Divine Office Office of Readings

Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise. Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. Psalm 24 The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, the world and all its peoples. It is he who set it on the seas; on the waters he made it firm. Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord? Who shall stand in his holy place? The man with clean hands and pure heart, who desires not worthless things, who has not sworn so as to deceive his neighbor. Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. He shall receive blessings from the Lord and reward from the God who saves him. Such are the men who seek him, seek the face of the God of Jacob. Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. O gates, lift high your heads; grow higher, ancient doors. Let him enter, the king of glory! Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. Who is the king of glory? The Lord, the mighty, the valiant, the Lord, the valiant in war. Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. O gates, lift high your heads; grow higher, ancient doors. Let him enter, the king of glory! Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. Who is he, the king of glory? He, the Lord of armies, he is the king of glory. Ant. Let us approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. 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 approach the Lord with praise and thanksgiving.

Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III: Ordinary: 651 Proper of Seasons: 420 Psalter: Monday, Week I, 702 Christian Prayer: Does not contain Office of Readings. Office of Readings for Monday 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 For the beauty of the earth, For the beauty of the skies, For the love which from our birth Over and around us lies, Lord of all, to thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise. For the beauty of each hour Of the day and of the night, Hill and vale, and tree and flow’r, Sun and moon, and stars of light, Lord of all, to thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise. For the joy of ear and eye, for the heart and mind's delight, for the mystic harmony, linking sense to sound and sight; Lord of all, to thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise. For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child, friends on earth and friends above, for all gentle thoughts and mild; Lord of all, to thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise. For each perfect gift of Thine, to our race so freely given, graces human and divine, flowers of earth and buds of heaven. Lord of all, to thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise. 𝄞"For The Beauty Of The Earth" by Rebecca Hincke • Available for Purchase [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NTPV36S/ref=dm_ws_tlw_trk12] • Musical Score [https://divineoffice.org/wp-content/uploads/For-the-Beauty-of-the-Earth.pdf] • Title: For the Beauty of the Earth; Text: Folliott S. Pierpoint, 1835–1917; Music: Conrad Kocher, 1786–1872; Tune: DIX; Artist: Rebecca Hincke; (c) 2017 Surgeworks, Inc. • Albums that contain this Hymn: Hymns and Chants of Divine Office, Vol. 3 PSALMODY Ant. 1 Show me your mercy, Lord, and keep me safe. Psalm 6 A suffering man cries to God for mercy I am filled with dismay… Father, save me from this hour (John 12:27). Lord, do not reprove me in your anger: punish me not in your rage. Have mercy on me, Lord, I have no strength; Lord, heal me, my body is racked; my soul is racked with pain. But you, O Lord…how long? Return, Lord, rescue my soul. Save me in your merciful love, for in death no one remembers you; from the grave, who can give you praise? I am exhausted with my groaning; every night I drench my pillow with tears; I bedew my bed with weeping. My eye wastes away with grief; I have grown old surrounded by my foes. Leave me, all who do evil; for the Lord has heard my weeping. The Lord has heard my plea; The Lord will accept my prayer. All my foes will retire in confusion, foiled and suddenly confounded. 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 God, you love mercy and tenderness; you give life and overcome death. Look upon the many wounds of your Church; restore it to health by your risen Son, so that it may sing a new song in your praise. Ant. Show me your mercy, Lord, and keep me safe. Ant. 2 The poor are not alone in their distress; God is here to help them. Psalm 9A Thanksgiving for victory You will come again to judge the living and the dead. I I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; I will recount all your wonders. I will rejoice in you and be glad, and sing psalms to your name, O Most High. See how my enemies turn back, how they stumble and perish before you. You upheld the justice of my cause; you sat enthroned, judging with justice. You have checked the nations, destroyed the wicked; you have wiped out their name for ever and ever. The foe is destroyed, eternally ruined. You uprooted their cities: their memory has perished. But the Lord sits enthroned for ever. He has set up his throne for judgment; he will judge the world with justice, he will judge the people with his truth. For the oppressed let the Lord be a stronghold, a stronghold in times of distress. Those who know your name will trust you: you will never forsake those who seek you. 