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Lord, open my lips.
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
Psalm 95
Come, let us sing to the Lord
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
The Lord is God, the mighty God,
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
Come, then, let us bow down and worship,
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
Today, listen to the voice of the Lord:
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
Forty years I endured that generation.
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, serve the Lord with gladness.
Ribbon Placement:
Christian Prayer:
Office of Readings for Wednesday in Ordinary Time
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
For the beauty of the earth,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
For the beauty of each hour
Lord of all, to thee we raise
For the joy of ear and eye,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
For the joy of human love,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
For each perfect gift of Thine,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Bless the Lord, my soul; never forget all he has done for you.
Psalm 103
I
My soul, give thanks to the Lord,
It is he who forgives all your guilt,
The Lord does deeds of justice,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Bless the Lord, my soul; never forget all he has done for you.
Ant. 2 As a father is gentle with his children, so is the Lord with those who revere him.
II
The Lord is compassion and love,
For as the heavens are high above the earth
As a father has compassion on his sons,
As for man, his days are like grass;
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. As a father is gentle with his children, so is the Lord with those who revere him.
Ant. 3 Bless the Lord, all you his works!
III
But the love of the Lord is everlasting
The Lord has set his sway in heaven
Give thanks to the Lord, all his hosts,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
You have compassion for the sinner, Lord, as a father has compassion for his children. Heal the weakness of your people and save us from lasting death that we may praise and glorify you for ever.
Ant. Bless the Lord, all you his works!
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.
Lord, make me understand the way of your precepts.
READINGS
First reading
The Lord showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, while Satan stood at his right hand to accuse him.
And the angel of the Lord said to Satan, “May the Lord rebuke you, Satan; may the Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this man a brand snatched from the fire?”
Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clad in filthy garments. He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy garments, and clothe him in festal garments.” He also said, “Put a clean miter on his head.” And they put a clean miter on his head and clothed him with the garments. Then the angel of the Lord, standing, said, “See, I have taken away your guilt.”
The angel of the Lord then gave Joshua this assurance: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you walk in my ways and heed my charge, you shall judge my house and keep my courts, and I will give you access among these standing here. Listen, O Joshua, high priest! You and your associates who sit before you are men of good omen. Yes, I will bring my servant the Shoot. Look at the stone that I have placed before Joshua, one stone with seven facets. I will engrave its inscription, says the Lord of hosts, and I will take away the guilt of the land in one day. On that day, says the Lord of hosts, you will invite one another under your vines and fig trees.”
Then I said to the angel who spoke with me, “What are these things, my lord?” And the angel who spoke with me replied, “Do you not know what these things are?” “No, my lord,” I answered.
Then he said to me, “This is the Lord’s message to Zerubbabel: Not by an army, nor by might, but by my spirit, says the Lord of hosts. What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you are but a plain. He shall bring out the capstone amid exclamations of ‘Hail, Hail’ to it.”
This word of the Lord then came to me: The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this house, and his hands shall finish it; then you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. For even they who were scornful on that day of small beginnings shall rejoice to see the select stone in the hands of Zerubbabel. These seven facets are the eyes of the Lord that range over the whole earth.
Then the angel who spoke with me returned and awakened me, like a man awakened from his sleep. “What do you see?” he asked me. “I see a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl at the top,” I replied; “on it are seven lamps with their tubes, and beside it are two olive trees, one on the right and the other on the left.” I then asked him, “What are these two olive trees at each side of the lampstand?”
And again I asked, “What are the two olive tufts which freely pour out fresh oil through the two golden channels?” “Do you not know what these are?” he said to me. “No, my lord,” I answered him. He said, “These are the two anointed who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”
RESPONSORY Revelation 11:4, see 3
These are the two olive trees and two lampstands
The Lord shall select his two witnesses to prophesy.
Second reading
The lamp set upon the lampstand is Jesus Christ, the true light from the Father, the light that enlightens every man who comes into the world. In taking our own flesh he has become, and is rightly called, a lamp, for he is the connatural wisdom and word of the Father. He is proclaimed in the Church of God in accordance with orthodox faith, and he is lifted up and resplendent among the nations through the lives of those who live virtuously in observance of the commandments. So he gives light to all in the house (that is, in this world), just as he himself, God the Word, says: No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. Clearly he is calling himself the lamp, he who was by nature God, and became flesh according to God’s saving purpose.
I think the great David understood this when he spoke of the Lord as a lamp, saying: Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. For God delivers us from the darkness of ignorance and sin, and hence he is greeted as a lamp in Scripture.
