March 19

Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Solemnity

Today is the Solemnity of St. Joseph, of the house of David. At the time of the Annunciation, he was working as a carpenter in Nazareth. He trusted his angelic vision, accepted Mary as his wife, and dutifully traveled to Bethlehem for the census. Later, he participated in the Presentation, led his family safely into Egypt and when called, faithfully returned to Nazareth. In other words, his decisions were integral in God’s plan for humanity and this holy man chose well. John Paul II honored Joseph in an exhortation entitled, Redemptoris Custos (Guardian of the Redeemer). In it, he discussed St. Joseph’s role in the plan of redemption and states, “’The obedience of faith’ must be given to God as he reveals himself. By this obedience of faith man freely commits himself entirely to God, making ‘the full submission of his intellect and will to God who reveals,’ and willingly assenting to the revelation given by him.’ This statement, which touches the very essence of faith, is perfectly applicable to Joseph of Nazareth.”[1][2][3]

Written by Sarah Ciotti

Reviewed by Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, STD

[1] Catholicpedia: The Original Catholic Encyclopedia (1917) for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. s.v. “St. Joseph”

[2] John Paul II, Redemptoris Custos, August 15, 1989.

[3] Paul VI, Dei Verbum, November 18, 1965.

The English translation of The Liturgy of the Hours (Four Volumes) ©1974,

International Commission on English in the Liturgy

Corporation. Readings and Old and New Testament Canticles (except the Gospel Canticles) are from the New American Bible

© 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C.. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

The DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media follows the liturgical calendar for the United States.

The 1970 edition of the New American Bible as published in the Liturgy of the Hours is approved for use

only in the United States. DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media is © 2006-2022

Surgeworks, Inc. All rights reserved.

Ribbon Placement:

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. II:

Ordinary: 1064

Proper of Saints: 1716

Common of Holy Men: 2128

Christian Prayer:

Ordinary: 694

Proper of Saints: 1107

Common of Holy Men: 1448

Evening Prayer I for the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, Husband of Mary

God, come to my assistance.

— Lord, make haste to help me.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. She gave birth to Jesus who is called Christ.

Psalm 113

Praise the name of the Lord

He has cast down the mighty and has lifted up the lowly (Luke 1:52).

Praise, O servants of the Lord,

praise the name of the Lord!

May the name of the Lord be blessed

both now and for evermore!

From the rising of the sun to its setting

praised be the name of the Lord!

High above all nations is the Lord,

above the heavens his glory.

Who is like the Lord, our God,

who has risen on high to his throne

yet stoops from the heights to look down,

to look down upon heaven and earth?

From the dust he lifts up the lowly,

from his misery he raises the poor

to set him in the company of princes,

yes, with the princes of his people.

To the childless wife he gives a home

and gladdens her heart with children.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. She gave birth to Jesus who is called Christ.

Ant. 2 The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph.

Psalm 146

Those who trust in God know what it is to be happy

To praise God in our lives means all we do must be for his glory (Arnobius).

My soul, give praise to the Lord;

I will praise the Lord all my days,

make music to my God while I live.

Put no trust in princes,

in mortal men in whom there is no help.

Take their breath, they return to clay

and their plans that day come to nothing.

He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God,

whose hope is in the Lord his God,

who alone made heaven and earth,

the seas and all they contain.

It is he who keeps faith for ever,

who is just to those who are oppressed.

It is he who gives bread to the hungry,

the Lord, who sets prisoners free,

the Lord who gives sight to the blind,

who raises up those who are bowed down,

the Lord, who protects the stranger

and upholds the widow and orphan.

It is the Lord who loves the just

but thwarts the path of the wicked.

The Lord will reign for ever,

Zion’s God, from age to age.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph.

Ant. 3 Mary the mother of Jesus was betrothed to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Canticle – Ephesians 1:3-10

God our Savior

Praised be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has bestowed on us in Christ

every spiritual blessing in the heavens.

God chose us in him

before the world began

to be holy

and blameless in his sight.

He predestined us

to be his adopted sons through Jesus Christ,

such was his will and pleasure,

that all might praise the glorious favor

he has bestowed on us in his beloved.

Lord, open my lips.

— And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

Psalm 95

Come, let us sing to the Lord

and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us.

Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving

and sing joyful songs to the Lord.

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

The Lord is God, the mighty God,

the great king over all the gods.

He holds in his hands the depths of the earth

and the highest mountains as well

He made the sea; it belongs to him,

the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands.