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. The poor are not alone in their distress; God is here to help them. Ant. 3 I will be the herald of your praises, Lord, where the people of Zion gather. II Sing psalms to the Lord who dwells in Zion. Proclaim his mighty works among the peoples; for the Avenger of blood has remembered them, has not forgotten the cry of the poor. Have pity on me, Lord, see my sufferings, you who save me from the gates of death; that I may recount all your praise at the gates of the city of Zion and rejoice in your saving help. The nations have fallen in the pit which they made, their feet caught in the snare they laid. The Lord has revealed himself, and given judgment. The wicked are snared in the works of their own hands. Let the wicked go down among the dead, all the nations forgetful of God. For the needy shall not always be forgotten nor the hopes of the poor be in vain. Arise, Lord, let men not prevail! Let the nations be judged before you. Lord, strike them with terror, let the nations know they are but men. 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 God, when you judge, do not be deaf to the shouts of the poor, bring havoc to the madness of oppressors. Look at our wounds and save us from the gates of death, so that we may always rejoice in your help and speak your praise in the gates of Zion. Ant. I will be the herald of your praises, Lord, where the people of Zion gather. 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. Give me insight, Lord, to know your will. — Then I will cherish it with all my heart. READINGS First reading From the books of Samuel 1 Sm. 31:1-4; 2 Sm. 1:1-16 The death of Saul As they pressed their attack on Israel, with the Israelites fleeing before them and falling mortally wounded on Mount Gilboa, the Philistines pursued Saul and his sons closely, and slew Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, sons of Saul. The battle raged around Saul, and the archers hit him; he was pierced through the abdomen. Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through, lest these uncircumcised come and make sport of me.” But his armor-bearer, badly frightened, refused to do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell upon it. After the death of Saul, David returned from his defeat of the Amalekites and spent two days in Ziklag. On the third day a man came from Saul’s camp, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. Going to David, he fell to the ground in homage. David asked him, “Where do you come from?” He replied, “I have escaped from the Israelite camp.” “Tell me what happened,” David bade him. He answered that the soldiers had fled the battle and that many of them had fallen and were dead, among them Saul and his son Jonathan. Then David said to the youth who was reporting to him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” The youthful informant replied: “It was by chance that I found myself on Mount Gilboa and saw Saul leaning on his spear, with chariots and horsemen closing in on him. He turned around and, seeing me, called me to him. When I said, ‘Here I am,’ he asked me, ‘Who are you?’ and I replied, ‘An Amalekite.’ Then he said to me, ‘Stand up to me, please, and finish me off, for I am in great suffering, yet fully alive.’ So I stood up to him and dispatched him, for I knew that he could not survive his wound. I removed the crown from his head and the armlet from his arm and brought them here to my lord.” David seized his garments and rent them, and all the men who were with him did likewise. They mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and his son Jonathan, and for the soldiers of the Lord of the clans of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. Then David said to the young man who had brought him the information, “Where are you from?” He replied, “I am the son of an Amalekite immigrant.” David said to him, “How is it that you were not afraid to put forth your hand to desecrate the Lord’s anointed?” David then called one of the attendants and said to him, “Come, strike him down”; and the youth struck him a mortal blow. Meanwhile David said to him, “You are responsible for your own death, for you testified against yourself when you said, ‘I dispatched the Lord’s anointed. RESPONSORY 2 Samuel 1:21, 19 Mountains of Gilboa, may there be neither dew nor rain upon your slopes, — for there the heroes of Israel fell in battle. Let the Lord come to all the mountains round about, but as for you, mountains of Gilboa, he shall pass you by. — For there the heroes of Israel fell in battle. Second reading From a sermon by Saint Augustine, bishop He is the Lord our God, and we are the people of his pasture The words we have sung contain our declaration that we are God’s flock: For he is the Lord our God who made us. He is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hands. Human