Introductory Rite:
God, come to my assistance R/ Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
R/ as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
The coming of our God
Our thoughts must now employ:
Then let us meet him on the road
With songs of holy joy.
The co-eternal Son
A maiden’s offspring see:
A servant’s form Christ putteth on,
To make his people free.
Daughet of Sion, rise
To greet thine infant-King,
And do not thanklessly despise
The pardon he doth bring.
In glory from his throne
Again will Christ descend,
And summon all that are his own
To joys that never end.
Let deeds of darkness fly
Before the approaching morn,
For onto sin ’tis ours to die,
And serve the Virgin-horn.
Our joyful praises sing
To Christ, that set us free;
Like tribute to the Father bring,
And, Holy Ghost, to thee.
PSALMODY
Antiphon 1:Yours is more than mortal beauty; every word you speak is full of grace..
My heart overflows with noble words.
To the king I must speak the song I have made,
my tongue as nimble as the pen of a scribe.
You are the fairest of the children of men
and graciousness is poured upon your lips:
because God has blessed you for evermore.
O mighty one, gird your sword upon your thigh;
in splendor and state, ride on in triumph
for the cause of truth and goodness and right.
Take aim with your bow in your dread right hand.
Your arrows are sharp, peoples fall beneath you.
The foes of the king fall down and lose heart.
Your throne, O God, shall endure for ever.
A scepter of justice is the scepter of your kingdom.
Your love is for justice; your hatred for evil.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness above other kings:
your robes are fragrant with aloes and myrrh.
From the ivory palace you are greeted with music.
The daughters of kings are among your loved ones.
On your right stands the queen in gold of Ophir. Glory…
Antiphon 1: Yours is more than mortal beauty; every word you speak is full of grace.
Antiphon 2. The bridegroom is here; go out and welcome him.
Listen, O daughter, give ear to my words:
forget your own people and your father’s house.
So will the king desire your beauty:
He is your lord, pay homage to him.
And the people of Tyre shall come with gifts,
the richest of the people shall seek your favor.
The daughter of the king is clothed with splendor,
her robes embroidered with pearls set in gold.
She is led to the king with her maiden companions.
They are escorted amid gladness and joy;
they pass within the palace of the king.
Sons shall be yours in place of your fathers:
you will make them rulers over all the earth.
May this song make your name for ever remembered.
May the peoples praise you from age to age. Glory…
Psalm Prayer: When you took on flesh, Lord Jesus, you made a marriage of mankind with God. Help us to be faithful to your word and endure our exile bravely, until we are called to the heavenly marriage feast, to which the Virgin Mary, exemplar of your Church, has preceded us.
Antiphon 2 The bridegroom is here; go out and welcome him.
.Antiphon 3 God planned in the fullness of time to restore all things in Christ.
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,
to be full of love.
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.
In him and through his blood,we have been redeemed,
and our sins forgiven,
so immeasurably generous
is God’s favor to us.
God has given us the wisdom
to understand fully the mystery,
the plan he was pleased
to decree in Christ.
A plan to be carried out
in Christ, in the fullness of time,
to bring all things into one in him,
in the heavens and on earth. Glory…
.Antiphon 3 God planned in the fullness of time to restore all things in Christ.
READING Philippians 3:20b-21
We eagerly await the coming of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.
RESPONSORY
Come and set us free, Lord God of power and might.
Come and set us free, Lord God of power and might.
Let your face shine upon us and we shall be saved,
Lord God of power and might.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
Come and set us free, Lord God of power and might.
MAGNIFICAT (Canticle of Mary)
Antiphon: See, your king comes, the master of the earth; he will shatter the yoke of our slavery.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever. Glory to the Father…
Antiphon: See, your king comes, the master of the earth; he will shatter the yoke of our slavery.
INTERCESSIONS
To Christ our Lord, judge of the living and the dead, let us cry out with faith:
Come, Lord Jesus!
Lord, may the world know your justice which the heavens proclaim, – may your glory fill the earth.
For us you took upon yourself the weakness of man, – protect us with the strength of your own divine life.
Come to those imprisoned in the darkness of ignorance, – show them the radiance of your own divine light.
In your humility as a man, you took away our sin, – now in your glory grant us true happiness.
When you come in glory to judge us, – gather the dead into your kingdom.
Lord’s Prayer
COLLECT
May our prayer of petition
rise before you, we pray, O Lord,
that, with purity unblemished,
we, your servants, may come, as we desire,
to celebrate the great mystery
of the Incarnation of your Only Begotten Son.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Final Blessing and Dismissal