Lamp-like indeed, he alone dispelled the gloom of ignorance and the darkness of evil and became the way of salvation for all men. Through virtue and knowledge, he leads to the Father those who are resolved to walk by him, who is the way of righteousness, in obedience to the divine commandments. He has designated holy Church the lampstand, over which the word of God sheds light through preaching, and illumines with the rays of truth whoever is in this house which is the world, and fills the minds of all men with divine knowledge.
This word is most unwilling to be kept under a bushel; it wills to be set in a high place, upon the sublime beauty of the Church. For while the word was hidden under the bushel, that is, under the letter of the law, it deprived all men of eternal light. For then it could not give spiritual contemplation to men striving to strip themselves of a sensuality that is illusory, capable only of deceit, and able to perceive only decadent bodies like their own. But the word wills to be set upon a lampstand, the Church, where rational worship is offered in the spirit, that it may enlighten all men. For the letter, when it is not spiritually understood, bears a carnal sense only, which restricts its expression and does not allow the real force of what is written to reach the hearer’s mind.
Let us, then, not light the lamp by contemplation and action, only to put it under a bushel–that lamp, I mean, which is the enlightening word of knowledge–lest we be condemned for restricting by the letter the incomprehensible power of wisdom. Rather let us place it upon the lampstand of holy Church, on the heights of true contemplation, where it may kindle for all men the light of divine teaching.
RESPONSORY John 12:35, 36; 9:39
I came into this world
CONCLUDING PRAYER
May your grace,
ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration)
Let us praise the Lord.
Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Christian Prayer (single volume)
Morning Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
Creator of the skies above,
The darkness is dispelled at last,
Returning day calls us to prayer,
May we avoid all stain of sin,
But while the sun draws on the day,
O Father, this we ask be done
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready.
Psalm 108
My heart is ready, O God;
I will thank you, Lord, among the peoples,
O come and deliver your friends;
Gilead is mine and Manasseh.
But who will lead me to conquer the fortress?
Give us help against the foe:
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
Accept the prayers of your servants, Lord, and prepare our hearts to praise your holy name. Come to our aid in time of trouble and make us worthy to sing you songs of thanksgiving.
Ant. My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready.
Ant. 2 The Lord has robed me with grace and salvation.
Canticle – Isaiah 61:10 – 62:5
I rejoice heartily in the Lord,
As the earth brings forth its plants,
For Zion’s sake I will not be silent,
Nations shall behold your vindication,
No more shall men call you “Forsaken,”
As a young man marries a virgin,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. The Lord has robed me with grace and salvation.
Ant. 3 I will praise my God all the days of my life.
Psalm 146
My soul, give praise to the Lord;
Put no trust in princes,
He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God,
It is he who keeps faith for ever,
the Lord who gives sight to the blind,
It is the Lord who loves the just
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
God of glory and power, those who have put all their trust in you are happy indeed. Shine the brightness of your light on us, that we may love you always with a pure heart.
Ant. I will praise my God all the days of my life.
READING Deuteronomy 4:39-40a
Know, and fix in your heart, that the Lord is God in the heavens above and on earth below, and that there is no other. You must keep his statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you today.
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.
RESPONSORY
I will bless the Lord all my life long.
With a song of praise ever on my lips,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
Ant. Let us serve the Lord in holiness all the days of our life.
Luke 1:68 – 79
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High;
In the tender compassion of our God
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
Ant. Let us serve the Lord in holiness all the days of our life.
INTERCESSIONS
Christ, the splendor of the Father’s glory, enlightens us with his word. With deep love we call upon him:
Blessed are you, the alpha and the omega of our faith,
You enabled the blind to see, the deaf to hear,
Lord, keep us in your love, preserve our community,
Give us strength in temptation, endurance in trial,
Our Father who art in heaven,
Concluding Prayer
Father,
DISMISSAL
May the Lord bless us,
Ribbon Placement:
Midmorning Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time using the Complementary Psalmody
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
1 Christ, whose glory fills the skies,
2 Dark and cheerless is the morn
3 Visit, then, this soul of mine,
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 I cried out, and the Lord heard me.
Psalm 120
To the Lord in the hour of my distress
What shall he pay you in return,
Alas, that I abide a stranger in Meshech,
Long enough have I been dwelling
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. I cried out, and the Lord heard me.
Ant. 2 May the Lord watch over you as you come and as you go.
Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the mountains;
May he never allow you to stumble!
