Divine Office Office of Readings

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Come, let us give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end. 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 give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end. 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 give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end. 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 give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end. 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 give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end. 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 give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end. 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 give thanks to the Lord for his great love is without end.

Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV: Ordinary: 615 Proper of Seasons: 243 Psalter: Friday, Week III, 1046 Christian Prayer: Does not contain Office of Readings. Office of Readings for Friday in Ordinary Time 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 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me by the still waters. 3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5 Thou preparest a table for me in the presence of my enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of my Lord for ever. 𝄞"Psalm 23" by Melinda Kirigin-Voss [https://divineoffice.org/melinda-kirigin-voss/] • Available on iTunes [https://itunes.apple.com/nz/album/yesterday-today-and-forever/id418013978] • Text from Psalm 23 King James Version; Used wih permission • Albums that contain this Hymn: Yesterday, Today, and Forever PSALMODY Ant. 1 I am worn out with crying, with longing for my God. Psalm 69 I am consumed with zeal for your house They offered him a mixture of wine and gall (Matthew 27:34). I Save me, O God, for the waters have risen to my neck. I have sunk into the mud of the deep and there is no foothold. I have entered the waters of the deep and the waves overwhelm me. I am wearied with all my crying, my throat is parched. My eyes are wasted away from looking for my God. More numerous than the hairs on my head are those who hate me without cause. Those who attack me with lies are too much for my strength. How can I restore what I have never stolen? O God, you know my sinful folly; my sins you can see. Let those who hope in you not be put to shame through me, Lord of hosts: let not those who seek you be dismayed through me, God of Israel. It is for you that I suffer taunts, that shame covers my face, that I have become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my own mother’s sons. I burn with zeal for your house and taunts against you fall on me. When I afflict my soul with fasting they make it a taunt against me. When I put on sackcloth in mourning then they make me a byword, the gossip of men at the gates, the subject of drunkards’ songs. 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. I am worn out with crying, with longing for my God. Ant. 2 I needed food and they gave me gall; I was parched with thirst and they gave me vinegar. II This is my prayer to you, my prayer for your favor. In your great love, answer me, O God, with your help that never fails: rescue me from sinking in the mud; save me from my foes. Save me from the waters of the deep lest the waves overwhelm me. Do not let the deep engulf me nor death close its mouth on me. Lord, answer, for your love is kind; in your compassion, turn towards me. Do not hide your face from your servant; answer quickly for I am in distress. Come close to my soul and redeem me; ransom me pressed by my foes. You know how they taunt and deride me; my oppressors are all before you. Taunts have broken my heart; I have reached the end of my strength. I looked in vain for compassion, for consolers; not one could I find. For food they gave me poison; in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. 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. I needed food and they gave me gall; I was parched with thirst and they gave me vinegar. Ant. 3 Seek the Lord and you will live. III As for me in my poverty and pain let your help, O God, lift me up. I will praise God’s name with a song; I will glorify him with thanksgiving, a gift pleasing God more than oxen, more than beasts prepared for sacrifice. The poor when they see it will be glad and God-seeking hearts will revive; for the Lord listens to the needy and does not spurn his servants in their chains. Let the heavens and the earth give him praise, the sea and all its living creatures. For God will bring help to Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah and men shall dwell there in possession. The sons of his servants shall inherit it; those who love his name shall dwell there. 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 God our Father, to show the way of salvation, you chose that the standard of the cross should go before us, and you fulfilled the ancient prophecies in Christ’s Passover from death to life. Do not let us rouse your burning indignation by sin, but rather, through the contemplation of his wounds, make us burn with zeal for the honor of your Church and with grateful love for you. Ant. Seek the Lord and you will live. 