April 2012

Pope's intentions

General Intention: Vocations. That many young people may hear the call of Christ and follow him in the priesthood and religious life.

Missionary Intention: Christ, Hope for Africans. That the risen Christ may be a sign of certain hope for the men and women of the African continent.

Saturday, April 28, 2012
St. Louis Grignion de Montfort, Priest (Optional Memorial)

First Reading:
Psalm:
Gospel:

Acts 9:31-42
Psalm 116:12-17
John 6:60-69

The denial of personal guilt makes men ready to surrender their liberty. Better it is for a man to realize he has evil tendencies which must be fought and combated in order that his higher self may emerge.

-- Archbishop Fulton Sheen

Not that I know of. But I’ll always remember the name Tabitha

Regina Coeli

This prayer, which dates from the twelfth century, is substituted for the Angelus during Easter Season.

In Latin

In English

Regina coeli, laetare, alleluia: Quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia. Resurrexit sicut dixit, alleluia. Ora pro nobis Deum, alleluia.

V. Gaude et laetare, Virgo Maria, Alleluia,

R. Quia surrexit Dominus vere, alleluia.

Oremus: Deus qui per resurrectionem Filii tui, Domini nostri Iesu Christi, mundum laetificare dignatus es: praesta, quaesumus, ut per eius Genetricem Virginem Mariam, perpetuae capiamus gaudia vitae. Per eundem Christum Dominum nostrum.

R. Amen.

Queen of Heaven rejoice, alleluia: For He whom you merited to bear, alleluia, Has risen as He said, alleluia. Pray for us to God, alleluia.

V. Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia.

R. Because the Lord is truly risen, alleluia.

Let us pray: O God, who by the Resurrection of Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, granted joy to the whole world: grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may lay hold of the joys of eternal life. Through the same Christ our Lord.

R. Amen.

Office of Readings

The Optional Memorial of Saint Peter Chanel, Priest and Martyr, may be observed today using the ferial texts with the Proper Second Reading and Closing Prayer. If it is desired to use any texts from the Common, these may be taken from the Common of One Martyr during the Easter Season or the Common of Pastors: For Missionaries, found in the ‘Prayers’ section of the iBreviary.

The Optional Memorial of Louis Grignon de Montfort, Priest, may be observed today using the ferial texts with the Proper Closing Prayer. If it is desired to use any texts from the Common, these may be taken from the Common of Pastors: For One Pastor, found in the ‘Prayers’ section of the iBreviary.

INVITATORY

The Invitatory may be said for the first ‘hour’ recited in the day.

Lord, + open my lips.
– And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Ant. The Lord is risen, alleluia.

Psalm 95
A call to praise God

Encourage each other daily while it is still today (Hebrews 3:13).

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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, alleluia.

If the Invitatory is not said, then the following is used:

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

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Let the holy anthem rise,
And the choirs of heaven chant it
In the temple of the skies;
Let the mountains skip with gladness,
And the joyful valleys ring
With hosannas in the highest
To our Savior and our King!

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Like the sun from out the wave,
He has risen up in triumph
From the darkness of the grave.
He’s the splendor of the nations,
He’s the lamp of endless day;
He’s the very Lord of glory
Who is risen up today!

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Blessed Jesus, make us rise
From the life of this corruption
To the life that never dies.
May your glory be our portion,
When the days of time are past,
And the dead shall be awakened
By the trumpet’s mighty blast!

Tune: Holy Anthem 87.87 D
Music: Saint Basil’s Hymnal, 1889
Text: Edward Caswall, 1814-1878

Or:

Christ the Lord is ris’n today;
Christians, haste your vows to pay;
Offer you your praises meet
At the Paschal Victim’s feet.
For the sheep the Lamb has bled,
Sinless in the sinner’s stead;
Christ, the Lord, is ris’n on high,
Now he lives no more to die!

Christ, the Victim undefiled,
Man to God has reconciled;
When in strange and awful strife
Met together death and life;
Christians, on this happy day
Haste with joy your vows to pay.
Christ, the Lord, is ris’n on high,
Now he lives no more to die!

Christ, who once for sinners bled,
Now the firstborn from the dead,
Throned in endless might and power,
Lives and reigns forevermore.
Hail, eternal Hope on high!
Hail, our King of Victory!
Hail, our Prince of life adored!
Help and save us, gracious Lord.

Melody: Victimae Paschali Laudes 77.77 D
Music: Traditional, alt.
Text: Victimae Paschali Laudes, Wipo, eleventh century

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Let us praise the Lord for his mercy and for the wonderful things he has done for men, alleluia.

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, alleluia

Ant. 2 Men have seen the works of God, the marvels he has done, alleluia

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, *
the wonders he does for men.
Let them exalt him in the gathering of the people *
and praise him in the meeting of all 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, alleluia

Ant. 3 Those who love the Lord will see and rejoice; they will understand his loving kindness, alleluia

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, alleluia

God has given us a new birth into a living hope, alleluia.
– By raising Jesus Christ from the dead, alleluia.

READINGS

FIRST READING

From the book of Revelation
11:1-19

The two invincible witnesses

I, John, watched and someone gave me a measuring rod and said: “Come and take the measurements of God’s temple and altar, and count those who worship there. Exclude the outer court of the temple, however; do not measure it, for it has been handed over to the Gentiles, who will crush the holy city for forty-two months. I will commission my two witnesses to prophesy for those twelve hundred and sixty days, dressed in sackcloth.”

These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands which stand in the presence of the Lord of the earth. If anyone tries to harm them, fire will come out of the mouths of these witnesses to devour their enemies. Anyone attempting to harm them will surely be slain in this way. These witnesses have power to close up the sky so that no rain will fall during the time of their mission. They also have power to turn water into blood and to afflict the earth at will with any kind of plague.

When they have finished giving their testimony, the wild beast that comes up from the abyss will wage war against them and conquer and kill them. Their corpses will lie in the streets of the great city, which has the symbolic name “Sodom” or “Egypt,” where also their Lord was crucified. Men from every people and race, language and nation, stare at their corpses for three and a half days but refuse to bury them. The earth’s inhabitants gloat over them and in their merriment exchange gifts, because these two prophets harassed everyone on earth.

But after the three and a half days, the breath of life which comes from God returned to them. When they stood on their feet sheer terror gripped those who saw them. The two prophets heard a loud voice from heaven say to them, “Come up here!” So they went up to heaven in a cloud as their enemies looked on. At that moment there was a violent earthquake and a tenth of the city fell in ruins. Seven thousand persons were killed during the earthquake; the rest were so terrified that they worshiped the God of heaven.

The second woe is past, but beware! The third is coming very soon.

Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet. Loud voices in heaven cried out, “The kingdom of the world now belongs to our Lord and to his Anointed One, and he shall reign forever and ever.” The twenty-four elders who were enthroned in God’s presence fell down to worship God and said:

   “We praise you, the Lord God Almighty,
      who is and who was.
   You have assumed your great power,
      you have begun your reign.
   The nations have raged in anger,
      but then came your day of wrath
      and the moment to judge the dead:
   The time to reward your servants the prophets
      and the holy ones who revere you,
      the great and the small alike;
   The time to destroy those who lay the earth waste.”

Then God’s temple in heaven opened and in the temple could be seen the ark of his covenant. There were flashes of lightning and peals of thunder, an earthquake, and a violent hailstorm.

RESPONSORY
Revelation 11:15; Daniel 7:27

The kingdom of this world belongs to our Lord and his Christ,
– and he shall reign for ever and ever, alleluia.

His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom,
and all the kings of the earth will serve and obey him.
– And he shall reign for ever and ever, alleluia.

SECOND READING

From a commentary on the gospel of John by Saint Cyril of Alexandria, bishop
(Lib. 4 ,2: PG 73, 563-566)

Christ gave his own body for the life of all men

“I am dying for all men,” says the Lord. “I am dying to give them life through myself and to redeem the whole human race through my humanity. In my death, death itself will die and man’s fallen nature will rise again with me. I wanted to be like my brothers in every respect, so I became a man like you, a descendant of Abraham.” Understanding this well Saint Paul says: As the children of a family share the same flesh and blood, he too shared our human nature so that by his death he could destroy the power of the devil, the prince of death. Death itself and the prince of death could be destroyed only by Christ, who is above all, giving himself up as a ransom for all.

