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.
#78 in Breaking Bread Music Issue)
Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming
From tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse’s lineage coming,
As men of old have sung.
It came, a flow’ret bright,
Amid the cold of winter,
When half spent was the night.
Isaiah ’twas foretold it,
The Rose I have in mind;
With Mary we behold it,
The virgin mother kind.
To show God’s love aright,
She bore to men a Savior,
When half spent was the night.
This Flow’r, whose fragrance tender
With sweetness fills the air,
Dispels with glorious splendor
The darkness everywhere.
True man, yet very God,
From sin and death He saves us,
And lightens every load.
Antiphon 1: Our God will come from Lebanon; he shall be as brilliant as the sun.
Psalm 119:145-152
I call with all my heart; Lord, hear me,
I will keep your statutes.
I call upon you, save me
and I will do your will.
I rise before dawn and cry for help,
I hope in your word.
My eyes watch through the night
to ponder your promise.
In your love hear my voice, O Lord;
give me life by your decrees.
Those who harm me unjustly draw near;
they are far from your law.
But you, O Lord, are close,
your commands are truth.
Long have I known that your will
is established for ever. Glory…
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.
Antiphon 1: Our God will come from Lebanon; he shall be as brilliant as the sun.
Antiphon 2: May the Holy One from heaven come down like gentle rain; may the earth burst into blossom and bear the tender Savior.
Wisdom 9:1-6,9-11
God of my fathers, Lord of mercy,
you who have made all things by your word
And in your wisdom have established man
to rule the creatures produced by you,
To govern the world in holiness and justice,
and to render judgment in integrity of heart:
Give me Wisdom, the attendant at your throne,
and reject me not from among your children;
For I am your servant, the son of your handmaid,
a man weak and short-lived
and lacking in comprehension of judgment and of laws.
Indeed, though one be perfect among the sons of men,
if Wisdom, who comes from you, be not with him,
he shall be held in no esteem.
Now with you is Wisdom, who knows your works
and was present when you made the world;
Who understands what is pleasing in your eyes
and what is conformable with your commands.
Send her forth from your holy heavens
and from your glorious throne dispatch her
That she may be with me and work with me,
that I may know what is your pleasure.
For she knows and understands all things,
and will guide me discreetly in my affairs
and safeguard me by her glory. Glory…
Antiphon 2: May the Holy One from heaven come down like gentle rain; may the earth burst into blossom and bear the tender Savior.
Antiphon 3: Israel, prepare yourself to meet the Lord, for he is coming.
Psalm 117
O praise the Lord, all you nations,
acclaim him all you peoples!
Strong is his love for us;
he is faithful for ever.
Psalm Prayer: God, our Father, may all nations and peoples praise you. May Jesus, who is called faithful and true and who lives with you eternally, possess our hearts forever,
Psalm Prayer: God, our Father, may all nations and peoples praise you. May Jesus, who is called faithful and true and who lives with you eternally, possess our hearts forever,
Antiphon 3: Israel, prepare yourself to meet the Lord, for he is coming.
OPENING PRAYER (stand)
All sit for the Liturgy of the Word.
After the Homily:
INTERCESSIONS (Universal Prayer) To the Lord Jesus Christ, judge of the living and the dead, let us pray:
Come, Lord Jesus!
Lord Jesus, you came to save sinners,
– protect us in times of temptation.
You will come in glory to be our judge,
– show in us your power to save.
Help us to keep the precepts of your law with the strength of the Spirit,
– and to look forward in love to your coming.
You are praised throughout the ages; in your mercy help us to love devoutly and temperately in this life,
– as we wait in joyful hope for the revelation of your glory.
Presider:
Grant, we pray, almighty God,
that we, who are weighed down from of old
by slavery beneath the yoke of sin,
may be set free by the newness
of the long-awaited Nativity
of your Only Begotten Son.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
(All are seated for the Liturgy of the Eucharist)
Lord’s Prayer
Pater noster, qui es in cælis
Sanctificétur nomen tuum
Advéniat regnum tuum
Fiat volúntas tua
Sicut in cælo et in terra
Panem nostrum quotidiánum da nobis hódie
Et dimítte nobis débita nostra
Sicut et nos dimíttimus debitóribus nostris
Et ne nos indúcas in tentatiónem
Sed libera nos a malo
After Holy Communion, all stand for the Benedictus.
BENEDICTUS/Canticle of Zachariah Benedictus – Luke 1: 68-79
Antiphon: Let everything within you watch and wait for the Lord our God draws near.
(While making the Sign of the Cross, we pray the following)
Blest be the God of Israel who comes to set us free
and raises up new hope for us: a Branch for David’s tree.
So have the prophets long declared that with a mighty arm
God would turn back our enemies and all who wish us harm
.
With promised mercy will God still the covenant recall,
the oath once sworn to Abraham from foes to save us all;
that we might worship without fear and offer lives of praise,
in holiness and righteousness to serve God all our days.
My child, as prophet of the Lord you will prepare the way,
to tell God’s people they are saved from sin’s eternal sway.
Then shall God’s mercy from on high shine forth and never cease
to drive away the gloom of death and lead us into peace.
Antiphon: Let everything within you watch and wait for the Lord our God draws near.
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Dismissal & Final Blessing
Salve, Regina, Mater misericordiæ,
vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve.
Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevæ,
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
in hac lacrimarum valle.
Eia, ergo, advocata nostra, illos tuos
misericordes oculos ad nos converte;
Et Jesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui,
nobis post hoc exsilium ostende.
O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria.