanctity. This is why the full development of grace can really bring us to identification with Christ, to becoming other images of Him. To the degree of our transformation in Him corresponds the degree of our participation in His sanctity and also in His work. Christ will renew His mystery in us: in us He will continue to glorify the Most Holy Trinity and to save souls.

2. The norm of life for Jesus was His Father's will and we have seen how the Holy Spirit guided Him continually in the accomplishment of that will. In the same way, the Holy Spirit wishes always to guide us further along the way traced out by the will of God. Practically speaking, "sanctity consists in conformity to the divine will" (Benedict XV), in a conformity so complete that, as St John of the Cross teaches: "there may be naught in the soul that is contrary to the will of God, but that, in all and through all, its movement may be that of the will of God alone" (Ascent of Mt Carmel, I, 11, 2). It is not easy to reach this point and we shall never be able to do so without the help of the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, we must not forget that conformity to the divine will finds its expression in a "continual, exact fulfilment of the duties of one's state in life" (Benedict XV). Now, to be always faithful to duty, in all things and everywhere, is no small matter. It requires continual sacrifice, generosity and constancy. Let us look at Jesus on the Cross and we shall understand what the perfect accomplishment of our duty and God's will can exact. This is the way we must follow, constantly renewing our efforts and realizing, at the same time, that however much good will we may have, we are so weak, so inconstant, so deeply attached to ourselves and so limited in our strength, that we will not always succeed in keeping ourselves to the perfect fulfilment of our duties; we often fall, and do not even know how to rise. Let us humble ourselves then, and make use of these falls to realize better our impotence and frailty: humility, yes; discouragement, never! Instead of weeping over ourselves, let us turn our eyes toward the Holy Spirit, call upon Him to come to our aid, and begin again humbly and confidently. When the Holy Spirit sees us renewing our efforts, He will come to meet us, take us by the hand, and in an instant will lead us to a degree of perfection which we have not been able to reach even after years of effort. We can be sure of this, for Jesus merited it for us, and sends us His Spirit "in a most copious outpouring".

Colloquy

"My beloved Jesus, I desire to follow with You the rule of love, the rule of the will of God, by which I can renew and spend my whole life in You. Place it in the care of Your Holy Spirit, so that at all times I shall be most prompt to keep Your commandments and fulfil all my duties. I am only a poor twig, planted by You. Of myself, I am nothing, and less than nothing, but You can make me flourish in the abundance of Your Spirit. What am I, O my God, life of my soul? Ah! how far away from You I am! I am like a speck of dust, raised and blown away by the wind. Oh! by virtue of Your charity, by the breath of the Holy Spirit, and at the pleasure of Your Providence, may the violent wind of Your omnipotent love cast me into You with such force that I may really begin to die to myself in order to live solely in You, my sweet love. Make me lose myself in You, abandoning myself so completely that no trace of self will remain in me, just as an invisible speck of dust disappears without being noticed. Transform me wholly in the tenderness of Your love, that, in You, all my imperfection will be reduced to nothingness and I shall have no life outside of You." (St Gertrude)

"O consuming Fire, Spirit of Love! Come down into me and reproduce in me, as it were, an incarnation of the Word; that I may be to him an added humanity, wherein He may renew all His mystery!" (Sr Elizabeth of the Trinity, Elevation to the Most Holy Trinity)