And so, speaking as a spotless victim offering himself for us to God the Father, Christ says in one of the psalms: You desired no sacrifices or offerings, but you have prepared a body for me. You took no pleasure in holocausts or sin offerings. Then I said, “Behold, I am coming.” He was crucified for all, desiring his one death for all to give all of us life in him. It was impossible for him to be conquered by death; nor could he who by his very nature is life be subject to corruption. Yet we know that Christ offered his flesh for the life of the world from his own prayer, Holy Father, protect them, and from his words, For their sake I consecrate myself. By saying that he consecrates himself he means that he offers himself to God as a spotless and sweet-smelling sacrifice. According to the law, anything offered upon the altar was consecrated and considered holy. So Christ gave his own body for the life of all, and makes it the channel through which life flows once more into us. How he does this I will explain to the best of my ability.

When the life-giving Word of God dwelt in human flesh, he changed it into that good thing which is distinctively his, namely, life; and by being wholly united to the flesh in a way beyond our comprehension, he gave it the life-giving power which he has by his very nature. Therefore, the body of Christ gives life to those who receive it. Its presence in mortal men expels death and drives away corruption because it contains within itself in his entirety the Word who totally abolishes corruption.

RESPONSORY
John 10:14, 15, 10

I am the good shepherd;
I know my sheep,
– and I lay down my life for them, alleluia.

I have come that they may have life,
and have it more abundantly.
– And I lay down my life for them, alleluia.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

God our Father,
by the waters of baptism
you give new life to the faithful.
May we not succumb to the influence of evil
but remain true to your gift of life.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who in the font of Baptism
have made new those who believe in you,
keep safe those reborn in Christ,
that, defeating every onslaught of error,
they may faithfully preserve the grace of your blessing.
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

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

For the Memorial of Saint Peter Chanel:

SECOND READING

From a eulogy for Saint Peter Chanel, priest and martyr

The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians

As soon as Peter embraced religious life in the Society of Mary, he was sent at his own request to the missions of Oceania, and landed on the island of Futuna in the Pacific Ocean, where the name of Christ had never before been preached. A lay-brother who was constantly at his side gave the following account of his life in the missions.

“Because of his labors he was often burned by the heat of the sun, and famished with hunger, and he would return home wet with perspiration and completely exhausted. Yet he always remained in good spirits, courageous and energetic, as if he were returning from a pleasure jaunt, and this would happen almost every day.

“He could never refuse anything to the Futunians, even to those who persecuted him; he always made excuses for them and never rejected them, even though they were often rude and troublesome. He displayed an unparalleled mildness toward everyone on all occasions without exception. It is no wonder then that the natives used to call him the ‘good-hearted man.’ He once told a fellow religious: ‘In such a difficult mission one has to be holy.’”

Quietly he preached Christ and the Gospel, but there was little response. Still with invincible perseverance he pursued his missionary tasks on both the human and religious level, relying on the example and words of Christ: There is one who sows and another who reaps. And he constantly prayed for help from the Mother of God, to whom he was especially devoted.

By his preaching of Christianity he destroyed the cult of the evil spirits, which the chieftains of the Futunians encouraged in order to keep the tribe under their rule. This was the reason they subjected Peter to a most cruel death, hoping that by killing him the seeds of the Christian religion which he had sowed would be annihilated.

On the day before his martyrdom he had said: “It does not matter if I die. Christ’s religion is so deeply rooted on this island that it cannot be destroyed by my death.”

The blood of this martyr benefited, in the first place, the natives of Futuna, for a few years later they were all converted to the faith of Christ. But it benefited as well the other islands of Oceania, where Christian churches, which claim Peter as their first martyr, are now flourishing.

RESPONSORY
Luke 10:2; Acts 1:8

So great a harvest, and so few to gather it in;
– pray to the Lord of the harvest,
beg him to send out laborers for his harvest, alleluia.

You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you,
and you will be my witnesses to the ends of the earth.
– Pray to the Lord of the harvest,
beg him to send out laborers for his harvest, alleluia.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

Father,
you called Saint Peter Chanel to work for your Church
and gave him the crown of martyrdom.
May our celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection
make us faithful witnesses to the new life he brings,
for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who for the spreading of your Church
crowned Saint Peter Chanel with martyrdom,
grant that, in these days of paschal joy,
we may so celebrate the mysteries of Christ’s Death and Resurrection
as to bear worthy witness to newness of life.
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

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

For the Memorial of Saint Louis Grignon de Montfort:

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

O God, who willed to direct the steps of the Priest Saint Louis
along the way of salvation and of the love of Christ in company of the Blessed Virgin,
in the company of the Blessed Virgin,
grant us, by his example,
that, meditating on the mysteries of your love,
we may strive tirelessly for the building up of your Church.
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.

Or:

Almighty and eternal God, who made the Priest Saint Louis
an outstanding witness and teacher
of total devotion to Christ your Son
through the hands of his Blessed Mother,
grant us, that, following the same spiritual path,
we may constanly spread your Kingdom.
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

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

Lauds

The Optional Memorial of Saint Peter Chanel, Priest and Martyr, may be observed today using the ferial texts with the Proper Closing Prayer. If it is desired to use any texts from the Common, these may be taken from the Common of One Martyr during the Easter Season or the Common of Pastors: For Missionaries, found in the ‘Prayers’ section of the iBreviary.

The Optional Memorial of Louis Grignon de Montfort, Priest, may be observed today using the ferial texts with the Proper Closing Prayer. If it is desired to use any texts from the Common, these may be taken from the Common of Pastors: For One Pastor, found in the ‘Prayers’ section of the iBreviary.

INVITATORY

The Invitatory may be said for the first ‘hour’ recited in the day.

Lord, + open my lips.
– And my mouth will proclaim your praise.

Ant. The Lord is risen, alleluia.

Psalm 95
A call to praise God

Encourage each other daily while it is still today (Hebrews 3:13).

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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, 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. The Lord is risen, alleluia.

If the Invitatory is not said, then the following is used:

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

This joyful Eastertide
Away with sin and sorrow!
My love, the Crucified,
Has sprung to life this morrow:

Refrain:
Had Christ, who once was slain,
Not burst his three-day prison,
Our faith had been in vain:
But now has Christ arisen,
Arisen, arisen, arisen;
But now has Christ arisen!

My flesh in hope shall rest
And for a season slumber
Till trump from east to west
Shall wake the dead in number:

Refrain:
Had Christ, who once was slain,
Not burst his three-day prison,
Our faith had been in vain:
But now has Christ arisen,
Arisen, arisen, arisen;
But now has Christ arisen!

Death’s flood has lost its chill
Since Jesus crossed the river;
Lover of souls, from ill
My passing soul deliver:

Refrain:
Had Christ, who once was slain,
Not burst his three-day prison,
Our faith had been in vain:
But now has Christ arisen,
Arisen, arisen, arisen;
But now has Christ arisen!

Tune: Vreuchten 76.76 with refrain
Music: Ooudaen’s David’s Psalmen, 1685
Text: George R. Woodward, 1848-1934

Or:

In this our bright and Paschal day
The sun shines out with purer ray,
When Christ, to earthly sight made plain,
The glad Apostles see again.

The wounds, the riven wounds he shows
In that his flesh with light that glows,
In loud accord both far and nigh
The Lord’s arising testify.

O Christ, the King who lovest to bless,
To you our hearts and souls possess;
To you our praise that we may pay,
To whom our laud is due for aye.

Tune: Ach, bleib bei uns L.M.
Music: Samuel Scheidt, 1567-1654
Text: Aurora lucis rutilat, verses 9-11, attributed to Saint Ambrose of Milan (340-397)
Translation: John Mason Neale, 1818-1866

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life, alleluia.

Psalm 119:145-152
XIX (Koph)

A meditation on God’s law

Loving God means keeping his commandments (1 John 5:3).

I call with all my heart; Lord, hear me, *
I will keep your commands.
I call upon you, save me *
and I will do your will.

I rise before dawn and cry for help, *
I hope in your word.
My eyes watch through the night *
to ponder your promise.

In your love hear my voice, O Lord; *
give me life by your decrees.
Those who harm me unjustly draw near: *
they are far from your law.

But you, O Lord, are close: *
your commands are truth.
Long have I known that your will *
is established for ever.