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. The Lord will teach us his ways. — And we will follow in his footsteps. READINGS First reading From the book of Lamentations 3:1-33 Hope in time of mourning I am a man who knows affliction from the rod of his anger, One whom he has led and forced to walk in darkness, not in the light; Against me alone he brings back his hand again and again all the day. He has worn away my flesh and my skin, he has broken my bones; He has beset me round about with poverty and weariness; He has left me to dwell in the dark like those long dead. He has hemmed me in with no escape and weighed me down with chains; Even when I cry out for help, he stops my prayer; He has blocked my ways with fitted stones, and turned my paths aside. A lurking bear he has been to me, a lion in ambush! He deranged my ways, set me astray, left me desolate. He bent his bow, and set me up as the target for his arrow. He pierces my sides with shafts from his quiver. I have become a laughingstock for all nations, their taunt all the day long; He has sated me with bitter food, made me drink my fill of wormwood. He has broken my teeth with gravel, pressed my face in the dust; My soul is deprived of peace, I have forgotten what happiness is; I tell myself my future is lost, all that I hoped for from the Lord. The thought of my homeless poverty is wormwood and gall; Remembering it over and over leaves my soul downcast within me. But I will call this to mind, as my reason to have hope: The favors of the Lord are not exhausted, his mercies are not spent; They are renewed each morning, so great is his faithfulness. My portion is the Lord, says my soul; therefore will I hope in him. Good is the Lord to one who waits for him, to the soul that seeks him; It is good to hope in silence for the saving help of the Lord. It is good for a man to bear the yoke from his youth. Let him sit alone and in silence, when it is laid upon him. Let him put his mouth to the dust; there may yet be hope. Let him offer his cheek to be struck, let him be filled with disgrace. For the Lord’s rejection does not last forever; Though he punishes, he takes pity, in the abundance of his mercies; He has no joy in afflicting or grieving the sons of men. RESPONSORY Lamentations 3:52,54,56,58; Acts 21:13 My enemies hated me for no reason; I said: I am lost. I called for help, O Lord, and you heard my prayer. — You said: Do not be afraid; you took up my cause and redeemed my life. For the sake of the name of the Lord Jesus, I am ready not only for imprisonment but even death. — You said: Do not be afraid; you took up my cause and redeemed my life. Second reading From a sermon by Blessed Isaac of Stella, abbot Christ will forgive no sin without the Church The prerogative of receiving the confession of sin and the power to forgive sin are two things that belong properly to God alone. We must confess our sins to him and look to him for forgiveness. Since only he has the power to forgive sins, it is to him that we must make our confession. But when the Almighty, the Most High, wedded a bride who was weak and of low estate, he made that maid-servant a queen. He took her from her place behind him, at his feet, and enthroned her at his side. She had been born from his side, and therefore he betrothed her to himself. And as all that belongs to the Father belongs also to the Son because by nature they are one, so also the bridegroom gave all he had to the bride and he shared in all that was hers. He made her one both with himself and with the Father. Praying for his bride, the Son said to the Father: I want them to be one with us, even as you and I are one. And so the bridegroom is one with the Father and one with the bride. Whatever he found in his bride alien to her own nature he took from her and nailed to his cross when he bore her sins and destroyed them on the tree. He received from her and clothed himself in what was hers by nature and gave her what belonged to him as God. He destroyed what was diabolical, took to himself what was human, and conferred on her what was divine. So all that belonged to the bride was shared in by the bridegroom, and he who had done no wrong and on whose lips was found no deceit could say: Have pity on me, Lord, for I am weak. Thus, sharing as he did in the bride’s weakness, the bridegroom made his own her cries of distress, and gave his bride all that was his. Therefore, she too has the prerogative of receiving the confession of sin and the power to forgive sin, which is the reason for the command: Go, show yourself to the priest. The Church is incapable of forgiving any sin without Christ, and Christ is unwilling to forgive any sin without the Church. The Church cannot forgive the sin of one who has not repented, who has not been touched by Christ; Christ will not forgive the sin of one who despises the Church. What God has joined together, man must not separate. This is a great mystery, but I understand it as referring to Christ and the Church. Do not destroy the whole Christ by separating head from body, for Christ is not complete without the Church, nor is the Church complete without Christ. The whole and complete Christ is head and body. This is why he said: No one has ever ascended into heaven except the Son of Man whose home is in heaven. He is the only man who can forgive sin. RESPONSORY John 17:20,21,22,18 I pray for them, that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you. I have given them the glory you gave to me, — that they may be one as we are one. As you have sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. — That they may be one as we are one. CONCLUDING PRAYER O God, by whom we are redeemed and receive adoption, look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters, that those who believe in Christ may receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance. 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.

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Come, let us worship God who brings the world and its wonders from darkness into light. Psalm 100 Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing for joy. Ant. Come, let us worship God who brings the world and its wonders from darkness into light. Know that he, the Lord, is God. He made us, we belong to him, we are his people, the sheep of his flock. Ant. Come, let us worship God who brings the world and its wonders from darkness into light. Go within his gates, giving thanks. Enter his courts with songs of praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name. Ant. Come, let us worship God who brings the world and its wonders from darkness into light. Indeed, how good is the Lord, eternal his merciful love. He is faithful from age to age. Ant. Come, let us worship God who brings the world and its wonders from darkness into light. 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 God who brings the world and its wonders from darkness into light.

Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV: Ordinary: 615 Proper of Seasons: 248 Psalter: Saturday, Week III, 1067 Christian Prayer: Does not contain Office of Readings. Office of Readings for Saturday in Ordinary Time 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 Ave Maria, gratia plena Dominus tecum Benedicta tu in mulieribus Et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Jesus Sancta Maria, Mater Dei Ora pro nobis peccatoribus Nunc et in hora mortis nostrae Amen. English Translation: Hail Mary, full of grace The Lord is with thee Blessed are thou among women Blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus Holy Mary, Mother of God Pray for us sinners Now, and at the hour of our death Amen. 𝄞"Ave Maria" by Gretchen Harris [http://www.gretchen-harris.com] • Musical Score [https://divineoffice.org/wp-content/uploads/Ave-Maria-CHANT-Mode-I-DivOfcOrg-C-orig.pdf] • Title: Ave Maria (Chant); Album: Sing of Mary; Music; Plainsong mode I; vocal: Gretchen Harris; Used with permission; Visit and thank Gretch at http://www.gretchen-harris.com; PSALMODY Ant. 1 Let us praise the Lord for his mercy and for the wonderful things he has done for men. Psalm 107 Thanksgiving for deliverance This is God’s message to the sons of Israel; the good news of peace proclaimed through Jesus Christ (Acts 10:36). I “O give thanks to the Lord for he is good; for his love endures for ever.” Let them say this, the Lord’s redeemed, whom he redeemed from the hand of the foe and gathered from far-off lands, from east and west, north and south. Some wandered in the desert, in the wilderness, finding no way to a city they could dwell in. Hungry they were and thirsty; their soul was fainting within them. Then they cried to the Lord in their need and he rescued them from their distress and he led them along the right way, to reach a city they could dwell in. Let them thank the Lord for his love, for the wonders he does for men: for he satisfies the thirsty soul; he fills the hungry with good things. Some lay in darkness and in gloom, prisoners in misery and chains, having defied the words of God and spurned the counsels of the Most High. He crushed their spirit with toil; they stumbled; there was no one to help. Then they cried to the Lord in their need and he rescued them from their distress. He led them forth from darkness and gloom and broke their chains to pieces. Let them thank the Lord for his goodness, for the wonders he does for men: for he bursts the gates of bronze and shatters the iron bars. 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. Let us praise the Lord for his mercy and for the wonderful things he has done for men. Ant. 2 Men have seen the works of God, the marvels he has done. II Some were sick on account of their sins and afflicted on account of their guilt. They had a loathing for every food; they came close to the gates of death. Then they cried to the Lord in their need and he rescued them from their distress. He sent forth his word to heal them and saved their life from the grave. Let them thank the Lord for his love, for the wonders he does for men. Let them offer a sacrifice of thanks and tell of his deeds with rejoicing. Some sailed to the sea in ships to trade on the mighty waters. These men have seen the Lord’s deeds, the wonders he does in the deep. For he spoke; he summoned the gale, raising up the waves of the sea. Tossed up to heaven, then into the deep; their soul melted away in their distress. They staggered, reeled like drunken men, for all their skill was gone. Then they cried to the Lord in their need and he rescued them from their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper: all the waves of the sea were hushed. They rejoiced because of the calm and he led them to the haven they desired. Let them thank the Lord for his love, for the wonders he does for men. Let them exalt him in the gathering of the people and praise him in the meeting of the elders. 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. Men have seen the works of God, the marvels he has done. Ant. 3 Those who love the Lord will see and rejoice; they will understand his loving kindness. III He changes streams into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, fruitful land into a salty waste, for the wickedness of those who live there. But he changes desert into streams, thirsty ground into springs of water. There he settles the hungry and they build a city to dwell in. They sow fields and plant their vines; these yield crops for the harvest. He blesses them; they grow in numbers. He does not let their herds decrease. He pours contempt upon princes, makes them wander in trackless wastes. They diminish, are reduced to nothing by oppression, evil and sorrow. But he raises the needy from distress; makes families numerous as a flock. The upright see it and rejoice but all who do wrong are silenced. Whoever is wise, let him heed these things. And consider the love of the Lord. 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 You fill the hungry with good things, Lord God, and break the sinner’s chains. Hear your people who call to you in their need and lead your Church from the shadows of death. Gather us from sunrise to sunset that we may grow together in faith and love and give lasting thanks for your kindness. Ant. Those who love the Lord will see and rejoice; they will understand his loving kindness. 