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.
God rest ye merry gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
For Jesus Christ our Saviour
Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s pow’r
When we were gone astray
Refrain:
O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy
From God our Heavenly Father
A blessed Angel came;
And unto certain shepherds
Brought tidings of the same,
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by Name. (Refrain)
The shepherds at those tidings
Rejoiced much in mind,
And left their flocks a-feeding
In tempest, storm and wind,
And went to Bethlehem straightway
The Son of God to find. (Refrain)
But when to Bethlehem they came,
Whereat this infant lay,
They found Him in a manger,
Where oxen feed on hay;
His Mother Mary kneeling down,
Unto the Lord did pray. (Refrain)
PSALMODY
Antiphon 1: Lord, keep my soul from death; never let me stumble.
Psalm 116:1-9
I love the Lord for he has heard
the cry of my appeal;
for he turned his ear to me
in the day when I called him.
They surrounded me, the snares of death,
with the anguish of the tomb;
they caught me, sorrow and distress.
I called on the Lord’s name.
O Lord, my God, deliver me!
How gracious is the Lord, and just;
our God has compassion.
The Lord protects the simple hearts;
I was helpless so he saved me.
Turn back, my soul, to your rest
for the Lord has been good;
he has kept my soul from death,
my eyes from tears
and my feet from stumbling.
I will walk in the presence of the Lord
in the land of the living. Glory…
Psalm Prayer: God of power and mercy, through your Son’s passion and resurrection you have freed us from the bonds of death and the anguish of separation from you. Be ever with us on our pilgrimage; then we shall sing rather than weep. Keep our feet from stumbling, so that we may be able to follow you until we come to eternal rest.
Antiphon 1:Lord, keep my soul from death; never let me stumble.
Antiphon 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth
Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the mountains;
from where shall come my help?
My help shall come from the Lord
who made heaven and earth.
May he never allow you to stumble!
Let him sleep not, your guard.
No, he sleeps not nor slumbers,
Israel’s guard.
The Lord is your guard and your shade;
at your right side he stands.
By day the sun shall not smite you
nor the moon in the night.
The Lord will guard you from evil,
he will guard your soul.
The Lord will guard your going and coming
both now and for ever. Glory…
Psalm Prayer: All-powerful Father, the refuge and strength of your people, you protect in adversity and defend in prosperity those who put their trust in you. May they persevere in seeking your will and find their way to you through obedience.
Psalm Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, you have prepared a quiet place for us in your Father’s eternal home. Watch over our welfare on this perilous journey, shade us from the burning heat of day, and keep our lives free of evil until the end.
Antiphon 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth
.Antiphon 3 King of all the ages, your ways are perfect and true.
Revelation 15:3-4
Mighty and wonderful are your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Righteous and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!
Who would dare refuse you honor,
or the glory due your name, O Lord?
Since you alone are holy,
all nations shall come
and worship in your presence.
Your mighty deeds are clearly seen. Glory…
.
Antiphon 3 King of all the ages, your ways are perfect and true.
Opening Prayer (all standJ)
Liturgy of the Word
Homily
INTERCESSIONS
We pray now to the Father who has appointed Christ a light to the nations:
Father, hear our prayer.
Give increase to your Church,
– and spread the glory of your Son.
Eternal Father, you led the wise men from the East to your Son,
– reveal him to all who seek the truth.
Draw all nations into your marvelous light,
– so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bend.
Send laborers into your vineyard,
– let them preach the Gospel to the poor and announce a time of grace.
Grant the dead the fullness of redemption,
– that they may rejoice in the victory of Christ, your Son.
Grant, we ask, almighty God, that the Nativity of the Savior of the world, made known by the guidance of a star, may be revealed ever more fully to our minds. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
All sit for the Preparation of the Gifts
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
Amen
All stand for the Magnificat
MAGNIFICAT (Canticle of Mary)
Antiphon: An angel warned the wise men in a dream to return to their own country by a different route.
(#825, Breaking Bread – Luke 1: Magnificat by Bernadette Farrell)
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord my spirit sings to God, my saving God,
who on this day above all others favored me and raised me up, a light for all to see.
Through me great deeds will God make manifest, and all the earth will come to call me blest. Unbounded love and mercy sure will I proclaim for all who know and praise God ́s holy name.
God ́s mighty arm, protector of the just,
will guard the weak and raise them from the dust.
But mighty kings will swiftly fall from thrones corrupt. The strong brought low, the lowly lifted up.
Soon will the poor and hungry of the earth be richly blest, be given greater worth. And Israel, as once foretold to Abraham, will live in peace throughout the promised land.
All glory be to God, Creator blest, to Jesus Christ, God ́s love made manifest, and to the Holy Spirit, gentle Comforter, all glory be, both now and ever more
Antiphon: An angel warned the wise men in a dream to return to their own country by a different route.
Final Blessing and Dismissal