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

Come, then, let us bow down and worship,

bending the knee before the Lord, our maker,

For he is our God and we are his people,

the flock he shepherds.

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

Today, listen to the voice of the Lord:

Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did

in the wilderness,

when at Meriba and Massah

they challenged me and provoked me,

Although they had seen all of my works.

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

Forty years I endured that generation.

I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray

and they do not know my ways.”

So I swore in my anger,

“They shall not enter into my rest.”

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit:

as it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs.

The English translation of The Liturgy of the Hours (Four Volumes) ©1974,

International Commission on English in the Liturgy

Corporation. Readings and Old and New Testament Canticles (except the Gospel Canticles) are from the New American Bible

© 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C.. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

The DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media follows the liturgical calendar for the United States.

The 1970 edition of the New American Bible as published in the Liturgy of the Hours is approved for use

only in the United States. DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media is © 2006-2022

Surgeworks, Inc. All rights reserved.

Ribbon Placement:

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:

Ordinary: 668

Psalter: Thursday, Week I, 779

Common of Virgins: 1791 (reading, canticle antiphon, intercessions)

Proper of Saints: 1372 (concluding prayer)

Christian Prayer:

Ordinary: 694

Psalter: Thursday, Week I, 754

Common of Virgins: 1444 (reading, canticle antiphon, intercessions)

Proper of Saints: 1090 (concluding prayer)

Evening Prayer for Thursday in Ordinary Time, the Memorial of Saint Scholastica, Virgin

God, come to my assistance.

— Lord, make haste to help me.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 I cried to you, Lord, and you healed me; I will praise you for ever.

Psalm 30

Thanksgiving for deliverance from death

Christ, risen in glory, gives continual thanks to his Father (Cassian).

I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me

and have not let my enemies rejoice over me.

O Lord, I cried to you for help

and you, my God, have healed me.

O Lord, you have raised my soul from the dead,

restored me to life from those who sink into the grave.

Sing psalms to the Lord, you who love him,

give thanks to his holy name.

His anger lasts a moment; his favor through life.

At night there are tears, but joy comes with dawn.

I said to myself in my good fortune:

“Nothing will ever disturb me.”

Your favor had set me on a mountain fastness,

then you hid your face and I was put to confusion.

To you, Lord, I cried,

to my God I made appeal:

“What profit would my death be, my going to the grave?

Can dust give you praise or proclaim your truth?”

The Lord listened and had pity.

The Lord came to my help.

For me you have changed my mourning into dancing,

you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.

So my soul sings psalms to you unceasingly.

O Lord my God, I will thank you for ever.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

God our Father, glorious in giving life, and even more glorious in restoring it, when his last night on earth came, your Son shed tears of blood, but dawn brought incomparable gladness. Do not turn away from us, or we shall fall back into dust, but rather turn our mourning into joy by raising us up with Christ.

Ant. I cried to you, Lord, and you healed me; I will praise you for ever.

Ant. 2 The one who is sinless in the eyes of God is blessed indeed.

Psalm 32

They are happy whose sins are forgiven

David speaks of the happiness of the man who is holy in God’s eyes not because of his own worth, but because God has justified him (Romans 4:6).

Happy the man whose offense is forgiven,

whose sin is remitted.

O happy the man to whom the Lord

imputes no guilt,

in whose spirit is no guile.

I kept it secret and my frame was wasted.

I groaned all the day long

for night and day your hand

was heavy upon me.

Indeed, my strength was dried up

as by the summer’s heat.

But now I have acknowledged my sins;

my guilt I did not hide.

I said: “I will confess

my offense to the Lord.”

And you, Lord, have forgiven

the guilt of my sin.

So let every good man pray to you

in the time of need.

The floods of water may reach high

but him they shall not reach.

You are my hiding place, O Lord;

you save me from distress.

You surround me with cries of deliverance.

I will instruct you and teach you

the way you should go;

I will give you counsel

February 2

The Presentation of the Lord

Feast

“And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), and thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed’” (Luke 2:33-35).[1]

Today marks the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord. It celebrates the holy convergence of Jesus the Messiah with His people who faithfully waited for His coming. Traditionally, the feast is celebrated with the greatest of joys and thanksgivings. Forty days after the solemnity of Christmas, Mary and Joseph consecrated Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem, showing their obedience to God and fulfilling the Mosaic Law. Simeon, a just and devout man, utters a prophecy that Jesus will be the light of the Gentiles and the glory of Israel. Anna thanks God for the child and talks about him to all who looked to God for the deliverance of Jerusalem. Amid their joy looms the shadow of the cross, the opposition Jesus will face and the sword of suffering Mary, too, will experience. [2]

Written by Sarah Ciotti

Reviewed by Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, STD

[1] Revised Standard Version, s.v., “Luke, The Gospel According to.”