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

Save us by the power of your hand, Father, for our enemies have ignored your words. May the fire of your word consume our sins and its brightness illumine our hearts.

Ant. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life, alleluia.

Ant. 2 Lord, you have built your temple and altar on your holy mountain, alleluia.

Canticle: Wisdom 9:1-6, 9-11
Lord, give me wisdom

I will inspire you with wisdom which your adversaries will be unable to resist (Luke 21:15).

God of my fathers, Lord of mercy, *
you who have made all things by your word
and in your wisdom have established man *
to rule the creatures produced by you,
to govern the world in holiness and justice, *
and to render judgment in integrity of heart:

Give me Wisdom, the attendant at your throne, *
and reject me not from among your children;
for I am your servant, the son of your handmaid, †
a man weak and short-lived *
and lacking in comprehension of judgment and of laws.

Indeed, though one be perfect among the sons of men, †
if Wisdom, who comes from you, be not with him, *
he shall be held in no esteem.

Now with you is Wisdom, who knows your works *
and was present when you made the world;
who understands what is pleasing in your eyes *
and what is conformable with your commands.

Send her forth from your holy heavens *
and from your glorious throne dispatch her
that she may be with me and work with me, *
that I may know what is your pleasure.

For she knows and understands all things, †
and will guide me discreetly in my affairs *
and safeguard me by her glory.

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 have built your temple and altar on your holy mountain, alleluia.

Ant. 3 I am the way, the truth and the life, alleluia.

Psalm 117
Praise for God’s loving compassion

I affirm that . . . the Gentile peoples are to praise God because of his mercy (Romans 15:8-9).

O praise the Lord, all you nations, *
acclaim him all you peoples!

Strong is his love for us; *
he is faithful for ever.

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, may all nations and peoples praise you. May Jesus, who is called faithful and true and who lives with you eternally, possess our hearts for ever.

Ant. I am the way, the truth and the life, alleluia.

READING
Romans 14:7-9

None of us lives as his own master and none of us dies as his own master. While we live we are responsible to the Lord, and when we die we die as his servants. Both in life and in death we are the Lord’s. That is why Christ died and came to life again, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

RESPONSORY

The Lord is risen from the tomb, alleluia, alleluia.
– The Lord is risen from the tomb, alleluia, alleluia.

He hung upon the cross for us,
– alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
– The Lord is risen from the tomb, alleluia, alleluia.

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH

Ant. Peace be with you; it is I, alleluia; do not be afraid, alleluia.

Luke 1:68-79
The Messiah and his forerunner

Blessed + be the Lord, the God of Israel; *
he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old †
that he would save us from our enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers *
and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham: *
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear, *
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation *
by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

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. Peace be with you; it is I, alleluia; do not be afraid, alleluia.

INTERCESSIONS

Christ has made known to us the life that lasts for ever. With faith and joy let us cry out to him, saying:
Lord, may your resurrection bring us the riches of your grace.

Eternal shepherd, look on your flock as it rises from sleep,
– feed us with the word of life and the bread from heaven.
Lord, may your resurrection bring us the riches of your grace.

Keep us safe from wolf and hireling,
– and make us faithful in listening to your voice.
Lord, may your resurrection bring us the riches of your grace.

You are present to all who preach your Gospel, and give power to their words,
– make us today preachers of your resurrection by our holiness of life.
Lord, may your resurrection bring us the riches of your grace.

Be our great joy that no one can take from us,
– so that we may reject sin with its sadness, and reach out to eternal life.
Lord, may your resurrection bring us the riches of your grace.

THE LORD’S PRAYER

(Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us offer the prayer Christ himself taught us:)

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 who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

God our Father,
look upon us with love.
You redeem us and make us your children in Christ.
Give us true freedom
and bring us to the inheritance you promised.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who in the font of Baptism
have made new those who believe in you,
keep safe those reborn in Christ,
that, defeating every onslaught of error,
they may faithfully preserve the grace of your blessing.
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.

DISMISSAL

May the Lord bless + us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.

For the Memorial of Saint Peter Chanel:

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Father,
you called Saint Peter Chanel to work for your Church
and gave him the crown of martyrdom.
May our celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection
make us faithful witnesses to the new life he brings,
for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who for the spreading of your Church
crowned Saint Peter Chanel with martyrdom,
grant that, in these days of paschal joy,
we may so celebrate the mysteries of Christ’s Death and Resurrection
as to bear worthy witness to newness of life.
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.

DISMISSAL

May the Lord bless + us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.

For the Memorial of Saint Louis Grignon de Montfort:

CONCLUDING PRAYER

O God, who willed to direct the steps of the Priest Saint Louis
along the way of salvation and of the love of Christ in company of the Blessed Virgin,
in the company of the Blessed Virgin,
grant us, by his example,
that, meditating on the mysteries of your love,
we may strive tirelessly for the building up of your Church.
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.

Or:

Almighty and eternal God, who made the Priest Saint Louis
an outstanding witness and teacher
of total devotion to Christ your Son
through the hands of his Blessed Mother,
grant us, that, following the same spiritual path,
we may constanly spread your Kingdom.
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.

DISMISSAL

May the Lord bless + us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.

Daytime Prayer

INTRODUCTION

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

This day our risen Savior reigns,
Creation’s undefeated King,
While angels in resplendent light
With mighty voice his triumph sing.

This day the Lord has made his own,
Who broke from his confining grave,
His living presence fills the world
That by his cross he came to save.

To God the Father glory give
For Jesus Christ his deathless Son,
Who with the Holy Spirit lives
Immortal, and for ever one.

Tune: Solemnis Haec Festivas L.M.
Music: Graduale, 1685
Text: © 1974 Stanbrook Abbey. Used with permission.

PSALMODY

Ant. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

Psalm 119:121-128
XVI (Ain)

A meditation on God’s law

This is my commandment: that you should love one another (John 15:12).

I have done what is right and just: *
let me not be oppressed.
Vouch for the welfare of your servant *
lest the proud oppress me.

My eyes yearn for your saving help *
and the promise of your justice.
Treat your servant with love *
and teach me your statutes.

I am your servant, give me knowledge; *
then I shall know your will.
It is time for the Lord to act *
for your law has been broken.

That is why I love your commands *
more than finest gold,
why I rule my life by your precepts, *
and hate the ways of falsehood.

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

The light of your words, Father, gives understanding to little ones. Prepare our hearts to receive the Advocate, your Holy Spirit.

Psalm 34
God the savior of the just

You have tasted the sweetness of the Lord (1 Peter 2:3).

I

I will bless the Lord at all times, *
his praise always on my lips;
in the Lord my soul shall make its boast. *
The humble shall hear and be glad.

Glorify the Lord with me. *
Together let us praise his name.
I sought the Lord and he answered me; *
from all my terrors he set me free.

Look towards him and be radiant; *
let your faces not be abashed.
This poor man called; the Lord heard him *
and rescued him from all his distress.

The angel of the Lord is encamped *
around those who revere him, to rescue them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good. *
He is happy who seeks refuge in him.

Revere the Lord, you his saints. *
They lack nothing, those who revere him.
Strong lions suffer want and go hungry *
but those who seek the Lord lack no blessing.

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.

II

Come, children, and hear me *
that I may teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who is he who longs for life *
and many days, to enjoy his prosperity?

Then keep your tongue from evil *
and your lips from speaking deceit.
Turn aside from evil and do good; *
seek and strive after peace.

The Lord turns his face against the wicked *
to destroy their remembrance from the earth.
The Lord turns his eyes to the just *
and his ears to their appeal.

They call and the Lord hears *
and rescues them in all their distress.
The Lord is close to the broken-hearted; *
those whose spirit is crushed he will save.

Many are the trials of the just man *
but from them all the Lord will rescue him.
He will keep guard over all his bones, *
not one of his bones shall be broken.

Evil brings death to the wicked; *
those who hate the good are doomed.
The Lord ransoms the souls of his servants. *
Those who hide in him shall not be condemned.

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

Graciously hear us, Lord, for we seek only you. You are near to those whose heart is right. Open yourself to accept our sorrowful spirit; calm our bodies and minds with the peace which surpasses understanding.

Ant. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

At the other hours, the complementary psalmody is used.

