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Ribbon Placement:
Office of Readings for Thursday in Week 2 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 Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever, alleluia.
Psalm 44
I
We heard with our own ears, O God,
To plant them you uprooted the nations:
It is you, my king, my God,
For it was not in my bow that I trusted
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever, alleluia.
Ant. 2 Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt, alleluia.
II
Yet now you have rejected us, disgraced us:
You make us like sheep for the slaughter
You make us the taunt of our neighbors,
All day long my disgrace is before me:
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt, alleluia.
Ant. 3 Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful, alleluia.
III
This befell us though we had not forgotten you;
Had we forgotten the name of our God
Awake, O Lord, why do you sleep?
For we are brought down low to the dust;
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
Lord, rise up and come to our aid; with your strong arm lead us to freedom, as you mightily delivered our forefathers. Since you are the king who knows the secrets of our hearts, fill them with the light of truth.
Ant. Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful, 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.
God raised the Lord to life, alleluia,
READINGS
First reading
I, John, heard the Lord saying to me: “To the presiding spirit of the church in Sardis, write this:
“ ‘The One who holds the seven spirits of God, the seven stars, has this to say: I know your conduct; I know the reputation you have of being alive, when in fact you are dead! Wake up, and strengthen what remains before it dies. I find that the sum of your deeds is less than complete in the sight of my God. Call to mind how you accepted what you heard; keep to it, and repent. If you do not rouse yourselves I will come upon you like a thief, at a time you cannot know. I realize that you have in Sardis a few persons who have not soiled their garments; these shall walk with me in white because they are worthy.
“ ‘The victor shall go clothed in white. I will never erase his name from the book of the living, but will acknowledge him in the presence of my Father and his angels.
“To the presiding spirit of the church in Philadelphia, write this:
“ ‘The holy One, the true,
“ ‘I know your deeds; that is why I have left an open door before you which no one can close. I know that your strength is limited; yet you have held fast to my word and have not denied my name. I mean to make some of Satan’s assembly, those self-styled Jews who are not really Jews but frauds, come and fall down at your feet; they will learn of my love for you in that way. Because you have kept my plea to stand fast, I will keep you safe in the time of trial which is coming on the whole world, to test all men on earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have lest someone rob you of your crown.
“ ‘I will make the victor a pillar in the temple of my God and he shall never leave it. I will inscribe on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which he will send down from heaven, and my own name which is new.
“To the presiding spirit of the church in Laodicea, write this:
“ ‘The Amen, the faithful Witness and true, the Source of God’s creation, has this to say: I know your deeds; I know you are neither hot nor cold. How I wish you were one or the other—hot or cold! But because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spew you out of my mouth! You keep saying, “I am so rich and secure that I want for nothing.” Little do you realize how wretched you are, how pitiable and poor, how blind and naked! Take my advice. Buy from me gold refined by fire if you would be truly rich. Buy white garments in which to be clothed, if the shame of your nakedness is to be covered. Buy ointment to smear on your eyes, if you would see once more.
“ ‘Whoever is dear to me I reprove and chastise. Be earnest about it, therefore. Repent!
RESPONSORY Revelation 3:20; 2:7
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
Those who gain the victory, I will feed from the tree of life which grows in the garden of God.
Second reading
The heavenly sacrifice, instituted by Christ, is the most gracious legacy of his new covenant. On the night he was delivered up to be crucified he left us this gift as a pledge of his abiding presence.
This sacrifice is our sustenance on life’s journey; by it we are nourished and supported along the road of life until we depart from this world and make our way to the Lord. For this reason he addressed these words to us: Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood, you will not have life in you.
It was the Lord’s will that his gifts should remain with us, and that we who have been redeemed by his precious blood should constantly be sanctified according to the pattern of his own passion. And so he commanded those faithful disciples of his whom he made the first priests of his Church to enact these mysteries of eternal life continuously. All priests throughout the churches of the world must celebrate these mysteries until Christ comes again from heaven. Therefore let us all, priests and people alike, be faithful to this everlasting memorial of our redemption. Daily it is before our eyes as a representation of the passion of Christ. We hold it in our hands, we receive it in our mouths, and we accept it in our hearts.
It is appropriate that we should receive the body of Christ in the form of bread, because, as there are many grains of wheat in the flour from which bread is made by mixing it with water and baking it with fire, so also we know that many members make up the one body of Christ which is brought to maturity by the fire of the Holy Spirit. Christ was born of the Holy Spirit, and since it was fitting that he should fulfill all justice, he entered into the waters of baptism to sanctify them. When he left the Jordan he was filled with the Holy Spirit who had descended upon him in the form of a dove. As the evangelist tells us: Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan.
Similarly, the wine of Christ’s blood, drawn from the many grapes of the vineyard that he had planted, is extracted in the winepress of the cross. When men receive it with believing hearts, like capacious wineskins, it ferments within them by its own power.
And so, now that you have escaped from the power of Egypt and of Pharaoh, who is the devil, join with us, all of you, in receiving this sacrifice of the saving passover with the eagerness of dedicated hearts. Then in our inmost being we shall be wholly sanctified by the very Lord Jesus Christ whom we believe to be present in his sacraments, and whose boundless power abides for ever.
RESPONSORY Luke 22:19; John 6:59
Jesus took bread, gave thanks, and broke the bread. Then he gave it to his disciples and said:
This is the bread come down from heaven; anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
O God,
ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration)
Let us praise the Lord.