shepherds did not make the sheep they own; they did not create the sheep they pasture. Our Lord God, however, because he is God and Creator, made for himself the sheep which he has and pastures. No one else created the sheep he pastures, nor does anyone else pasture the sheep he created. In this song we have declared that we are his flock, the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hands. Let us listen therefore to the words he addresses to us as his sheep. Earlier he addressed the shepherds, but now he speaks to the sheep. We listened to those earlier words of his and we – the shepherds – trembled, but you listened without a qualm. What is to happen when we hear these words today? Are we in turn to be without a qualm while you tremble? By no means! We are shepherds, and the shepherd listens and trembles not only at what is said to the shepherds but also at what is said to the sheep. If he does listen without a qualm to what is said to his sheep, he is not concerned for them. And further, on that occasion we asked you in your charity to remember two points about us: first, that we are Christians, and second, that we are placed in charge. Because we are placed in charge, we are ranked among the shepherds, if we are good; but because we are Christians, we too are members of the flock with you. Therefore, whether the Lord is addressing the shepherds or the sheep, we must listen to all his words and tremble; our hearts must always remain concerned. And so, my brothers, let us listen to the words with which the Lord upbraids the wicked sheep and to the promises he makes to his own flock. You are my sheep, he says. Even in the midst of this life of tears and tribulations, what happiness, what great joy it is to realize that we are God’s flock! To him were spoken the words: You are the shepherd of Israel. Of him it was said: The guardian of Israel will not slumber, nor will he sleep. He keeps watch over us when we are awake; he keeps watch over us when we sleep. A flock belonging to a man feels secure in the care of its human shepherd; how much safer should we feel when our shepherd is God. Not only does he lead us to pasture, but he even created us. You are my sheep, says the Lord God. See, I judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. What are goats doing here in the flock of God? In the same pastures, at the same springs, goats – though destined for the left – mingle with those on the right. They are tolerated now, but will be separated later. In this way the patience of the flock develops and becomes like God’s own patience. For it is he who will do the separating, placing some on the left and others on the right. RESPONSORY John 10:27-28; Ezekiel 34:15 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me. — They shall never perish; no one shall ever snatch them from me. I myself shall pasture my sheep and I myself shall give them rest. — They shall never perish; no one shall ever snatch them from me. CONCLUDING PRAYER O God, who through the grace of adoption chose us to be children of light, grant, we pray, that we may not be wrapped in the darkness of error but always be seen to stand in the bright light of truth. 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 our mighty King and Lord. 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 our mighty King and Lord. 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 our mighty King and Lord. 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 our mighty King and Lord. Indeed, how good is the Lord, eternal his merciful love. He is faithful from age to age. Ant. Come, let us worship our mighty King and 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. Ant. Come, let us worship our mighty King and Lord.

Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III: Ordinary: 651 Proper of Seasons: 425 Psalter: Tuesday, Week I, 722 Office of Readings for Tuesday 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 O God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Our shelter from the stormy blast, And our eternal home. Beneath the shadow of Your throne Your saints have dwelt secure; Sufficient is your arm alone, And our defense is sure. Before the hills in order stood, Or earth received her frame, From everlasting you are God, To endless years the same. A thousand ages in your sight Are like an evening gone; Short as the watch that ends the night Before the rising sun. Time, like an ever rolling stream, Bears all our lives away; They fly, forgotten, as a dream Dies at the opening day. O God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Be now our guard while troubles last, And our eternal home. 