[2] Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, The Martyrology of the Monastery of the Ascension, 2008.

The English translation of The Liturgy of the Hours (Four Volumes) ©1974,

International Commission on English in the Liturgy

Corporation. Readings and Old and New Testament Canticles (except the Gospel Canticles) are from the New American Bible

© 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C.. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

The DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media follows the liturgical calendar for the United States.

The 1970 edition of the New American Bible as published in the Liturgy of the Hours is approved for use

only in the United States. DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media is © 2006-2022

Surgeworks, Inc. All rights reserved.

Ribbon Placement:

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:

Ordinary: 668

All from the Proper of Saints: 1355

Christian Prayer:

Ordinary: 694

All from the Proper of Saints: 1082

Evening Prayer II for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

God, come to my assistance.

— Lord, make haste to help me.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 The Holy Spirit had revealed to Simeon that he would not see death until he had seen the Lord.

Psalm 110:1-5, 7

The Messiah, king and priest

Christ’s reign will last until all his enemies are made subject to him (1 Corinthians 15:25).

The Lord’s revelation to my Master:

“Sit on my right:

your foes I will put beneath your feet.”

The Lord will wield from Zion

your scepter of power:

rule in the midst of all your foes.

A prince from the day of your birth

on the holy mountains;

from the womb before the dawn I begot you.

The Lord has sworn an oath he will not change.

“You are a priest for ever,

a priest like Melchizedeck of old.”

The Master standing at your right hand

will shatter kings in the day of his great wrath.

He shall drink from the stream by the wayside

and therefore he shall lift up his head.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. The Holy Spirit had revealed to Simeon that he would not see death until he had seen the Lord.

Ant. 2 As the law prescribed, they offered to the Lord a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons.

Psalm 130

A cry from the depths

He himself will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord,

Lord, hear my voice!

O let your ears be attentive

to the voice of my pleading.

If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt,

Lord, who would survive?

But with you is found forgiveness:

for this we revere you.

My soul is waiting for the Lord.

I count on his word.

My soul is longing for the Lord

more than watchman for daybreak.

Let the watchman count on daybreak

and Israel on the Lord.

Because with the Lord there is mercy

and fullness of redemption,

Israel indeed he will redeem

from all its iniquity.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. As the law prescribed, they offered to the Lord a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons.

Ant. 3 My own eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared in the sight of every people.

Canticle – Colossians 1:12-20

Christ the first-born of all creation and the first-born from the dead

Let us give thanks to the Father

for having made you worthy

to share the lot of the saints

in light.

He rescued us

from the power of darkness

and brought us

into the kingdom of his beloved Son.

Through him we have redemption,

the forgiveness of our sins.

He is the image of the invisible God,

the first-born of all creatures.

In him everything in heaven and on earth was created,

things visible and invisible.

All were created through him;

all were created for him.

He is before all else that is.

In him everything continues in being.

It is he who is head of the body, the church;

he who is the beginning,

the first-born of the dead,

so that primacy may be his in everything.

It pleased God to make absolute fullness reside in him

and, by means of him,

January 31

Saint John Bosco, Priest

Memorial

Saint John Bosco was the youngest son to Piedmontese peasants. He studied theology at Turin. After ordination, he served the dislocated people who came from the countryside and found themselves adrift in a setting of heavy urbanization and industrialization. In 1854, in a very anti-clerical setting, he founded the Salesian Order, named after St. Francis de Sales. It focused on creating solutions for displaced youth. He developed vocational training programs with evening classes and apprenticeships. Eventually, these grew to include schools. To help staff them, he collaborated in the founding of Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and organized an active group of lay “co-operators.” St. John Bosco was canonized in 1934.[1][2]

Written by Sarah Ciotti

Reviewed by Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, STD

[1] F.L. Cross and E.A. Livingstone, The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (London: Oxford University Press, 1974), 190.

[2] Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, The Martyrology of the Monastery of the Ascension, 2008.