MIDMORNING

READING
Revelation 3:19-20

Whoever is dear to me I reprove and chastise. Be earnest about it, therefore. Repent! Here I stand, knocking at the door. If anyone hears me calling and opens the door, I will enter his house and have supper with him, and he with me

Create in me a clean heart, O God.
– Renew in me a steadfast spirit.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

God our Father,
look upon us with love.
You redeem us and make us your children in Christ.
Give us true freedom
and bring us to the inheritance you promised.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who in the font of Baptism
have made new those who believe in you,
keep safe those reborn in Christ,
that, defeating every onslaught of error,
they may faithfully preserve the grace of your blessing.
Through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

ACCLAMATION

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

MIDDAY

READING
Isaiah 44:21-22

Remember this, O Jacob, you, O Israel, who are my servant! I formed you to be a servant to me; O Israel, by me you shall never be forgotten: I have brushed away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like a mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you.

Turn away your face from my sins.
– Blot out all my guilt.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

God our Father,
look upon us with love.
You redeem us and make us your children in Christ.
Give us true freedom
and bring us to the inheritance you promised.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who in the font of Baptism
have made new those who believe in you,
keep safe those reborn in Christ,
that, defeating every onslaught of error,
they may faithfully preserve the grace of your blessing.
Through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

ACCLAMATION

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

MIDAFTERNOON

READING
Galatians 6:7b-8

No one makes a fool of God! A man will reap only what he sows. If he sows in the field of the flesh, he will reap a harvest of corruption; but if his seedground is the spirit, he will reap everlasting life.

My sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit.
– A humble contrite heart, O God, you will not spurn.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

God our Father,
look upon us with love.
You redeem us and make us your children in Christ.
Give us true freedom
and bring us to the inheritance you promised.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

Or:

O God, who in the font of Baptism
have made new those who believe in you,
keep safe those reborn in Christ,
that, defeating every onslaught of error,
they may faithfully preserve the grace of your blessing.
Through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

ACCLAMATION

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

Vespers

INTRODUCTION

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

Come, O Christian people sing
In triumphant gladness;
God has rescued Israel,
Given joy for sadness;
Freed from Pharaoh’s bitter yoke
Jacob’s sons and daughters;
Leading them beyond all death
Through the Red Sea waters.

Spring is in our hearts today;
Christ has burst his prison
And from three days’ sleep in death
As a sun has risen.
All the winter of our sins,
Long and dark, is flying
From his light, to whom we give
Song and praise undying.

Now the queen of seasons, bright
With the day of splendor,
With the royal feast of feasts,
Far from dark December,
Comes to glad Jerusalem,
Who with true affection,
Welcomes with untiring praise
Jesus’ resurrection.

Neither could the gates of death,
Nor the tomb’s dark portal,
Nor the watchers, nor the seal,
Hold you as a mortal.
But today amid your own
You have stood bestowing
Your own peace which evermore
Passes human knowing.

Tune: Ave Virgo Virginum (Gaudeamus Pariter) 76.76 D
Music: Johann Horn, 1544
Text: As?µe? pa?te? ?a??, John of Damascus, c. 740
Translation: John Mason Neale, 1818-1866

Or:

I know that my Redeemer lives;
What joy the blest assurance gives!
He lives, he lives, who once was dead;
He lives, my everlasting Head!

He lives, to bless me with his love;
He lives, to plead for me above;
He lives, my hungry soul to feed;
He lives, to help in time of need.

He lives, and grants me daily breath;
He lives, and I shall conquer death;
He lives, my mansion to prepare;
He lives, to bring me safely there.

He lives, all glory to his name;
He lives, my Savior still the same;
What joy the blest assurance gives;
I know that my Redeemer lives!

Tune: Duke Street L.M.
Music: John Hatton, 1710-1793
Text: Samuel Medley, 1738-1799

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 May the peace of Christ fill your hearts with joy, alleluia.

Psalm 122
Holy city Jerusalem

You have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem (Hebrews 12:22).

I rejoiced when I heard them say: *
“Let us go to God’s house.”
And now our feet are standing *
within your gates, O Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is built as a city *
strongly compact.
It is there that the tribes go up, *
the tribes of the Lord.

For Israel’s law it is, *
there to praise the Lord’s name.
There were set the thrones of judgment *
of the house of David.

For the peace of Jerusalem pray: *
“Peace be to your homes!
May peace reign in your walls, *
in your palaces, peace!”

For love of my brethren and friends *
I say: “Peace upon you.”
For love of the house of the Lord *
I will ask for your good.

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

When you rose from the dead, Lord Jesus, you formed the Church into your new body, and made of it the new Jerusalem, united in your Spirit. Give us peace in our day. Make all nations come to your Church to share in your gifts in fellowship, that they may render you thanks without end and come to your eternal city.

Ant. May the peace of Christ fill your hearts with joy, alleluia.

Ant. 2 With your own blood, you have purchased us for God, alleluia.

Psalm 130
A cry from the depths

He himself will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord, *
Lord, hear my voice!
O let your ears be attentive *
to the voice of my pleading.

If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt, *
Lord, who would survive?
But with you is found forgiveness: *
for this we revere you.

My soul is waiting for the Lord, *
I count on his word.
My soul is longing for the Lord *
more than watchman for daybreak.
Let the watchman count on daybreak *
and Israel on the Lord.

Because with the Lord there is mercy *
and fullness of redemption,
Israel indeed he will redeem *
from all its iniquity.

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

Listen with compassion to our prayers, Lord. The forgiveness of sins is yours. Do not look on the wrong we have done, but grant us your merciful kindness.

Ant. With your own blood, you have purchased us for God, alleluia.

Ant. 3 Was it not necessary for Christ to suffer and so enter into his glory?, alleluia.

Canticle: Philippians 2:6-11
Christ, God’s holy servant

Though he was in the form of God, †
Jesus did not deem equality with God *
something to be grasped at.

Rather, he emptied himself †
and took the form of a slave,*
being born in the likeness of men.

He was known to be of human estate, *
and it was thus that he humbled himself,
obediently accepting even death, *
death on a cross!

Because of this, *
God highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name *
above every other name,

So that at Jesus’ name *
every knee must bend
in the heavens, on the earth, *
and under the earth,
and every tongue proclaim †
to the glory of God the Father: *
JESUS CHRIST IS 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. Was it not necessary for Christ to suffer and so enter into his glory?, alleluia.

READING
1 Peter 2:9-10

You are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people he claims for his own to proclaim the glorious works” of the One who called you from darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were no people, but now you are God’s people; once there was no mercy for you, but now you have found mercy.

RESPONSORY

The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.
– The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.

When they saw the risen Lord,
– alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
– The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.

CANTICLE OF MARY

Ant. Stay with us, Lord, for evening draws near and daylight is fading, alleluia.

Luke 1:46-55
The soul rejoices in the Lord

My + soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, †
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed: †
the Almighty has done great things for me, *
and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.

He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.

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

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. Stay with us, Lord, for evening draws near and daylight is fading, alleluia.

INTERCESSIONS

Christ is our life and resurrection. Let us cry out to him with faith:
Son of the living God, protect your people.

Lord Jesus, we pray for your Catholic Church,
– make it holy, so that your kingdom may be established among all nations.
Son of the living God, protect your people.

We pray for the sick and the sorrowful, for those in bondage and in exile,
– that they may receive consolation and help.
Son of the living God, protect your people.

We pray for those who have turned away from your paths,
– that they may experience the grace of your forgiveness and the joy of rising to new life.
Son of the living God, protect your people.

Crucified and risen Savior, you will come to judge the world,
– have mercy on us sinners.
Son of the living God, protect your people.

We pray for all the living,
– and for all who have gone from us in the hope of resurrection.
Son of the living God, protect your people.

THE LORD’S PRAYER

(Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us offer the prayer Christ himself taught us:)

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 who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Almighty and ever-living God,
give us new strength
from the courage of Christ our shepherd,
and lead us to join the saints in heaven,
where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

Or:

Almighty ever-living God,
lead us to a share in the joys of heaven,
so that the humble flock may reach
where the brave Shepherd has gone before.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

DISMISSAL

May the Lord bless + us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.

Compline

INTRODUCTION

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.

Examination of Conscience

A brief examination of conscience may be made. In the communal celebration of the Office, a Penitential Rite using the formulas of the Mass may be inserted here.