𝄞"O God, Our Help in Ages Past" by Melinda Kirigin-Voss [https://divineoffice.org/melinda-kirigin-voss/], Vince Clark • Musical Score [https://divineoffice.org/wp-content/uploads/O-God-Our-Help-in-Ages-Past.pdf] • Title: O God, Our Help in Ages Past; Text: Based on Psalm 90; Isaac Watts, 1674-1748, Psalms of David..., 1719, alt.; Tune: ST. ANNE, CM; later form of melody (rhythm adapted), attr. to William Croft, 1678-1727, A Supplement to the New Version of Psalms, 1708; Artist: Melinda Kirigin-Voss, Vince Clark; Copyright 2016 Surgeworks Inc. • Albums that contain this Hymn: Divine Office PSALMODY Ant. 1 The Lord is just; he will defend the poor. Psalm 10 Prayer of thanksgiving Blessed are the poor; the kingdom of heaven is theirs (Luke 6:20). I Lord, why do you stand afar off and hide yourself in times of distress? The poor man is devoured by the pride of the wicked: he is caught in the schemes that others have made. For the wicked man boasts of his heart’s desires; the covetous blasphemes and spurns the Lord. In his pride the wicked says: “He will not punish. There is no God.” Such are his thoughts. His path is ever untroubled; your judgment is far from his mind. His enemies he regards with contempt. He thinks: “Never shall I falter; misfortune shall never be my lot.” His mouth is full of cursing, guile, oppression, mischief and deceit under his tongue. He lies in wait among the reeds; the innocent he murders in secret. His eyes are on the watch for the helpless man. He lurks in hiding like a lion in his lair; he lurks in hiding to seize the poor; he seizes the poor man and drags him away. He crouches, preparing to spring, and the helpless fall beneath his strength. He thinks in his heart: “God forgets, he hides his face, he does not see.” 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. The Lord is just; he will defend the poor. Ant. 2 Lord, you know the burden of my sorrow. II Arise then, Lord, lift up your hand! O God, do not forget the poor! Why should the wicked spurn the Lord and think in his heart: “He will not punish”? But you have seen the trouble and sorrow, you note it, you take it in hand. The helpless trusts himself to you; for you are the helper of the orphan. Break the power of the wicked and the sinner! Punish his wickedness till nothing remains! The Lord is king for ever and ever. The heathen shall perish from the land he rules. Lord, you hear the prayer of the poor; you strengthen their hearts; you turn your ear to protect the rights of the orphan and oppressed so that mortal man may strike terror 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 Rise up, Lord, in defense of your people; do not hide your face from our troubles. Father of orphans, wealth of the poor, we rejoice in making you known; may we find comfort and security in times of pain and anxiety. Ant. Lord, you know the burden of my sorrow. Ant. 3 The words of the Lord are true, like silver from the furnace. Psalm 12 A cry for God’s help against powerful oppressors The Father sent his Son into the world to defend the poor (Saint Augustine). Help, O Lord, for good men have vanished: truth has gone from the sons of men. Falsehood they speak one to another, with lying lips, with a false heart. May the Lord destroy all lying lips, the tongue that speaks high sounding words, those who say: “Our tongue is our strength; our lips are our own, who is our master?” “For the poor who are oppressed and the needy who groan I myself will arise,” says the Lord. “I will grant them the salvation for which they thirst.” The words of the Lord are words without alloy, silver from the furnace, seven times refined. It is you, O Lord, who will take us in your care and protect us for ever from this generation. See how the wicked prowl on every side, while the worthless are prized highly by the sons of men. 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 Your light is true light, Lord, and your truth shines like the day. Direct us to salvation through your life-giving words. May we be saved by always embracing your word. Ant. The words of the Lord are true, like silver from the furnace. 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 teaches the humble his way. — He guides the gentle-hearted along the right path. READINGS First reading From the second book of Samuel David is anointed in Hebron as king of Judah David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I go up into one of the cities of Judah?” The Lord replied to him, “Yes.” Then David asked, “Where shall I go?” He replied, “To Hebron.” So David went up there accompanied by his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. David also brought up his men with their families, and they dwelt in the cities near Hebron. Then the men of Judah came there and anointed David king of the Judahites. A report reached David that the men of Jabesh-gilead had buried Saul. So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them: “May you be blessed by the Lord for having done this kindness to your lord Saul in burying him. And now may the Lord be kind and faithful to you. I, too, will be generous to you for having done this. Take courage, therefore, and prove yourselves valiant men, for though your lord Saul is dead, the Judahites have anointed me their king.” Abner, son of Ner, Saul’s general, took Ishbaal, son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim, where he made him king over Gilead, the Ashurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and the rest of Israel. Ishbaal, son of Saul, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned for two years. The Judahites alone followed