Divine Office Office of Readings

Dec 09, Invitatory for Tuesday of the 2nd week of Advent

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Psalm 95 Come, let us sing to the Lord and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us. Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving and sing joyful songs to the Lord. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. The Lord is God, the mighty God, the great king over all the gods. He holds in his hands the depths of the earth and the highest mountains as well He made the sea; it belongs to him, the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Come, then, let us bow down and worship, bending the knee before the Lord, our maker, For he is our God and we are his people, the flock he shepherds. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Today, listen to the voice of the Lord: Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did in the wilderness, when at Meriba and Massah they challenged me and provoked me, Although they had seen all of my works. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Forty years I endured that generation. I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray and they do not know my ways.” So I swore in my anger, “They shall not enter into my rest.” Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.

Dec 10, Invitatory for Wednesday of the 2nd week of Advent

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Psalm 95 Come, let us sing to the Lord and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us. Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving and sing joyful songs to the Lord. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. The Lord is God, the mighty God, the great king over all the gods. He holds in his hands the depths of the earth and the highest mountains as well He made the sea; it belongs to him, the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Come, then, let us bow down and worship, bending the knee before the Lord, our maker, For he is our God and we are his people, the flock he shepherds. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Today, listen to the voice of the Lord: Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did in the wilderness, when at Meriba and Massah they challenged me and provoked me, Although they had seen all of my works. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Forty years I endured that generation. I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray and they do not know my ways.” So I swore in my anger, “They shall not enter into my rest.” Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.