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. Your truth, O God, is high as the clouds. — Lord, your goodness is deep as the ocean. READINGS First reading From the book of Lamentations 5:1-22 A plea for the redemption of the people Remember, O Lord, what has befallen us, look, and see our disgrace: Our inherited lands have been turned over to strangers, our homes to foreigners. We have become orphans, fatherless; widowed are our mothers. The water we drink we must buy, for our own wood we must pay. On our necks is the yoke of those who drive us; we are worn out, but allowed no rest. To Egypt we submitted, and to Assyria, to fill our need of bread. Our fathers, who sinned, are no more; but we bear their guilt. Slaves rule over us; there is no one to rescue us from their hands. At the peril of our lives we bring in our sustenance, in the face of the desert heat; Our skin is shriveled up, as though by a furnace, with the searing blasts of famine. The wives in Zion were ravished by the enemy, the maidens in the cities of Judah; Princes were gibbeted by them, elders shown no respect. The youths carry the millstones, boys stagger under their loads of wood; The old men have abandoned the gate, the young men their music. The joy of our hearts has ceased, our dance has turned into mourning; The garlands have fallen from our heads: woe to us, for we have sinned! Over this our hearts are sick, at this our eyes grow dim: That Mount Zion should be desolate, with jackals roaming there! You, O Lord, are enthroned forever; your throne stands from age to age. Why, then, should you forget us, abandon us so long a time? Lead us back to you, O Lord, that we may be restored: give us anew such days as we had of old. For now you have indeed rejected us, and in full measure turned your wrath against us. RESPONSORY Lamentations 5:19,20-21; Mt. 8:25 You are enthroned for ever, O Lord; why, then, should you forget us for ever? — Lead us back to you, and we shall be renewed. Save us, Lord, or we shall perish. — Lead us back to you, and we shall be renewed. Second reading From a sermon by Saint Athanasius, bishop You gave us life in the beginning; give us new life God, the Word of the all-good Father, did not disregard the human race, his own creation, when it was sinking back into corruption, but rather by the offering of his own body he destroyed the death men had incurred, and by his teaching he corrected their negligence. So he restored by his power all that belongs to man’s estate. Anyone can find confirmation of this from the Savior’s own disciples who spoke of him, for in their writings one reads: The charity of Christ constrains us as we judge that if one died on behalf of all, then all died; and he died for all in order that we may live no longer for ourselves but for him who died for us and rose from the dead, our Lord Jesus Christ. And again: We see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, that by God’s grace he might taste death for everyone. Then the writer goes on to show why it had to be God the Word and no other who became man: Indeed it was fitting that in bringing many sons to glory, God, for whom and through whom all things exist, should make perfect the one who leads them to salvation. By this he means that the task of bringing men back from the corruption into which they had fallen belonged to no other save God the Word who had made them in the beginning. Further, Scripture shows that the Word assumed a body for the purpose of offering it in sacrifice on behalf of other bodies like his own, for the writer continues: Since the children have blood and flesh in common, he likewise shared in them himself so that by his own death he might destroy the one who had power over death, that is, the devil, and might deliver those who all their life long were enslaved by fear of death. For by the sacrifice of his own body he both put an end to the law that stood against us and made a new beginning of life for us by giving us the hope of resurrection. Hence Paul, the Christ-bearer, declares: As through a man came death, so through a man has come the resurrection of the dead. For as all died in Adam, so also in Christ all shall be made to live. No longer, then, do we die as men condemned, but as men being raised even now, we await the general resurrection of all, which God, whose work and gift it is, will reveal at the appointed time. RESPONSORY Romans 3:23-25; 1 Corinthians 15:22 Everyone has sinned and is deprived of God’s glory. We are justified through the free gift of his grace and through the redemption in Christ Jesus. — God made Christ’s sacrificial death the means of expiating the sins of all believers. Just as in Adam all men die, so in Christ all men will be brought to life. — God made Christ’s sacrificial death the means of expiating the sins of all believers. CONCLUDING PRAYER O God, by whom we are redeemed and receive adoption, look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters, that those who believe in Christ may receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance. 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.

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Come, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia. 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, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia. 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, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia. 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, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia. 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, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia. 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, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia. 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, worship the Lord for we are his people, the flock he shepherds, alleluia.