The English translation of The Liturgy of the Hours (Four Volumes) ©1974,

International Commission on English in the Liturgy

Corporation. Readings and Old and New Testament Canticles (except the Gospel Canticles) are from the New American Bible

© 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C.. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

The DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media follows the liturgical calendar for the United States.

The 1970 edition of the New American Bible as published in the Liturgy of the Hours is approved for use

only in the United States. DivineOffice.org website, podcast, apps and all related media is © 2006-2022

Surgeworks, Inc. All rights reserved.

Ribbon Placement:

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:

Ordinary: 668

Psalter: Monday, Week IV, 1159

Common of Pastors: 1758 (reading, canticle antiphon, intercessions)

Common of Saints: 1339 (concluding prayer)

Christian Prayer:

Ordinary: 694

Psalter: Monday, Week IV, 942

Common of Pastors: 1432 (reading, canticle antiphon, intercessions)

Common of Saints: 1076 (concluding prayer)

Evening Prayer for Monday in Ordinary Time, the Memorial of Saint John Bosco, Priest

God, come to my assistance.

— Lord, make haste to help me.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Give thanks to the Lord, for his great love is without end.

Psalm 136

Easter Hymn

We praise God by recalling his marvelous deeds (Cassiodorus).

I

O give thanks to the Lord for he is good,

for his love endures for ever.

Give thanks to the God of gods

for his love endures for ever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords,

for his love endures for ever;

who alone has wrought marvelous works,

for his love endures for ever;

whose wisdom it was made the skies,

for his love endures for ever;

who fixed the earth firmly on the seas,

for his love endures for ever.

It was he who made the great lights,

for his love endures for ever;

the sun to rule in the day,

for his love endures for ever;

the moon and the stars in the night,

for his love endures for ever.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Give thanks to the Lord, for his great love is without end.

Ant. 2 Great and wonderful are your deeds, Lord God the Almighty.

II

The first-born of the Egyptians he smote,

for his love endures for ever.

He brought Israel out from their midst,

for his love endures for ever;

arm outstretched, with power in his hand,

for his love endures for ever.

He divided the Red Sea in two,

for his love endures for ever;

he made Israel pass through the midst,

for his love endures for ever;

he flung Pharaoh and his force in the sea,

for his love endures for ever.

Through the desert his people he led,

for his love endures for ever.

Nations in their greatness he struck,

for his love endures for ever.

Kings in their splendor he slew,

for his love endures for ever.

Sihon, king of the Amorites,

for his love endures for ever;

and Og, the king of Bashan,

for his love endures for ever.

He let Israel inherit their land,

for his love endures for ever.

On his servant their land he bestowed,

for his love endures for ever.

He remembered us in our distress,

for his love endures for ever.

And he snatched us away from our foes,

for his love endures for ever.

He gives food to all living things,

for his love endures for ever.

To the God of heaven give thanks,

for his love endures for ever.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Almighty God, remember our lowliness and have mercy. Once you gave our fathers a foreign land to inherit. Free us today from sin and give us a share in your inheritance.

Ant. Great and wonderful are your deeds, Lord God the Almighty.

Ant. 3 God planned in the fullness of time to restore all things in Christ.

Canticle – Ephesians 1:3-10

God our Savior

Praised be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has bestowed on us in Christ

Ribbon Placement:

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:

Ordinary: 668

Psalter: Friday, Week III, 1097

Common of Doctors: 1768 (reading, canticle antiphon, intercessions)

Proper of Saints: 1337 (concluding prayer)

Christian Prayer:

Ordinary: 694

Psalter: Friday, Week III, 911

Common of Doctors: 1434 (reading, canticle antiphon, intercessions)

Proper of Saints: 1075 (concluding prayer)

Evening Prayer for Friday in Ordinary Time, the Memorial of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor

God, come to my assistance.

— Lord, make haste to help me.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Great is the Lord, our God, transcending all other gods.

Psalm 135

Praise for the wonderful things God does for us

He has won us for himself… and you must proclaim what he has done for you. He has called you out of darkness into his own wonderful light (see 1 Peter 2:9).

I

Praise the name of the Lord,

praise him, servants of the Lord,

who stand in the house of the Lord

in the courts of the house of our God.

Praise the Lord for the Lord is good.

Sing a psalm to his name for he is loving.

For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself

and Israel for his own possession.

For I know the Lord is great,

that our Lord is high above all gods.

The Lord does whatever he wills,

in heaven, on earth, in the seas.

He summons clouds from the ends of the earth;

makes lightning produce the rain;

from his treasuries he sends forth the wind.