[I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,

And, striking their breast, they say:

through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;

Then they continue:

therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.

The absolution by the Priest follows:

May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.]

HYMN

At the Lamb’s high feast we sing
Praise to our victorious King,
Who has washed us in the tide
Flowing from his wounded side;
Praise the Lord, whose love divine
Gives his sacred blood for wine,
Gives his body for the feast,
Christ the victim, Christ the priest.

Where the Paschal blood is poured,
Death’s dark angel sheathes his sword;
Israel’s host in triumph go
Through the waves that drown the foe.
Christ the Lamb whose blood was shed,
Paschal victim, Paschal bread;
Let us with a fervent love
Taste the manna from above.

Mighty Victim from on high,
Pow’rs of hell now vanquished lie;
Sin is conquered in the fight:
You have brought us life and light;
Your resplendent banners wave,
You have risen from the grave;
Christ has opened Paradise,
And in him all men shall rise.

Easter triumph, Easter joy,
Sin alone can this destroy;
Souls form sin and death set free
Glory in their liberty.
Hymns of glory, hymns of praise
Father unto you we raise;
Risen Lord, for joy we sing;
Let our hymns through heaven ring.

Tune: Salzburg 77.77 D
Music: Jacob Hintze, 1622-1702
Text: Ad regias Agni dapes
Translation: Robert Campbell, 1814-1868, adapted by Geoffrey Laycock

Or:

All praise to you, O God, this night,
For all the blessings of the light;
Keep us, we pray, O king of kings,
Beneath your own almighty wings.

Forgive us, Lord, through Christ your Son
Whatever wrong this day we’ve done;
Your peace give to the world, O Lord,
That all might live in one accord.

Enlighten us, O Blessed Light,
And give us rest throughout this night.
O strengthen us, that for your sake,
We all may serve your when we awake.

Melody: Tallis Canon L.M.
Music: Thomas Tallis, 1515-1585
Text: Thomas Ken, 1637-1711, alt.

PSALMODY

Ant. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Psalm 4
Thanksgiving

The resurrection of Christ was God’s supreme and wholly marvelous work (Saint Augustine).

When I call, answer me, O God of justice; *
from anguish you released me, have mercy and hear me!

O men, how long will your hearts be closed, *
will you love what is futile and seek what is false?

It is the Lord who grants favors to those whom he loves; *
the Lord hears me whenever I call him.

Fear him; do not sin: ponder on your bed and be still. *
Make justice your sacrifice, and trust in the Lord.

“What can bring us happiness?” many say. *
Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord.

You have put into my heart a greater joy *
than they have from abundance of corn and new wine.

I will lie down in peace and sleep comes at once *
for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
ad will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm 134
Evening prayer in the temple

Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great (Revelation 19:5).

O come, bless the Lord, *
all you who serve the Lord,
who stand in the house of the Lord, *
in the courts of the house of our God.

Lift up your hands to the holy place *
and bless the Lord through the night.

May the Lord bless you from Zion, *
he who made both heaven and earth.

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. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

READING
Deuteronomy 6:4-7

Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today. Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest.

RESPONSORY

Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.
– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

You have redeemed us, Lord God of truth.
– Alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

CANTICLE OF SIMEON

Ant. Protect us, Lord, as we stay awake; watch over us as we sleep, that awake, we may keep watch with Christ, and asleep, rest in his peace, alleluia.

Luke 2:29-32
Christ is the light of the nations and the glory of Israel

Lord, + now you let your servant go in peace; *
your word has been fulfilled:

my own eyes have seen the salvation *
which you have prepared in the sight of every people:

a light to reveal you to the nations *
and the glory of your people Israel.

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. Protect us, Lord, as we stay awake; watch over us as we sleep, that awake, we may keep watch with Christ, and asleep, rest in his peace, alleluia.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

All-powerful God
keep us united with your Son
in his death and burial
so that we may rise to new life with him,
who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
– Amen.

BLESSING

May the all-powerful Lord
grant us a restful night
and a peaceful death.
– Amen.

Antiphon or song in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Queen of heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
The Son whom you merited to bear, alleluia,
has risen as he said, alleluia.
Pray for us to God, alleluia.

Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia!
For the Lord has truly risen, alleluia!

Or:

Regina caeli, laetare, alleluia,
quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia,
resurrexit sicut dixit, alleluia;
ora pro nobis Deum, alleluia.

Gaude et laetare, Virgo Maria, alleluia.
Quia surrexit Dominus vere, alleluia.

Or:

Hail, holy Queen, mother of mercy,
our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
To you do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve.
To you do we send up our sighs
mourning and weeping in this vale of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate,
your eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this exile
show us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving,
O sweet Virgin Mary.

Or:

Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with you!
Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.

Or:

Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae;
vita, dulcedo et spes nostra, salve,
Ad te clamamus, exsules filii Evae.
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
in hac lacrimarum valle.

Eia ergo, advocata nostra,
illos tuos misericordes occulos
ad nos converte.
Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui,
nobis post hoc exilium ostende.
O clemens, o pia, o dulcis Virgo Maria.

Or:

Loving mother of the Redeemer,
gate of heaven, star of the sea,
assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again.
To the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator,
yet remained a virgin after as before.
You who received Gabriel’s joyful greeting,
have pity on us poor sinners.

John
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	John 6
60.	6:61 Many therefore of his disciples, hearing it, said: This saying is hard, and who can hear it?	6:61 Multi ergo audientes ex discipulis ejus, dixerunt : Durus est hic sermo, et quis potest eum audire ?	πολλοι ουν ακουσαντες εκ των μαθητων αυτου ειπον σκληρος εστιν ουτος ο λογος τις δυναται αυτου ακουειν
61.	6:62 But Jesus, knowing in himself, that his disciples murmured at this, said to them: Doth this scandalize you?	6:62 Sciens autem Jesus apud semetipsum quia murmurarent de hoc discipuli ejus, dixit eis : Hoc vos scandalizat ?	ειδως δε ο ιησους εν εαυτω οτι γογγυζουσιν περι τουτου οι μαθηται αυτου ειπεν αυτοις τουτο υμας σκανδαλιζει
62.	6:63 If then you shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?	6:63 si ergo videritis Filium hominis ascendentem ubi erat prius ?	εαν ουν θεωρητε τον υιον του ανθρωπου αναβαινοντα οπου ην το προτερον
63.	6:64 It is the spirit that quickeneth: the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I have spoken to you, are spirit and life.	6:64 Spiritus est qui vivificat : caro non prodest quidquam : verba quæ ego locutus sum vobis, spiritus et vita sunt.	το πνευμα εστιν το ζωοποιουν η σαρξ ουκ ωφελει ουδεν τα ρηματα α εγω λαλω υμιν πνευμα εστιν και ζωη εστιν
64.	6:65 But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning, who they were that did not believe, and who he was, that would betray him.	6:65 Sed sunt quidam ex vobis qui non credunt. Sciebat enim ab initio Jesus qui essent non credentes, et quis traditurus esset eum.	αλλ εισιν εξ υμων τινες οι ου πιστευουσιν ηδει γαρ εξ αρχης ο ιησους τινες εισιν οι μη πιστευοντες και τις εστιν ο παραδωσων αυτον
65.	6:66 And he said: Therefore did I say to you, that no man can come to me, unless it be given him by my Father.	6:66 Et dicebat : Propterea dixi vobis, quia nemo potest venire ad me, nisi fuerit ei datum a Patre meo.	και ελεγεν δια τουτο ειρηκα υμιν οτι ουδεις δυναται ελθειν προς με εαν μη η δεδομενον αυτω εκ του πατρος μου
66.	6:67 After this many of his disciples went back; and walked no more with him.	6:67 Ex hoc multi discipulorum ejus abierunt retro : et jam non cum illo ambulabant.	εκ τουτου πολλοι απηλθον των μαθητων αυτου εις τα οπισω και ουκετι μετ αυτου περιεπατουν
67.	6:68 Then Jesus said to the twelve: Will you also go away?	6:68 Dixit ergo Jesus ad duodecim : Numquid et vos vultis abire ?	ειπεν ουν ο ιησους τοις δωδεκα μη και υμεις θελετε υπαγειν
68.	6:69 And Simon Peter answered him: Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.	6:69 Respondit ergo ei Simon Petrus : Domine, ad quem ibimus ? verba vitæ æternæ habes :	απεκριθη ουν αυτω σιμων πετρος κυριε προς τινα απελευσομεθα ρηματα ζωης αιωνιου εχεις
69.	6:70 And we have believed and have known, that thou art the Christ, the Son of God.	6:70 et nos credidimus, et cognovimus quia tu es Christus Filius Dei.	και ημεις πεπιστευκαμεν και εγνωκαμεν οτι συ ει ο χριστος ο υιος του θεου του ζωντος

60. Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is a hard saying; who can hear it?
61. When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said to them, Does this offend you.
62. What and if you shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
63. It is the spirit that quickens; the flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life.
64. But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were For believed not, and who should betray him.
65. And he said, Therefore said I to you, that no man can come to me, except it were given that him of my Father.
66. From that time many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him.
67. Then said Jesus to the twelve, Will you also go away?
68. Then Simon Peter answered him. Lord, to whom shall we go? you have the words of eternal life.
69. And we believe and are sure that you are that Christ, the Son of the living God.