Ribbon Placement:
Office of Readings for Thursday in Week 2 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 Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever, alleluia.
Psalm 44
I
We heard with our own ears, O God,
To plant them you uprooted the nations:
It is you, my king, my God,
For it was not in my bow that I trusted
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever, alleluia.
Ant. 2 Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt, alleluia.
II
Yet now you have rejected us, disgraced us:
You make us like sheep for the slaughter
You make us the taunt of our neighbors,
All day long my disgrace is before me:
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Ant. Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt, alleluia.
Ant. 3 Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful, alleluia.
III
This befell us though we had not forgotten you;
Had we forgotten the name of our God
Awake, O Lord, why do you sleep?
For we are brought down low to the dust;
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
Psalm-prayer
Lord, rise up and come to our aid; with your strong arm lead us to freedom, as you mightily delivered our forefathers. Since you are the king who knows the secrets of our hearts, fill them with the light of truth.
Ant. Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful, 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.
God raised the Lord to life, alleluia,
READINGS
First reading
I, John, heard the Lord saying to me: “To the presiding spirit of the church in Sardis, write this:
“ ‘The One who holds the seven spirits of God, the seven stars, has this to say: I know your conduct; I know the reputation you have of being alive, when in fact you are dead! Wake up, and strengthen what remains before it dies. I find that the sum of your deeds is less than complete in the sight of my God. Call to mind how you accepted what you heard; keep to it, and repent. If you do not rouse yourselves I will come upon you like a thief, at a time you cannot know. I realize that you have in Sardis a few persons who have not soiled their garments; these shall walk with me in white because they are worthy.
“ ‘The victor shall go clothed in white. I will never erase his name from the book of the living, but will acknowledge him in the presence of my Father and his angels.
“To the presiding spirit of the church in Philadelphia, write this:
“ ‘The holy One, the true,
“ ‘I know your deeds; that is why I have left an open door before you which no one can close. I know that your strength is limited; yet you have held fast to my word and have not denied my name. I mean to make some of Satan’s assembly, those self-styled Jews who are not really Jews but frauds, come and fall down at your feet; they will learn of my love for you in that way. Because you have kept my plea to stand fast, I will keep you safe in the time of trial which is coming on the whole world, to test all men on earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have lest someone rob you of your crown.
“ ‘I will make the victor a pillar in the temple of my God and he shall never leave it. I will inscribe on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which he will send down from heaven, and my own name which is new.
“To the presiding spirit of the church in Laodicea, write this:
“ ‘The Amen, the faithful Witness and true, the Source of God’s creation, has this to say: I know your deeds; I know you are neither hot nor cold. How I wish you were one or the other—hot or cold! But because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spew you out of my mouth! You keep saying, “I am so rich and secure that I want for nothing.” Little do you realize how wretched you are, how pitiable and poor, how blind and naked! Take my advice. Buy from me gold refined by fire if you would be truly rich. Buy white garments in which to be clothed, if the shame of your nakedness is to be covered. Buy ointment to smear on your eyes, if you would see once more.
“ ‘Whoever is dear to me I reprove and chastise. Be earnest about it, therefore. Repent!
RESPONSORY Revelation 3:20; 2:7
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
Those who gain the victory, I will feed from the tree of life which grows in the garden of God.
Second reading
The heavenly sacrifice, instituted by Christ, is the most gracious legacy of his new covenant. On the night he was delivered up to be crucified he left us this gift as a pledge of his abiding presence.
This sacrifice is our sustenance on life’s journey; by it we are nourished and supported along the road of life until we depart from this world and make our way to the Lord. For this reason he addressed these words to us: Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood, you will not have life in you.
It was the Lord’s will that his gifts should remain with us, and that we who have been redeemed by his precious blood should constantly be sanctified according to the pattern of his own passion. And so he commanded those faithful disciples of his whom he made the first priests of his Church to enact these mysteries of eternal life continuously. All priests throughout the churches of the world must celebrate these mysteries until Christ comes again from heaven. Therefore let us all, priests and people alike, be faithful to this everlasting memorial of our redemption. Daily it is before our eyes as a representation of the passion of Christ. We hold it in our hands, we receive it in our mouths, and we accept it in our hearts.
It is appropriate that we should receive the body of Christ in the form of bread, because, as there are many grains of wheat in the flour from which bread is made by mixing it with water and baking it with fire, so also we know that many members make up the one body of Christ which is brought to maturity by the fire of the Holy Spirit. Christ was born of the Holy Spirit, and since it was fitting that he should fulfill all justice, he entered into the waters of baptism to sanctify them. When he left the Jordan he was filled with the Holy Spirit who had descended upon him in the form of a dove. As the evangelist tells us: Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan.
Similarly, the wine of Christ’s blood, drawn from the many grapes of the vineyard that he had planted, is extracted in the winepress of the cross. When men receive it with believing hearts, like capacious wineskins, it ferments within them by its own power.
And so, now that you have escaped from the power of Egypt and of Pharaoh, who is the devil, join with us, all of you, in receiving this sacrifice of the saving passover with the eagerness of dedicated hearts. Then in our inmost being we shall be wholly sanctified by the very Lord Jesus Christ whom we believe to be present in his sacraments, and whose boundless power abides for ever.
RESPONSORY Luke 22:19; John 6:59
Jesus took bread, gave thanks, and broke the bread. Then he gave it to his disciples and said:
This is the bread come down from heaven; anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
O God,
ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration)
Let us praise the Lord.