Dec 10, Office of Readings for Wednesday of the 2nd week of Advent

Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. I: Ordinary: 649 Proper of Seasons: 225 Psalter: Wednesday, Week II, 851 Christian Prayer: Does not contain Office of Readings. Office of Readings for Wednesday of the 2nd Week of Advent God, come to my assistance. — Lord, make haste to help me. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia. HYMN 1. O Lord, I am not worthy That Thou should'st come to me, But speak the words of comfort, My spirit healed shall be. 2. Oh, come, all you who labor In sorrow and in pain, Come, eat This Bread from heaven; Thy peace and strength regain. 3. O Jesus, we adore Thee, Our Victim and our Priest, Whose precious Blood and Body Become our sacred Feast. 4. O Sacrament most holy, O Sacrament divine! All praise and all thanksgiving Be ev'ry moment Thine. 𝄞"O Lord, I Am Not Worthy" by Rebecca Hincke • Title: O Lord, I Am Not Worthy; Author: Unknown; Tune: NON DIGNUS; Artist: Rebecca Hincke; Recording copyright 2024 by Surgeworks, Inc. PSALMODY Ant. 1 We groan in pain as we await the redemption of our bodies. Psalm 39 Urgent prayer of a sick person Creation is made subject to futility… by him who subjected it, but it is not without hope. (Romans 8:20) I I said: “I will be watchful of my ways for fear I should sin with my tongue. I will put a curb on my lips when the wicked man stands before me.” I was dumb, silent and still. His prosperity stirred my grief. My heart was burning within me. At the thought of it, the fire blazed up and my tongue burst into speech: “O Lord, you have shown me my end, how short is the length of my days. Now I know how fleeting is my life. You have given me a short span of days; my life is as nothing in your sight. A mere breath, the man who stood so firm, a mere shadow, the man passing by; a mere breath the riches he hoards, not knowing who will have them.” Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. We groan in pain as we await the redemption of our bodies. Ant. 2 Hear and answer my prayer, O Lord, let me not weep in vain. II And now, Lord, what is there to wait for? In you rests all my hope. Set me free from all my sins, do not make me the taunt of the fool. I was silent, not opening my lips, because this was all your doing. Take away your scourge from me. I am crushed by the blows of your hand. You punish man’s sins and correct him; like the moth you devour all he treasures. Mortal man is no more than a breath; O Lord, hear my prayer. O Lord, turn your ear to my cry. Do not be deaf to my tears. In your house I am a passing guest, a pilgrim, like all my fathers. Look away that I may breathe again before I depart to be no more. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Psalm-prayer Through your Son you taught us, Father, not to be fearful of tomorrow but to commit our lives to your care. Do not withhold your Spirit from us but help us find a life of peace after these days of trouble. Ant. Hear and answer my prayer, O Lord, let me not weep in vain. Ant. 3 I have put all my trust in God’s never-failing mercy. Psalm 52 Against a calumniator If anyone would boast, let him boast in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:31) Why do you boast of your wickedness, you champion of evil, planning ruin all day long, your tongue like a sharpened razor, you master of deceit? You love evil more than good; lies more than truth. You love the destructive word, you tongue of deceit. For this God will destroy you and remove you for ever. He will snatch you from your tent and uproot you from the land of the living. The just shall see and fear. They shall laugh and say: “So this is the man who refused to take God as his stronghold, but trusted in the greatness of his wealth and grew powerful by his crimes.” But I am like a growing olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the goodness of God for ever and ever I will thank you for evermore; for this is your doing. I will proclaim that your name is good, in the presence of your friends. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Psalm-prayer Father, you cut down the unfruitful branch for burning and prune the fertile to make it bear more fruit. Make us grow like laden olive trees in your domain, firmly rooted in the power and mercy of your Son, so that you may gather from us fruit worthy of eternal life. Ant. I have put all my trust in God’s never-failing mercy. 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. Turn back to us, O Lord our God. — Show us your face and we shall be saved. READINGS First reading From the book of the prophet Isaiah 25:6-26:6 The banquet of God. The song of the redeemed. On this mountain the Lord of hosts will provide for all peoples A feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines. On this mountain he will destroy the veil that veils all peoples, The web that is woven over all nations; he will destroy death forever. The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces; The reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth; for the Lord has spoken. On that day it will be said: “Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us! This is the Lord for whom we looked; let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!” For the hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain, but Moab will be trodden down as a straw is trodden down in the mire. He will stretch forth his hands in Moab as a swimmer extends his hands to swim; He will bring low their pride as his hands sweep over them. The high-walled fortress he will raze, and strike it down level with the earth, with the very dust. On that day they will sing this song in the land of Judah: “A strong city have we; he sets up walls and ramparts to protect us. Open up the gates to let in a nation that is just, one that keeps faith. A nation of firm purpose you keep in peace; in peace, for its trust in you.” Trust in the Lord forever! For the Lord is an eternal Rock. He humbles those in high places, and the lofty city he brings down; He tumbles it to the ground, levels it with the dust. It is trampled underfoot by the needy, by the footsteps of the poor. RESPONSORY Revelation 21:3; Isaiah 25:8 I heard a voice proclaiming from the throne: Now God has a dwelling place among men and he will live with them; — they will be his people and he, their God, will be with them. The Lord will cast down death for ever and wipe the tears from every face. — They will be his people and he, their God, will be with them. Second reading From a discourse on the psalms by Saint Augustine, bishop God’s promises are held out to us by his Son God established a time for his promises and a time for their fulfillment. The time for promises was in the time of the prophets, until John the Baptist; from John until the end is the time of fulfillment. God, who is faithful, put himself in our debt, not by receiving anything but by promising so much. A promise was not sufficient for him; he chose to commit himself in writing as well, as it were making a contract of his promises. He wanted us to be able to see the way in which his promises were redeemed when he began to discharge them. And so the time of the prophets was, as we have often said, the foretelling of the promises. He promised eternal salvation, everlasting happiness with the angels, an immortal inheritance, endless glory, the joyful vision of his face, his holy dwelling in heaven, and after resurrection from the dead no further fear of dying. This is as it were his final promise, the goal of our striving. When we reach it, we shall ask for nothing more. But as to the way in which we are to arrive at our final goal, he has revealed this also, by promise and prophecy. He has promised men divinity, mortals immortality, sinners justification, the poor a rising to glory. But, brethren, because God’s promises seemed impossible to men – equality with the angels in exchange for mortality, corruption, poverty, weakness, dust and ashes – God not only made a written contract with men, to win their belief but also established a mediator of his good faith, not a prince or angel or archangel, but his only Son. He wanted, through his Son, to show us and give us the way he would lead us to the goal he has promised. It was not enough for God to make his Son our guide to the way; he made him the way itself, that you might travel with him as leader, and by him as the way. Therefore, the only Son of God was to come among men, to take the nature of men, and in this nature to be born as a man. He was to die, to rise again, to ascend into heaven, to sit at the right hand of the Father, and to fulfill his promises among the nations, and after that to come again, to exact now what he had asked for before, to separate those deserving his anger from those deserving his mercy, to execute his threats against the wicked, and to reward the just as he had promised. All this had therefore to be prophesied, foretold, and impressed on us as an event in the future, in order that we might wait for it in faith, not find it a sudden and dreadful reality. RESPONSORY Micah 7:19; Acts 10:43 Our God will again have compassion on us; — he will put aside our wickedness, and bury our sins in the depth of the sea. All the prophets testify to him, saying: Everyone who believes in him has forgiveness of sins through his name. — He will put aside our wickedness, and bury our sins in the depth of the sea. CONCLUDING PRAYER Almighty God, who command us to prepare the way for Christ the Lord, grant in your kindness, we pray, that no infirmity may weary us as we long for the comforting presence of our heavenly physician. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. — Amen. ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration) Let us praise the Lord. — And give him thanks.

