Ribbon Placement:

Office of Readings for Thursday in the Octave of Easter

God, come to my assistance.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:

HYMN

Brightness of the Father's glory

In your ever-lasting radiance

Father of unfading glory.

Dawn is drawing ever nearer,

Glory be to God the Father.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Let the sons of Israel say: His love endures for ever, alleluia.

Psalm 118

I

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,

Let the sons of Israel say:

I called to the Lord in my distress;

It is better to take refuge in the Lord

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:

Ant. Let the sons of Israel say: His love endures for ever, alleluia.

Ant. 2 The Lord has become my salvation, alleluia.

II

The nations all encompassed me;

I was hard-pressed and was falling,

The Lord’s right hand has triumphed;

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:

Ant. The Lord has become my salvation, alleluia.

Ant. 3 The Lord has done this, and it is wonderful in our eyes, alleluia.

III

Open to me the gates of holiness:

The stone which the builders rejected

O Lord, grant us salvation;

Go forward in procession with branches

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:

Ant. The Lord has done this, and it is wonderful in our eyes, alleluia.

Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell) A moment to reflect and receive in our hearts the full resonance of the voice of the Holy Spirit and to unite our personal prayer more closely with the word of God and public voice of the Church.

Christ Jesus you have risen from the dead, alleluia.

READINGS

First reading

You married women must obey your husbands, so that any of them who do not believe in the word of the gospel may be won over apart from preaching, through their wives’ conduct. They have only to observe the reverent purity of your way of life. The affectation of an elaborate hairdress, the wearing of golden jewelry, or the donning of rich robes is not for you. Your adornment is rather the hidden character of the heart, expressed in the unfading beauty of a calm and gentle disposition. This is precious in God’s eyes. The holy women of past ages used to adorn themselves in this way, reliant on God and obedient to their husbands — for example, Sarah, who was subject to Abraham and called him her master. You are her children when you do what is right and let no fears alarm you.

You husbands, too, must show consideration for those who share your lives. Treat women with respect as the weaker sex, heirs just as much as you to the gracious gift of life. If you do so, nothing will keep your prayers from being answered.

In summary, then, all of you should be like-minded, sympathetic, loving toward one another, kindly disposed, and humble. Do not return evil for evil or insult for insult. Return a blessing instead. This you have been called to do, that you may receive a blessing as your inheritance.

“He who cares for life

Who indeed can harm you if you are committed deeply to doing what is right? Even if you should have to suffer for justice’ sake, happy will you be. “Fear not and do not stand in awe of what this people fears.” Venerate the Lord, that is, Christ, in your hearts. Should anyone ask you the reason for this hope of yours, be ever ready to reply, but speak gently and respectfully. Keep your conscience clear, so that, whenever you are defamed, those who libel your way of life in Christ may be shamed. If it should be God’s will that you suffer, it is better to do so for good deeds than for evil ones.

RESPONSORY Luke 6:22, 23; 1 Peter 3:14

Blessed are you when men hate you and curse your name as evil because of the Son of man.

If you suffer for the sake of justice, you should count yourself blessed indeed, alleluia.

Second reading

You were led down to the font of holy baptism just as Christ was taken down from the cross and placed in the tomb which is before your eyes. Each of you was asked, “Do you believe in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit?” You made the profession of faith that brings salvation, you were plunged into the water, and three times you rose again. This symbolized the three days Christ spent in the tomb.

As our Savior spent three days and three nights in the depths of the earth, so your first rising from the water represented the first day and your first immersion represented the first night. At night a man cannot see, but in the day he walks in the light. So when you were immersed in the water it was like night for you and you could not see, but when you rose again it was like coming into broad daylight. In the same instant you died and were born again; the saving water was both your tomb and your mother.

Solomon’s phrase in another context is very apposite here. He spoke of a time to give birth, and a time to die. For you, however, it was the reverse: a time to die, and a time to be born, although in fact both events took place at the same time and your birth was simultaneous with your death.

This is something amazing and unheard of! It was not we who actually died, were buried and rose again. We only did these things symbolically, but we have been saved in actual fact. It is Christ who was crucified, who was buried and who rose again, and all this has been attributed to us. We share in his sufferings symbolically and gain salvation in reality. What boundless love for men! Christ’s undefiled hands were pierced by the nails; he suffered the pain. I experience no pain, no anguish, yet by the share that I have in his sufferings he freely grants me salvation.

Let no one imagine that baptism consists only in the forgiveness of sins and in the grace of adoption. Our baptism is not like the baptism of John, which conferred only the forgiveness of sins. We know perfectly well that baptism, besides washing away our sins and bringing us the gift of the Holy Spirit, is a symbol of the sufferings of Christ. This is why Paul exclaims: Do you not know that when we were baptized into Christ Jesus we were, by that very action, sharing in his death? By baptism we went with him into the tomb.

RESPONSORY

These new-born lambs sing alleluia as their song of praise. They have come to the streams of living water;

Clothed in white robes and with palms in their hands, they stand in the presence of the Lamb.

TE DEUM

You are God: we praise you;

To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,

The glorious company of apostles praise you.

Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you:

You, Christ, are the King of glory,

When you became man to set us free

You overcame the sting of death,

You are seated at God’s right hand in glory.

Come then, Lord, and help your people,

Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.

Day by day we bless you.

Keep us today, Lord, from all sin.

Lord, show us your love and mercy,

In you, Lord, is our hope:

CONCLUDING PRAYER

O God,

ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration)

Let us praise the Lord.