The Lord is your guard and your shade;
The Lord will guard you from evil,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. May the Lord watch over you as you come and as you go.
Ant. 3 I rejoiced in the good news they told me.
Psalm 122
I rejoiced when I heard them say:
Jerusalem is built as a city
For Israel’s law it is,
For the peace of Jerusalem pray:
For love of my brethren and friends
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. I rejoiced in the good news they told me.
READING 1 Corinthians 10:24,31
No man should seek his own interest, but rather that of his neighbor. The fact is that whether you eat or drink, whatever you do, you should do all for the glory of God.
Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
We do well to praise the Lord.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
God of truth, Father of all,
ACCLAMATION (only added when praying in community)
Let us praise the Lord.
Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Midday Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time using Current Psalmody
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
Blest are the moments, doubly blest,
Each field is then a hallowed spot,
Look up to heaven! the industrious sun
Lord, since his rising in the east,
help with thy grace, through life's short day,
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Lord, I cry to you for help; I trust in your promise.
Psalm 119:145-152
I call with all my heart; Lord, hear me,
I rise before dawn and cry for help,
In your love hear my voice, O Lord;
But you, O Lord, are close:
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
Save us by the power of your hand, Father, for our enemies have ignored your words. May the fire of your word consume our sins and its brightness illumine our hearts.
Ant. Lord, I cry to you for help; I trust in your promise.
Ant. 2 The Lord knows how fleeting are the thoughts of men.
Psalm 94
I
O Lord avenging God,
How long, O Lord, shall the wicked,
They crush your people, Lord,
And they say: “The Lord does not see;
Can he who made the ear, not hear?
The Lord knows the thoughts of men.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. The Lord knows how fleeting are the thoughts of men.
Ant. 3 The Lord has become my stronghold; in him I put my trust.
II
Happy the man whom you teach, O Lord,
The Lord will not abandon his people
Who will stand up for me against the wicked?
When I think: “I have lost my foothold,”
Can judges who do evil be your friends?
As for me, the Lord will be a stronghold;
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
Lord Jesus, you taught your disciples not to fear the world. Do not abandon your inheritance to sinners, nor ignore the power of the enemy against the Church. Grant us always to seek the wisdom of the cross and the blessing of those who suffer for the sake of justice. May we always be filled with your happiness.
Ant. The Lord has become my stronghold; in him I put my trust.
READING Colossians 3:17
Whatever you do, whether in speech or in action, do it in the name of the Lord Jesus. Give thanks to God the Father through him.
Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
Lord, I will offer you a sacrifice of praise.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
God of mercy,
ACCLAMATION (only added when praying in community)
Let us praise the Lord.
Ribbon Placement:
Midafternoon Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time using Complementary Psalmody
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
O God, creation’s secret force,
Grant us, when this short life is past,
O Father, that we ask be done,
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 The Lord has done great things for us; he is the source of all our joy.
Psalm 126
When the Lord delivered Zion from bondage,
The heathens themselves said: “What marvels
Deliver us, O Lord, from our bondage
They go out, they go out, full of tears,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. The Lord has done great things for us; he is the source of all our joy.
Ant. 2 May the Lord build our house and watch over our city.
Psalm 127
If the Lord does not build the house,
In vain is your earlier rising,
Truly sons are a gift from the Lord,
O the happiness of the man
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. May the Lord build our house and watch over our city.
Ant. 3 Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Psalm 128
O blessed are those who fear the Lord
By the labor of your hands you shall eat.
Indeed thus shall be blessed
On Israel, peace!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
READING Colossians 3:23-24
Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being. Do it for the Lord rather than for men, since you know full well you will receive an inheritance from Him as your reward. Be slaves of Christ the Lord.
Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
Lord, you are my inheritance and my cup.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ,
ACCLAMATION (only added when praying in community)
Let us praise the Lord.
Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Christian Prayer:
Evening Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
As sun declines and shadows fall,
And this, O God, creator wise,
While darkness rides across the sky,
Made rich in hope, kept strong in faith,
He is the sun that never sets,
O Father, Son and Spirit blest
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Lord, how wonderful is your wisdom, so far beyond my understanding.
Psalm 139
I
O Lord, you search me and you know me,
Before ever a word is on my tongue
O where can I go from your spirit,
If I take the wings of the dawn
If I say: “Let the darkness hide me
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Lord, how wonderful is your wisdom, so far beyond my understanding.
Ant. 2 I am the Lord: I search the mind and probe the heart; I give to each one as his deeds deserve.