Dec 11, Office of Readings for Thursday of the 2nd week of Advent

Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. I: Ordinary: 649 Proper of Seasons: 233 Psalter: Thursday, Week II, 873 Christian Prayer: Does not contain Office of Readings Office of Readings for Thursday of the Second Week of Advent God, come to my assistance. — Lord, make haste to help me. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia. HYMN I am the Lord bringing light through the cloud Let the Heavens rain down righteousness Let earth open up, and salvation bear fruit; Let the Heavens rain down righteousness I am the Lord your God, beside me there is no other god I call you by your name let the Heavens rain down righteousness I the Lord have created it. I am the Lord bringing light through the cloud Let the Heavens rain down righteousness Let earth open up, and salvation bear fruit; Let the Heavens rain down righteousness I am the Lord your God, beside me there is no other god I call you by your name let the Heavens rain down righteousness I the Lord have created it. 𝄞"Isaiah 45" by Kathleen Lundquist [http://www.mystagogia.net] • Available for Purchase [https://music.apple.com/gh/artist/kathleen-lundquist/99063754] • Title: Isaiah 45; Lyrics adapted from Revised Standard Version of the Bible; Composer: Kathleen Lundquist; Artist: Kathleen Lundquist; Used with permission. • Albums that contain this Hymn: Sing of Mary PSALMODY Ant. 1 Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever. Psalm 44 The misfortunes of God’s people We triumph over all these things through him who loved us (Romans 8:37). I We heard with our own ears, O God, our fathers have told us the story of the things you did in their days, you yourself, in days long ago. To plant them you uprooted the nations: to let them spread you laid peoples low. No sword of their own won the land; no arm of their own brought them victory. It was your right hand, your arm and the light of your face: for you loved them. It is you, my king, my God, who granted victories to Jacob. Through you we beat down our foes; in your name we trampled our aggressors. For it was not in my bow that I trusted nor yet was I saved by my sword: it was you who saved us from our foes, it was you who put our foes to shame. All day long our boast was in God, and we praised your name without ceasing. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. Lord, you are our savior; we will praise you for ever. Ant. 2 Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt. II Yet now you have rejected us, disgraced us: you no longer go forth with our armies. You make us retreat from the foe and our enemies plunder us at will. You make us like sheep for the slaughter and scatter us among the nations. You sell your own people for nothing and make no profit by the sale. You make us the taunt of our neighbors, the laughing stock of all who are near. Among the nations, you make us a byword, among the peoples a thing of derision. All day long my disgrace is before me: my face is covered with shame at the voice of the taunter, the scoffer, at the sight of the foe and the avenger. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. Spare us, O Lord; do not bring your own people into contempt. Ant. 3 Rise up, O Lord, and save us, for you are merciful. III This befell us though we had not forgotten you; though we had not been false to your covenant, though we had not withdrawn our hearts; though our feet had not strayed from your path. Yet you have crushed us in a place of sorrows and covered us with the shadow of death. Had we forgotten the name of our God or stretched our hands to another god would not God have found this out, he who knows the secrets of the heart? It is for you that we face death all day long and are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Awake, O Lord, why do you sleep? Arise, do not reject us for ever! Why do you hide your face from us and forget our oppression and misery? For we are brought down low to the dust; our body lies prostrate on the earth. Stand up and come to our help! Redeem us because of your love! Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. 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. 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. Hear the word of the Lord, all you nations. — Proclaim it to the ends of the earth. READINGS First reading From the book of the prophet Isaiah 26:7-21 The song of the just. The promise of new life The way of the just is smooth; the path of the just you make level. Yes, for your way and your judgments, O Lord, we look to you; Your name and your title are the desire of our souls. My soul yearns for you in the night, yes, my spirit within me keeps vigil for you; When your judgment dawns upon the earth, the world’s inhabitants learn justice. The wicked man, spared, does not learn justice; in an upright land he acts perversely, and sees not the majesty of the Lord. O Lord, your hand is uplifted, but they behold it not; Let them be shamed when they see your zeal for your people: let the fire prepared for your enemies consume them. O Lord, you mete out peace to us, for it is you who have accomplished all we have done. O Lord, our God, other lords than you have ruled us; it is from you only that we can call upon your name. Dead they are, they have no life, shades that cannot rise; For you have punished and destroyed them, and wiped out all memory of them. You have increased the nation, O Lord, increased the nation to your own glory, and extended far all the borders of the land. O Lord, oppressed by your punishment, we cried out in anguish under your chastising. As a woman about to give birth writhes and cries out in her pains, so were we in your presence, O Lord. We conceived and writhed in pain, giving birth to wind; Salvation we have not achieved for the earth, the inhabitants of the world cannot bring it forth. But your dead shall live, their corpses shall rise; awake and sing, you who lie in the dust. For your dew is a dew of light, and the land of shades gives birth. Go, my people, enter your chambers, and close your doors behind you; Hide yourselves for a brief moment, until the wrath is past. See, the Lord goes forth from his place, to punish the wickedness of the earth’s inhabitants; The earth will reveal the blood upon her, and no longer conceal her slain. RESPONSORY Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2 Awake and sing, you who sleep in the earth, — for the dew of the Lord is a dew of light. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awaken. — for the dew of the Lord is a dew of light. Second reading From a sermon by Saint Peter Chrysologus, bishop Love desires to see God When God saw the world falling to ruin because of fear, he immediately acted to call it back to himself with love. He invited it by his grace, preserved it by his love, and embraced it with compassion. When the earth had become hardened in evil, God sent the flood both to punish and to release it. He called Noah to be the father of a new era, urged him with kind words, and showed that he trusted him; he gave him fatherly instruction about the present calamity, and through his grace, consoled him with hope for the future. But God did not merely issue commands; rather with Noah sharing the work, he filled the ark with the future seed of the whole world. The sense of loving fellowship thus engendered removed servile fear, and a mutual love could continue to preserve what shared labor had effected. God called Abraham out of the heathen world, symbolically lengthened his name, and made him the father of all believers. God walked with him on his journeys, and protected him in foreign lands, enriched him with earthly possessions, and honored him with victories. He made a covenant with him, saved him from harm, accepted his hospitality, and astonished him by giving him the offspring he had despaired of. Favored with so many graces and drawn by such great sweetness of divine love, Abraham was to learn to love God rather than fear him, and love rather than fear was to inspire his worship. God comforted Jacob by a dream during his flight, roused him to combat upon his return, and encircled him with a wrestler’s embrace to teach him not to be afraid of the author of the conflict, but to love him. God called Moses as a father would, and with fatherly affection invited him to become the liberator of his people. In all the events we have recalled, the flame of divine love enkindled human hearts and its intoxication overflowed into men’s senses. Wounded by love, they longed to look upon God with their bodily eyes. Yet how could our narrow human vision apprehend God, whom the whole world cannot contain? But the law of love is not concerned with what will be, what ought to be, what can be. Love does not reflect; it is unreasonable and knows no moderation. Love refuses to be consoled when its goal proves impossible, despises all hindrances to the attainment of its object. Love destroys the lover if he cannot obtain what he loves; love follows its own promptings, and does not think of right and wrong. Love inflames desire which impels it toward things that are forbidden. But why continue? It is intolerable for love not to see the object of its longing. That is why whatever reward they merited was nothing to the saints if they could not see the Lord. A love that desires to see God may not have reasonableness on its side, but it is the evidence of filial love. It gave Moses the temerity to say: If I have found favor in your eyes, show me your face. It inspired the psalmist to make the same prayer: Show me your face. Even the pagans made their images for this purpose: they wanted actually to see what they mistakenly revered. RESPONSORY See Isaiah 66:13; 1 Kings 11:36; Isaiah 66:14; 46:13 As a mother comforts her sons, so will I comfort you, says the Lord; help will come to you from the city of Jerusalem which I have chosen. — You shall see this, and your heart will rejoice. I will give salvation in Zion and my glory in Jerusalem. — You shall see this, and your heart will rejoice. CONCLUDING PRAYER Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the paths of your Only Begotten Son, that through his coming, we may be found worthy to serve you with minds made pure. 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. — Amen. ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration) Let us praise the Lord. — And give him thanks.

Dec 12, Invitatory for Friday of the 2nd week of Advent

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Psalm 95 Come, let us sing to the Lord and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us. Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving and sing joyful songs to the Lord. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. The Lord is God, the mighty God, the great king over all the gods. He holds in his hands the depths of the earth and the highest mountains as well He made the sea; it belongs to him, the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Come, then, let us bow down and worship, bending the knee before the Lord, our maker, For he is our God and we are his people, the flock he shepherds. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Today, listen to the voice of the Lord: Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did in the wilderness, when at Meriba and Massah they challenged me and provoked me, Although they had seen all of my works. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Forty years I endured that generation. I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray and they do not know my ways.” So I swore in my anger, “They shall not enter into my rest.” Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.