David. In all, David spent seven years and six months in Hebron as king of the Judahites. There followed a long war between the house of Saul and that of David, in which David grew stronger, but the house of Saul weaker. Sons were born to David in Hebron: his first-born, Amnon, of Ahinoam from Jezreel; the second, Chileab, of Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; the third, Absalom, son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur; the fourth, Adonijah, son of Haggith; the fifth, Shephatiah, son of Abital; and the sixth, Ithream, of David’s wife Eglah. These were born to David in Hebron. RESPONSORY Genesis 49:10,8 The royal scepter shall not pass from Judah, nor the kingly mace from between his feet. — until the coming of the one I have promised you; he will be the desire of the nations. Your brothers shall praise you; your father’s sons shall bow down in worship before you. — Until the coming of the one I have promised you; he will be the desire of the nations. Second reading From a sermon by Saint Augustine, bishop If I wanted to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ This is our glory: the witness of our conscience. There are men who rashly judge, who slander, whisper and murmur, who are eager to suspect what they do not see, and eager to spread abroad things they have not even a suspicion of. Against men of this sort, what defense is there save the witness of our own conscience? My brothers, we do not seek, nor should we seek, our own glory even among those whose approval we desire. What we should seek is their salvation, so that if we walk as we should they will not go astray in following us. They should imitate us if we are imitators of Christ; and if we are not, they should still imitate him. He cares for his flock, and he alone is to be found with those who care for their flocks, because they are all in him. And so we seek no advantage for ourselves when we aim to please men. We want to take our joy in men – and we rejoice when they take pleasure in what is good, not because this exalts us, but because it benefits them. It is clear who is intended by the apostle Paul: If I wanted to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. And similarly when he says: Be pleasing to all men in all things, even as I in all things please all men. Yet his words are as clear as water, limpid, undisturbed, unclouded. And so you should, as sheep, feed on and drink of his message; do not trample on it or stir it up. You have listened to our Lord Jesus Christ as he taught his apostles: Let your actions shine before men so that they may see your good deeds, and give glory to your Father who is in heaven, for it is the Father who made you thus. We are the people of his pasture, the sheep of his hands. If then you are good, praise is due to him who made you so; it is no credit to you, for if you were left to yourself, you could only be wicked. Why then do you try to pervert the truth, in wishing to be praised when you do good, and blaming God when you do evil? For though he said: Let your works shine before men, in the same Sermon on the Mount he also said: Do not parade your good deeds before men. So if you think there are contradictions in Saint Paul, you will find the same in the Gospels; but if you refrain from troubling the waters of your heart, you will recognize here the peace of the Scriptures and with it you will have peace. And so, my brothers, our concern should be not only to live as we ought, but also to do so in the sight of men; not only to have a good conscience but also, so far as we can in our weakness, so far as we can govern our frailty, to do nothing which might lead our weak brother into thinking evil of us. Otherwise, as we feed on the good pasture and drink the pure water, we may trample on God’s meadow, and weaker sheep will have to feed on trampled grass and drink from troubled waters. RESPONSORY Phil. 2:2,3-4; 1 Thes. 5:14,15 Fill me with happiness by being one in mind and one in love; humbly consider others better than yourselves. — Do not think of your own interests alone but look to the interests of others. Support the weak, be patient with all; seek to do what is good for each other and for all men. — Do not think of your own interests alone but look to the interests of others. CONCLUDING PRAYER O God, who through the grace of adoption chose us to be children of light, grant, we pray, that we may not be wrapped in the darkness of error but always be seen to stand in the bright light of truth. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one 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 before the Lord, our maker. 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 before the Lord, our maker. 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 before the Lord, our maker. 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 before the Lord, our maker. 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 before the Lord, our maker. 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 before the Lord, our maker. 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 before the Lord, our maker.