II
For it was you who created my being,
Already you knew my soul,
To me, how mysterious your thoughts,
O search me, God, and know my heart.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
You watch over heaven and earth, Lord Jesus. Your death brought light to the dead; your resurrection gave joy to the saints; your ascension made the angels rejoice. Your power exceeds all power. Lead us to life eternal, and watch over us with your love. May your friends be filled with honour and join you in heaven.
Ant. I am the Lord: I search the mind and probe the heart; I give to each one as his deeds deserve.
Ant. 3 Through him all things were made; he holds all creation together in himself.
Canticle – Colossians 1:12-20
Let us give thanks to the Father
He rescued us
He is the image of the invisible God,
All were created through him;
It is he who is head of the body, the church!
It pleased God to make absolute fullness reside in him
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Through him all things were made; he holds all creation together in himself.
READING 1 John 2:3-6
The way we can be sure of our knowledge of Christ
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.
RESPONSORY
Keep us, O Lord, as the apple of your eye.
Gather us under the shadow of your wings, and keep us,
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
CANTICLE OF MARY
Ant. Lord, with the strength of your arm scatter the proud and lift up the lowly.
Luke 1:46-55
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
He has mercy on those who fear him
He has shown the strength of his arm,
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
He has filled the hungry with good things,
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
Ant. Lord, with the strength of your arm scatter the proud and lift up the lowly.
INTERCESSIONS
With joyful hearts, let us praise the Eternal Father whose mercy toward his people is exalted to the heavens:
Remember, Lord, that you sent your Son into the world to be its savior, not its judge,
You ordained your priests to be ministers of Christ and stewards of your marvelous gifts,
You have called men and women to chastity for the sake of the kingdom,
From the beginning you intended husband and wife to be one,
You sent Christ Jesus into the world to absolve the sins of men,
Our Father who art in heaven,
Concluding Prayer
God our Father,
DISMISSAL
May the Lord bless us,
Ribbon Placement:
Christian Prayer:
General instruction:
Consider an examination of your own conscience before beginning to best make use of our time together in prayer.
Night Prayer for Wednesday
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Examination of conscience:
We are called to have a clear conscience toward God and toward men, in our hearts and in our minds, in our actions and inactions. To do so, it is vital that we examine our conscience daily and to ask for God’s mercy as we fall short and to ask for His strength to do better.
I confess to almighty God,
HYMN
Before the ending of the day,
From harmful dreams defend our sight,
O Father, this we ask be done,
Amen.
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Lord God, be my refuge and my strength.
Psalm 31:1-6
In you, O Lord, I take refuge.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
Release me from the snares they have hidden
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Lord God, be my refuge and my strength.
Ant. 2 Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord.
Psalm 130
Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord,
If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt,
My soul is waiting for the Lord,
Because with the Lord there is mercy
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord.
READING Ephesians 4:26-27
If you are angry, let it be without sin. The sun must not go down on your wrath; do not give the devil a chance to work on you.
RESPONSORY
Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit.
You have redeemed us, Lord God of truth.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
Gospel Canticle
Ant. Protect us, Lord, as we stay awake; watch over us as we sleep, that awake, we may keep watch with Christ, and asleep, rest in his peace.
Luke 2:29-32
Lord, now you let your servant go in peace;
my own eyes have seen the salvation
a light to reveal you to the nations
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
Ant. Protect us, Lord, as we stay awake; watch over us as we sleep, that awake, we may keep watch with Christ, and asleep, rest in his peace.
Concluding Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ,
Blessing
May the all-powerful Lord grant us a restful night and a peaceful death.
Antiphon or song in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with you.
Lord, open my lips.
Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, our mighty God.
Psalm 100
Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, our mighty God.
Know that he, the Lord, is God.
Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, our mighty God.
Go within his gates, giving thanks.
Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, our mighty God.
Indeed, how good is the Lord,
Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, our mighty God.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, our mighty God.
Ribbon Placement:
Christian Prayer:
Office of Readings for Tuesday in Ordinary Time
God, come to my assistance.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
HYMN
O God, our help in ages past,
Beneath the shadow of Your throne
Before the hills in order stood,
A thousand ages in your sight
Time, like an ever rolling stream,
O God, our help in ages past,
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Lord, let my cry come to you; do not hide your face from me.
Psalm 102
I
O Lord, listen to my prayer
For my days are vanishing like smoke,
I have become like a pelican in the wilderness,
The bread I eat is ashes;
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Lord, let my cry come to you; do not hide your face from me.