AUG. Such is our Lord's discourse. The people did not perceive that it had a deep meaning or, that grace went along with it: but receiving the matter in their own way, and taking His words in a human sense, understood Him as if He spoke of cutting of the flesh of the Word into pieces, for distribution to those who believed on Him: Many therefore, not of His enemies, but even of His disciples, when they heard this, said, This is a hard saying, who can bear it?

CHRYS. i.e. difficult to receive, too much for their weakness. They thought He spoke above Himself, and more loftily than He had a right to do; and so said they, Who can bear it? which was answering in fact for themselves, that they could not.

AUG. And if His disciples thought that saying hard what would His enemies think? Yet it was necessary to declare a thing, which would be unintelligible to men. God's mysteries should draw men's attention, not enmity.

THEOPHYL. When you hear, however, of His disciples murmuring, understand not those really such, but rather some who, as far as their air and behavior went, seemed to be receiving instruction from Him. For among His disciples were some of the people, who were called such, because they stayed some time with His disciples.

AUG. They spoke, however, so as not to be heard by Him. But He, who knew what was in them, heard within Himself: When Jesus knew within Himself that His disciples murmured at it, He said to them, Does this of offend you?

ALCUIN. i.e. that I said, you should eat My flesh, and drink My blood.

CHRYS. The revelation however of these hidden things was a mark of His Divinity: hence the meaning of what follows; And if you shall see the Son of man ascend up where He was before; supply, What will you say? He said the same to Nathanael, Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, believe you? You shall see greater things than these. He does not add difficulty to difficulty, but to convince them by the number and greatness of His doctrines. For if He had merely said that He came down from heaven, without adding any thing further, he would have offended His hearers more; but by saying that His flesh is the life of the world, and that as He was sent by the living Father, so He lives by the Father; and at last by adding that He came down from heaven, He removed all doubt. Nor does He mean to scandalize His disciples, but rather to remove their scandal. For so long as they thought Him the Son of Joseph, they could not receive His doctrines; but if they once believed that He had come down from heaven and would ascend thither, they would be much more willing and able to admit them.

AUG. Or, these words are an answer to their mistake. They supposed that He was going to distribute His body in bits: whereas He tells them now, that He should ascend to heaven whole and entire: What and if you shall see the Son of man ascend up where He was before? You will then see that He does not distribute His body in the way you think. Again; Christ became the Son of man, of the Virgin Mary here upon earth, and took flesh upon Him: He says then, What and, if you shall see the Son of man ascend up where He was before? to let us know that Christ, God and man, is one person, not two; and the object of one faith, not a quaternity, but a Trinity. He was the Son of man in heaven, as He was Son of God upon earth; the Son of God upon earth by assumption of the flesh, the Son of man in heaven, by the unity of the person.

THEOPHYL. Do not suppose from this that the body of Christ came down from heaven, as the heretics Marcion and Apollinarius say; but only that the Son of God and the Son of man are one and the same.

CHRYS. He tries to remove their difficulties in another way, as follows, It is the spirit that quickens, the flesh profits nothing: that is to say, You ought to understand My words in a spiritual sense: he who understands them carnally is profited nothing. To interpret carnally is to take a proposition in its bare literal meaning, and allow no other. But we should not judge of mysteries in this way; but examine them with the inward eye; i.e. understand them spiritually. It was carnal to doubt how our Lord could give His flesh to eat. What then? Is it not real flesh? Yes, verily. In saying then that the flesh profits nothing, He does not speak of His own flesh, but that of the carnal hearer of His word

AUG. Or thus, the flesh profits nothing. They had under stood by His flesh, as it were, of a carcass, that was to be cut up, and sold in the shambles, not of a body animated by the spirit. Join the spirit to the flesh, and it profits much: for if the flesh profited not, the Word would not have become flesh, and dwelt among us. The Spirit has done much for our salvation, by means of the flesh.

AUG. For the flesh does not cleanse of itself, but by the Word who assumed it: which Word, being the principle of life in all things, having taken up soul and body, cleanses the souls and bodies of those that believe. It is the spirit, it, then, that quickens: the flesh profits nothing; i.e. the flesh as they understood it. I do not, He seems to say, give My body to be eaten in this sense. He ought not to think of the flesh carnally: The words that I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life.

CHRYS. i.e. are spiritual, have nothing carnal in them, produce no effects of the natural sort; not being under the dominion of that law of necessity, and order of nature established on earth.

AUG. If then you understand them spiritually, they are life and spirit to you: if carnally, even then they are life and spirit, but not to you. Our Lord declares that in eating His body, and drinking His blood, we dwell in Him, and He in us. But what has the power to affect this, except love? The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, which is given to us.

CHRYS. Having spoken of His words being taken carnally, He adds, But there are some of you that believe not. Some, He says, not including His disciples in the number. This insight shows His high nature.

AUG. He says not, There are some among you who understand not; but gives the reason why they do not understand. The Prophet said, Except you believe, you shall not understand. For how can he who opposes be quickened? An adversary, though he avert not his face, yet closes his mind to the ray of light which should penetrate him. But let men believe, and open their eyes, and they will be enlightened.

CHRYS. To let you know that it was before these words, and not after, that the people murmured and were offended, the Evangelist adds, For Jesus knew from the beginning, who they were that believed not, and who should betray Him.

THEOPHYL. The Evangelist wishes to show us, that He knew all things before the foundation of the world: which was a proof of His divinity.

AUG. And after distinguishing those who believed from those who did not believe, our Lord gives the reason of the unbelief of the latter, And He said, Therefore said I to you, that no man can come to Me, except it were given him of My Father.

CHRYS. As if He said, Men's unbelief does not disturb or astonish Me: I know to whom the Father has given to come to Me. He mentions the Father, to show first that He had no eye to His own glory; secondly, that God was His Father, and not Joseph.

AUG. So then (our) faith is given to us: and no small gift it is. Wherefore rejoice if you believe; but be not lifted up, for what have you which you did not receive? And that this grace is given to some, and not to others, no one can doubt, without going against the plainest declarations of Scripture. As for the question, why it is not given to all, this cannot disquiet the believer, who knows that in consequence of the sin of one man, all are justly liable to condemnation; and that no blame could attach to God, even if none were pardoned; it being of His great mercy only that so many are. And why He pardons one rather than another, rests with Him, whose judgments are unsearchable, and His ways past finding out.

And from that time many of the disciples went back, and walked no more with Him.

CHRYS. He does not say, withdrew, but went back, i.e. from being good hearers, from the belief which they once had.

AUG. Being cut off from the body, their life was gone. They were no longer in the body; they were created among the unbelieving. There went back not a few, but many after Satan, not after Christ; as the Apostle says of some women, For some had already turned aside after Satan. Our Lord says to Peter, Get you behind Me. He does not tell Peter to go after Satan.

CHRYS. But it may be asked, what reason was there for speaking words to them which did not edify, but might rather have injured them? It was very useful and necessary; for this reason, they had been just now urgent in petitioning for bodily food, and reminding Him of that which had been given to their fathers. So He reminds them here of spiritual food; to show that all those miracles were typical. They ought not then to have been offended, but should have inquired of Him further. The scandal was owing to their fatuity, not to the difficulty of the truths declared by our Lord.

AUG. And perhaps this took place for our consolation; since it sometimes happens that a man says what is true, and what He says is not understood, and they which hear are offended and go. Then the man is sorry he spoke what was true; for he says to himself; I ought not to have spoken it; and yet our Lord was in the same case. He spoke the truth, and destroyed many. But He is not disturbed at it, because He knew from the beginning which would believe. We, if this happens to us, are disturbed. Let us desire consolation then from our Lord's example; and withal use caution in our speech.

BEDE. Our Lord knew well the intentions of the other disciples which stayed, as to staying or going; but yet He put the question to them, in order to prove their faith, and hold it up to imitation: Then said Jesus to the twelve, Will you also go away?

CHRYS. This was the right way to retain them. Had He praised them, they would naturally, as men do, have thought that they were conferring a favor upon Christ, by not leaving Him: by showing, as He did, that He did not need their company, He made them hold the more closely by Him. He does not say, however, Go away, as this would have been to cast them off; but asks whether they wished to go away; thus preventing their staying with Him from any feeling of shame or necessity: for to stay from necessity would be the same as going away. Peter, who loved his brethren, replies for the whole number, Lord, to whom shall we go?

AUG. As if he said, You cast us from You: give us another to whom we shall go, if we leave You.

CHRYS. A speech of the greatest love: proving that Christ was more precious to them than father or mother. And that it might not seem to be said, from thinking that there was no one whose guidance they could look to, he adds, You have the words of eternal life: which showed that he remembered his Master's words, I will raise Him up, and, has eternal life. The Jews said, Is not this the Son of Joseph? how differently Peter: We believe and are sure, that you art that Christ, the son of the living God.

AUG. For we believed, in order to know. Had we wished first to know, and then to; believe, we could never have been able to believe. This we believe, and know, that You are the Christ the Son of God; i.e. that You are eternal life, and that in Your flesh and blood you give what You are Yourself.

Catena Aurea John 6

The Stefaneschi Triptych: Martyrdom of Peter

Giotto di Bondone

c. 1330
Tempera on panel
Pinacoteca, Vatican

Saint Peter Chanel, Priest & Martyr

Saint Peter Chanel, Priest & Martyr
Optional Memorial
April 28th

from the Vatican website

History:
Proto-martyr of Oceanica, born 1803. Ordained a priest in 1827, he went as curate to Ambérieux and later as pastor to Crozet. His desire to serve in the foreign missions drew him, in 1831, into the newly-founded Society of Mary which, having been formally approved, April 29, 1836, was entrusted with the evangelization of Occidental Oceanica. Chanel, after taking the three religious vows at the hands of Father Colin, founder and first superior of the Marists, embarked that same year for his distant mission under the leadership of Bishop Bataillon, and was sent to the island called Horn, or Allofatu, by geographers, and Futuna by the natives. War between rival tribes and the practice of cannibalism had reduced its population to a few thousands when Chanel landed on its shores. The religion he found there was a worship of terror offered to evil deities. Chanel labored faithfully amid the greatest hardships, learning the native language, attending the sick, baptizing the dying, and winning from all the name of "the man with the kind heart". Niuliki, the then ruler, showed first an amicable disposition towards the missionary and even declared him "taboo", or sacred and inviolable; but when he saw that his subjects were being drawn away from the idols into the white man's religion, he issued an edict against him to avert the movement towards Christianity. At that very time his son Meitala joined the missionary.
Musumusu, Niuliki's prime minister and an implacable enemy of Christianity, then concocted a plot with the petty chiefs against the Christians, which was carried out with great cruelty. At day-break, on April 28, 1841, the conspirators assembled together and, after wounding many neophytes whom they had surprised sleeping, proceeded to Chanel's hut. One shattered his arm and wounded his left temple with a war-club. Another struck him to the ground with a bayonet. A third beat him severely with a club. The missionary was uttering the while words of gentle resignation: "Malie fuai" (it is: well for me). Musumusu himself, enraged at the tardiness of death, split open the martyr's skull with an adze. The remains of the martyred missionary, hurriedly buried, were later claimed by M. Lavaux, commander of the French naval station of Tahiti, and taken to France on a government transport, 1842. The cause of the beatification of Father Chanel, introduced 1857, terminated by the Brief "Quemadmodum" of Nov.16, 1889. The solemnities took place the following day in the basilica of St. Peter, Rome. "Oceanicæ protomartyr" is the official title given Blessed Chanel by the Congregation of Rites in the decree declaring: "tuto procedi posse ad solemnem Ven. servi Dei P. M. Chanel beatificationem".

He was canonized in 1954 by Pope Pius XII.
(Principal source - Catholic Encyclopedia - 1913 edition)
Collect:
O God, who for the spreading of your Church
crowned Saint Peter Chanel with martyrdom,
grant that, in these days of paschal joy,
we may so celebrate the mysteries of Christ's Death and Resurrection
as to bear worthy witness to newness of life.
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.
First Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will thwart." Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Gospel Reading: Mark 1:14-20
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel."

And passing along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow Me and I will make you become fishers of men." And immediately they left their nets and followed Him. And going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and followed Him.

Saint Louis Mary de Montfort, Priest

Saint Louis Mary de Montfort, Priest
Optional Memorial
April 28th

from a 1905 Prayer card

History:
Missionary in Brittany and Vendee; born at Montfort, January 31, 1673; died at Saint Laurent sur Sevre, April 28, 1716. From his childhood, he was devoted to prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. At the age of 12, he was sent as a day pupil to the Jesuit college at Rennes, he never failed to visit the church before and after class. He joined a society of young men who during holidays ministered to the poor and to the incurables in the hospitals, and read for them edifying books during their meals. At the age of nineteen, he went on foot to Paris to follow the course in theology, gave away on the journey all his money to the poor, exchanged clothing with them, and made a vow to subsist thenceforth only on alms. He was ordained priest at the age of twenty-seven, and for some time fulfilled the duties of chaplain in a hospital. In 1705, when he was thirty-two, he found his true vocation, and thereafter devoted himself to preaching to the people. During seventeen years he preached the Gospel in countless towns and villages. As an orator he was highly gifted, his language being simple but replete with fire and divine love. His whole life was conspicuous for virtues difficult for modern degeneracy to comprehend: constant prayer, love of the poor, poverty carried to an unheard-of degree, joy in humiliations and persecutions. The following two instances will illustrate his success. He once gave a mission for the soldiers of the garrison at La Rochelle, and moved by his words, the men wept, and cried aloud for the forgiveness of their sins. In the procession which terminated this mission, an officer walked at the head, barefooted and carrying a banner, and the soldiers, also barefooted, followed, carrying in one hand a crucifix, in the other a rosary, and singing hymns. Father de Montfort 's extraordinary influence was especially apparent in the matter of the calvary at Pontchateau. When he announced his determination of building a monumental calvary on a neighbouring hill, the idea was enthusiastically received by the inhabitants. For fifteen months between two and four hundred peasants worked daily without recompense, and the task had just been completed, when the king commanded that the whole should be demolished, and the land restored to its former condition. The Jansenists had convinced the Governor of Brittany that a fortress capable of affording aid to persons in revolt was being erected, and for several months five hundred peasants, watched by a company of soldiers, were compelled to carry out the work of destruction. Father de Montfort was not disturbed on receiving this humiliating news, exclaiming only: "Blessed be God!"

This was by no means the only trial to which Father de Montfort was subjected. It often happened that the Jansenists, irritated by his success, secure by their intrigues his banishment form the district,in which he was giving a mission. At La Rochelle some wretches put poison into his cup of broth, and, despite the antidote which he swallowed, his health was always impaired. On another occasion, some malefactors hid in a narrow street with the intention of assassinating him, but he had a presentiment of danger and escaped by going by another street. A year before his death, Father de Montfort founded two congregations -- the Sisters of Wisdom, who were to devote themselves to hospital work and the instruction of poor girls, and the Company of Mary, composed of missionaries. He had long cherished these projects but circumstances had hindered their execution, and, humanly speaking, the work appeared to have failed at his death, since these congregations numbered respectively only four sisters and two priests with a few brothers. But the blessed founder, who had on several occasions shown himself possessed of the gift of prophecy, knew that the tree would grow. At the beginning of the twentieth century the Sisters of Wisdom numbered five thousand, and were spread throughout every country; they possessed forty four houses, and gave instruction to 60,000 children. After the death of its founder, the Company of Mary was governed for 39 years by Father Mulot. He had at first refused to join de Montfort in his missionary labors. "I cannot become a missionary", said he, "for I have been paralysed on one side for years; I have an affection of the lungs which scarcely allows me to breathe, and am indeed so ill that I have no rest day or night." But the holy man, impelled by a sudden inspiration, replied, "As soon as you begin to preach you will be completely cured." And the event justified the prediction. Louis de Montfort was beatified by Leo XIII in 1888.