The first-born of the Egyptians he smote,

of man and beast alike.

Signs and wonders he worked

in the midst of your land, O Egypt,

against Pharaoh and all his servants.

Nations in their greatness he struck

and kings in their splendor he slew.

Sihon, king of the Amorites,

Og, the king of Bashan,

and all the kingdoms of Canaan.

He let Israel inherit their land;

on his people their land he bestowed.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Great is the Lord, our God, transcending all other gods.

Ant. 2 House of Israel, bless the Lord! Sing psalms to him, for he is merciful.

II

Lord, your name stands for ever,

unforgotten from age to age:

for the Lord does justice for his people;

the Lord takes pity on his servants.

Pagan idols are silver and gold,

the work of human hands.

They have mouths but they cannot speak;

they have eyes but they cannot see.

They have ears but they cannot hear;

there is never a breath on their lips.

Their makers will become like them

and so will all who trust in them!

Sons of Israel, bless the Lord!

Sons of Aaron, bless the Lord!

Sons of Levi, bless the Lord!

You who fear him, bless the Lord!

From Zion may the Lord be blessed,

he who dwells in Jerusalem!

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Father, your name and your memory last forever. We stand to pray in your house and praise you with psalms of joy. We ask you in your kindness to have mercy on us in our lowliness.

Ant. House of Israel, bless the Lord! Sing psalms to him, for he is merciful.

Ant. 3 All nations will come and worship before you, O Lord.

Canticle – Revelation 15:3-4

Hymn of adoration

Mighty and wonderful are your works,

Lord God Almighty!

Righteous and true are your ways,

O King of the nations!

Ribbon Placement:

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:

Ordinary: 668

Wednesday, Week III, 1055

Proper of Saints: 1332 (canticle antiphon, concluding prayer)

Common of Pastors: 1758 (reading, responsory, intercessions)

Christian Prayer:

Ordinary: 694

Psalter: Wednesday, Week III, 892

Proper of Saints: 1073 (canticle antiphon, concluding prayer)

Common of Pastors: 1432 (reading, responsory, intercessions)

Evening Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time, the Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops

God, come to my assistance.

— Lord, make haste to help me.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Those who sow in tears will reap in joy.

Psalm 126

Joyful hope in God

Just as you share in sufferings so you will share in the divine glory (2 Corinthians 1:7).

When the Lord delivered Zion from bondage,

it seemed like a dream.

Then was our mouth filled with laughter,

on our lips there were songs.

The heathens themselves said: “What marvels

the Lord worked for them!”

What marvels the Lord worked for us!

Indeed we were glad.

Deliver us, O Lord, from our bondage

as streams in dry land.

Those who are sowing in tears

will sing when they reap.

They go out, they go out, full of tears,

carrying seed for the sowing:

they come back, they come back, full of song,

carrying their sheaves.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Lord, you have raised us from the earth; may you let the seeds of justice, which we have sown in tears, grow and increase in your sight. May we reap in joy the harvest we hope for patiently.

Ant. Those who sow in tears will reap in joy.

Ant. 2 May the Lord build our house and guard our city.

Psalm 127

Apart from God our labors are worthless

You are God’s building (1 Corinthians 3:9).

If the Lord does not build the house,

in vain do its builders labor;

if the Lord does not watch over the city,

in vain does the watchman keep vigil.

In vain is your earlier rising,

your going later to rest,

you who toil for the bread you eat:

when he pours gifts on his beloved while they slumber.

Truly sons are a gift from the Lord,

a blessing, the fruit of the womb.

Indeed the sons of youth

are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.

O the happiness of the man

who has filled his quiver with these arrows!

He will have no cause for shame

when he disputes with his foes in the gateways.

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

— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

You command the seed to rise, Lord God, though the farmer is unaware. Grant that those who labor for you may trust not in their own work but in your help. Remembering that the land is brought to flower not with human tears but with those of your Son, may the Church rely only upon your gifts.

Ant. May the Lord build our house and guard our city.

Ant. 3 He is the first-born of all creation; in every way the primacy is his.

Canticle – Colossians 1:12-20

Christ the first-born of all creation and the first-born from the dead

Let us give thanks to the Father

for having made you worthy

to share the lot of the saints

in light.

He rescued us

from the power of darkness

and brought us

into the kingdom of his beloved Son.

Through him we have redemption,

the forgiveness of our sins.

He is the image of the invisible God,