Ant. 2 Be attentive, Lord, to the prayer of the helpless.
II
But you, O Lord, will endure for ever
The nations shall fear the name of the Lord
Let this be written for ages to come
The sons of your servants shall dwell untroubled
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Be attentive, Lord, to the prayer of the helpless.
Ant. 3 You, O Lord, established the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
III
He has broken my strength in mid-course;
Long ago you founded the earth
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
Lord, you live in the hearts of your saints, and so have built up Zion. May you always show your greatness through their good works.
Ant. You, O Lord, established the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
Listen, my people, to my teaching.
READINGS
First reading
In the second year of Darius, in the eighth month, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son of Iddo:
The Lord was indeed angry with your fathers… and say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. Be not like your fathers whom the former prophets warned: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Turn from your evil ways and from your wicked deeds. But they would not listen or pay attention to me, says the Lord. Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, can they live forever? But my words and my decrees, which I entrusted to my servants the prophets, did not these overtake your fathers? Then they repented and admitted: “The Lord of hosts has treated us according to our ways and deeds, just as he had determined he would.”
In the second year of Darius, on the twenty-fourth day of Shebat, the eleventh month, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son of Iddo, in the following way: I had a vision during the night. There appeared the driver of a red horse, standing among myrtle trees in a shady place, and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses.
Then I asked, “What are these, my lord?”; and the angel who spoke with me answered me, “I will show you what these are.” The man who was standing among the myrtle trees spoke up and said, “These are they whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth.” And they answered the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees and said, “We have patrolled the earth; see, the whole earth is tranquil and at rest!”
Then the angel of the Lord spoke out and said, “O Lord of hosts, how long will you be without mercy for Jerusalem and the cities of Judah that have felt your anger these seventy years? “To the angel who spoke with me, the Lord replied with comforting words.
And the angel who spoke with me said to me, Proclaim: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I am deeply moved for the sake of Jerusalem and Zion, and I am exceedingly angry with the complacent nations;
I raised my eyes and looked: there were four horns. Then I asked the angel who spoke with me what these were. He answered me, “These are the horns that scattered Judah and Israel and Jerusalem.”
Then the Lord showed me four blacksmiths. And I asked, “What are these coming to do?” And he said, “Here are the horns that scattered Judah, so that no man raised his head any more; but these have come to terrify them: to cast down the horns of the nations that raised their horns to scatter the land of Judah.”
RESPONSORY Zechariah 1:16; Revelation 21:23
I turn to Jerusalem in compassion;
The city had no need of the sun or the moon for light,
Second reading
How blessed, how fortunate, are those servants whom the Lord will find watchful when he comes. Blessed is the time of waiting when we stay awake for the Lord, the Creator of the universe, who fills all things and transcends all things.
How I wish he would awaken me, his humble servant, from the sleep of slothfulness, even though I am of little worth. How I wish he would enkindle me with that fire of divine love. The flames of his love burn beyond the stars; the longing for his overwhelming delights and the divine fire ever burn within me!
How I wish I might deserve to have my lantern always burning at night in the temple of my Lord, to give light to all who enter the house of my God. Give me, I pray you, Lord, in the name of Jesus Christ, your Son and my God, that love that does not fail so that my lantern, burning within me and giving light to others, may be always lighted and never extinguished.
Jesus, our most loving Savior, be pleased to light our lanterns, so that they may burn for ever in your temple, receiving eternal light from you, the eternal light, to lighten our darkness and to ward off from us the darkness of the world.
Give your light to my lantern, I beg you, my Jesus, so that by its light I may see that holy of holies which receives you as the eternal priest entering among the columns of your great temple. May I ever see you only, look on you, long for you; may I gaze with love on you alone, and have my lantern shining and burning always in your presence.
Loving Savior, be pleased to show yourself to us who knock, so that in knowing you we may love only you, love you alone, desire you alone, contemplate only you day and night, and always think of you. Inspire in us the depth of love that is fitting for you to receive as God. So may your love pervade our whole being, possess us completely, and fill all our senses, that we may know no other love but love for you who are everlasting. May our love be so great that the many waters of sky, land and sea cannot extinguish it in us: many waters could not extinguish love.
May this saying be fulfilled in us also, at least in part, by your gift, Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
RESPONSORY Isaiah 60:19-20
The sun shall no longer be your light by day,
Your sun shall never set,
CONCLUDING PRAYER
May your grace,
ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration)
Let us praise the Lord.
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