Vespers (Evening Prayer)

O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.

A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.

Psalm 109 (110)
The Messiah, king and priest
The Lord has said to my lord: “Sit at my right hand while I make your enemies into your footstool”. From Sion the Lord will give you a sceptre, and you will rule in the midst of your foes. Royal power is yours in the day of your strength, glorious and holy; from the time of your birth, before the dawn. The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent: “You are a priest for ever, a priest of the priesthood of Melchisedech”. The Lord is at your right hand, and on the day of his anger he will shatter kings. He will judge the nations, he will pile high their skulls; he will drink from the stream as he goes – he will hold his head high. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 109 (110)

The Messiah, king and priest

The Lord has said to my lord: “Sit at my right hand while I make your enemies into your footstool”.

From Sion the Lord will give you a sceptre, and you will rule in the midst of your foes.
Royal power is yours in the day of your strength, glorious and holy; from the time of your birth, before the dawn.

The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent: “You are a priest for ever, a priest of the priesthood of Melchisedech”.
The Lord is at your right hand, and on the day of his anger he will shatter kings.

He will judge the nations, he will pile high their skulls;
he will drink from the stream as he goes – he will hold his head high.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Psalm 111 (112)
How blessed are the just
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord and loves his commands above all things. His seed will be powerful on earth: the descendants of the just will be blessed. Glory and riches will fill his house, and his righteousness will stand firm for ever. He rises up in the darkness, a light for the upright, compassionate, generous, and just. Happy the man who takes pity and lends, who directs his affairs with wisdom – he will never be shaken. The just man will be remembered for ever, no slander will he fear. His heart is ready, hoping in the Lord; his heart is strong, it will not fear, until he looks down on his defeated enemies. He gives alms and helps the poor: his righteousness will endure for ever, his future will be glorious. The transgressor will see, and be enraged: he will grind his teeth and fade away. The desires of the wicked will perish. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 111 (112)

How blessed are the just

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord and loves his commands above all things.
His seed will be powerful on earth: the descendants of the just will be blessed.
Glory and riches will fill his house, and his righteousness will stand firm for ever.

He rises up in the darkness, a light for the upright,
compassionate, generous, and just.
Happy the man who takes pity and lends, who directs his affairs with wisdom –
he will never be shaken.

The just man will be remembered for ever, no slander will he fear.
His heart is ready, hoping in the Lord; his heart is strong, it will not fear,
until he looks down on his defeated enemies.
He gives alms and helps the poor: his righteousness will endure for ever,
his future will be glorious.

The transgressor will see, and be enraged: he will grind his teeth and fade away.
The desires of the wicked will perish.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Canticle	Apocalypse 15
A hymn of adoration
Great and wonderful are your works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are your ways, King of all nations! Who, Lord, will not revere and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship in your presence, for your judgements have been seen by all. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Canticle

Apocalypse 15

A hymn of adoration

Great and wonderful are your works, Lord God Almighty;
just and true are your ways, King of all nations!

Who, Lord, will not revere and glorify your name? For you alone are holy.
All nations will come and worship in your presence, for your judgements have been seen by all.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Short reading	Acts 10:37 - 38 ©
You must have heard about the recent happenings in Judaea; about Jesus of Nazareth and how he began in Galilee, after John had been preaching baptism. God had anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and because God was with him, Jesus went about doing good and curing all who had fallen into the power of the devil.

Canticle	Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation. For he has shown me such favour – me, his lowly handmaiden. Now all generations will call me blessed, because the mighty one has done great things for me. His name is holy, his mercy lasts for generation after generation for those who revere him. He has put forth his strength: he has scattered the proud and conceited, torn princes from their thrones; but lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things; the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel, he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Canticle

Magnificat

My soul rejoices in the Lord

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation.
For he has shown me such favour –
me, his lowly handmaiden.
Now all generations will call me blessed,
because the mighty one has done great things for me.
His name is holy,
his mercy lasts for generation after generation
for those who revere him.

He has put forth his strength:
he has scattered the proud and conceited,
torn princes from their thrones;
but lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
the rich he has sent away empty.

He has come to the help of his servant Israel,
he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

Prayers and Intercessions

Our Redeemer permitted himself to receive baptism in the Jordan, at John’s hands. Let us pray to him: - Lord, send your spirit upon us.
Christ, the Father’s servant, in whom he was well pleased,: send your spirit upon us, Lord.
Christ, Chosen One of God, you did not break the crushed reed or snuff out the smouldering wick:: have compassion for all who seek you in truth.
Christ, Son of God, in the new covenant your Father called you to be the light of the nations:: open the eyes of blind in the waters of baptism.
Christ, saviour of mankind, the Father anointed you with the Spirit and sent you out to save us:: lead all to see you and believe in you, so that they receive eternal life.
Christ, our hope, you lead us from the shadows into the light of salvation:: receive our deceased brethren into your kingdom.

Our Father, who art in Heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those that trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Almighty and eternal God,
Christ was baptized in the river Jordan;
the Holy Spirit descended on him;
you solemnly declared him to be your beloved Son.
You have chosen us to be your children
and you have given us rebirth in the water of the Holy Spirit:
look with favour on us always.

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.

May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life.

A M E N

The Word Among Us

Sunday, January 07, 2007

Meditation
Matthew 2:1-12

The Epiphany of the Lord

Without a doubt, the Magi were big spenders. The gifts they gave to Jesus were about the costliest items you could find in the ancient world. Not only that, they were exactly suited to their recipient: gold, a precious metal that was meant for royalty; frankincense, an oil used for worship; and myrrh, a perfume used in anointing the departed, pointing toward Jesus’ passion and death.

But what about us? What can we give to Jesus today and in the year ahead? Actually, we can offer him something much more valuable than the Magi did—ourselves! He came to earth for us. He lived, died, and rose from the dead for us. The pearl of great price that Jesus gave everything for was us! How can we give him anything less than our lives?

Unfortunately, many of us have a hard time seeing how valuable we are to the Lord. Instead of a shiny, gift-wrapped present, we may see ourselves as a dull, brown-paper package full of weakness and sin. But God is an expert at recycling! He doesn’t waste anything; even our flaws and our greatest failures can be the raw material he uses to teach us, to form us, and to accomplish his plans in us. As St. Paul wrote with such confidence, All things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).

Let’s not discount the treasure we have in these earthen vessels. We can give the Lord the gold of our talents and gifts, the frankincense of our prayer and worship, and even the myrrh of our sufferings and heartaches. We can release our pain to him, let him take it to his cross, and give us the healing we most need. The key is that we give control of our lives to him. As we do, we will be changed. We will become a gift to our brothers and sisters, and we will change their lives too!

Lord, let this coming year be my gift to you! Take everything I have, and use it to build your kingdom on this earth!

Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 72:1-2,7-8,10-13; Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6