St. Louis de Montfort was canonized by Pius XII in 1947.

(Principal source - Catholic Encyclopedia - 1913 edition)

Collect:
O God, who willed to direct the steps of the Priest Saint Louis
along the way of salvation and of the love of Christ,
in the company of the Blessed Virgin,
grant us, by his example,
that, meditating on the mysteries of your love,
we may strive tirelessly for the building up of your Church.
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.
or
Almighty and eternal God, who made the Priest Saint Louis
an outstanding witness and teacher
of total devotion to Christ your Son
through the hands of his Blessed Mother,
grant us that, following the same spiritual path,
we may constantly spread your Kingdom.
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.

First Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will thwart." Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Gospel Reading: Matthew 28:16-20
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw Him they worshipped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age."
Rosary Page

Saint Gianna Beretta Molla, A Model for Mothers - 1922-1962

Saint Gianna Beretta Molla
A Model for Mothers - 1922-1962
Beatified 1994 -- Canonized 2004

Memorial
April 28

Prayer of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla | Quote from Pope John Paul II | Vatican Links to Biography and John Paul II's Homily | Helen Hull Hitchcock's Introduction to Saint Gianna Molla -- Wife, Mother, Doctor

Prayer of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla
Jesus, I promise You to submit myself to all that You permit to befall me,
make me only know Your will.
My most sweet Jesus, infinitely merciful God, most tender Father of souls,
and in a particular way of the most weak, most miserable, most infirm
which You carry with special tenderness between Your divine arms,
I come to You to ask You, through the love and merits of Your Sacred Heart,
the grace to comprehend and to do always Your holy will,
the grace to confide in You,
the grace to rest securely through time and eternity in Your loving divine arms.
Amen+

Quotes from John Paul II

“Gianna Beretta Molla was a simple, but more than ever, significant messenger of divine love. In a letter to her future husband a few days before their marriage, she wrote: "Love is the most beautiful sentiment the Lord has put into the soul of men and women".
“Following the example of Christ, who "having loved his own... loved them to the end" (Jn 13: 1), this holy mother of a family remained heroically faithful to the commitment she made on the day of her marriage. The extreme sacrifice she sealed with her life testifies that only those who have the courage to give of themselves totally to God and to others are able to fulfil themselves.
“Through the example of Gianna Beretta Molla, may our age rediscover the pure, chaste and fruitful beauty of conjugal love, lived as a response to the divine call!”

-- From the canonization homily of Pope John Paul II, May 16, 2004

Link to Vatican website: Saint Gianna's biography and Pope John Paul II's homily:
http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20040516_beretta-molla_en.html
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/homilies/2004/documents/hf_jp-ii_hom_20040516_canonizations_en.html

Introduction by Helen Hull Hitchcock:
Saint Gianna -- A Model for Mothers

"A woman of exceptional love, an outstanding wife and mother, she gave witness in her daily life to the demanding values of the Gospel”. In his homily on the occasion of her beatification, April 24, 1994, Pope John Paul II proposed Gianna Beretta Molla as a model for all mothers: “By holding up this woman as an exemplar of Christian perfection, we would like to extol all those high-spirited mothers of families who give themselves completely to their family, who suffer in giving birth, who are prepared for every labor and every kind of sacrifice, so that the best they have can be given to others".
In canonizing Gianna Beretta Molla this spring (2004), the Church officially recognized the extraordinary sanctity of a woman who chose to live an ordinary life – as a professional and, later, as a wife and mother. Though she had once considered entering a religious order, instead she practiced medicine (receiving her medical degree in 1949, and her specialty in pediatrics in 1952). She devoted herself to caring for her patients, and her selflessness and dedication as a physician endeared her to the people. But it was not only her practice of medicine that influenced them. She regarded her profession as a mission through which she could aid and nurture both bodies and souls. The young doctor’s devotion to her Catholic faith was well known in her community, and especially her instruction of young Catholic girls in their faith.
Gianna meditated long and prayerfully on God’s will for her. “What is a vocation?”, she wrote: “It is a gift from God – it comes from God Himself! Our concern, then, should be to know the will of God. We should enter onto the path that God wills for us, not by ‘forcing the door’, but when God wills and as God wills” (in Blessed Gianna Beretta Molla: A Woman’s Life. Boston: Pauline Books, 2002, p 71, 72). Gianna believed she was called to marriage and family life, but she waited patiently for God’s will to be revealed.
Gianna Beretta did not marry until she was thirty-three years old – to an engineer ten years her senior, Pietro Molla, whose sister had earlier been a patient of the young Dr. Beretta. Letters Gianna wrote during their year-long courtship reveal her deep commitment to this new vocation. The couple married in September 1955. Several days before their wedding, Gianna wrote to Pietro, reflecting on their vocation to marriage: “With God’s help and blessing, we will do all we can to make our new family a little cenacle where Jesus will reign over all our affections, desires and actions. … We will be working with God in His creation; in this way we can give Him children who will love Him and serve Him”.
Gianna’s faith and her communion with Christ were profound, and from this grace she drew deeper understanding of the dedication and self-giving love that is fundamental to Christian marriage and family life.
After her marriage and even after she had children Gianna continued her medical practice, extending her gifts beyond her immediate family to the children of others. Three children, a son and two daughters, were born between 1956 and 1959, and Gianna had two miscarriages before conceiving another baby in 1961. Pietro and Gianna referred to their children as their “treasures”.
In his own account of these years, Pietro Molla says that he did not object to Gianna’s continuing her medical practice, because she was so deeply attached to her patients, though after she became pregnant with their fourth child, Pietro and Gianna had agreed that she would stop working outside the home after the baby was born.
Early in the pregnancy it was discovered that Gianna had a fibroma, a benign tumor, on her uterine wall. Surgery that would involve aborting the baby was suggested, but the Mollas instantly and firmly rejected this idea, and chose surgery that would remove only the tumor. Because of her medical knowledge, Gianna understood more fully than most the risks involved in this delicate surgery – both to her and to her unborn child. She insisted that the baby be protected at all costs.
The surgery successfully removed the fibroma, and the pregnancy continued, apparently normally, and the family made plans for the future in joy and hope. But all was not well, and a few days before the baby was born, Gianna realized it would be a difficult – possibly life-threatening delivery. She asked her husband to promise that if it were necessary to choose between saving her and saving the baby, he should choose the baby. “I insist”, she said.
On Good Friday, Gianna entered the hospital. And a lovely, healthy baby daughter, Gianna Emanuela, was born the next day, April 21, 1962. But the mother had developed a fatal infection – septic peritonitis. (Modern antibiotics most likely would have saved her.) The inflammation caused immense suffering during her final week on earth. In the midst of her terrible pain, Gianna called to her own mother, Maria, who had died in 1942 – and she prayed. As she lay dying, she repeated, “Jesus, I love you”, over and over.
Her agony ended on April 28 – at home. She was 39. The tiny infant, Gianna Emanuela, was exactly one week old.
The bereft Pietro was left to raise four very young children without their mother: Pierluigi, the eldest, was not yet six; Mariolina, four; Laura, nearly three; and of course the new baby. In this book are Pietro’s own reflections on the difficult years that followed, and how the example of his wife’s serene and joyous faith helped sustain him through his grief at Gianna’s death; when their little daughter, Mariolina, died only two years later; and through all the ordinary difficulties of raising a family alone – with the added extraordinary challenges of raising children whose absent mother had already become a revered public figure.
Almost immediately upon her death a devotion to Gianna arose among those whose lives she had so deeply touched, and who knew her heroic devotion to her faith and her family.
Her “cause” was introduced formally in 1970. She was beatified April 24, 1994; and canonized on May 21, 2004 – forty-two years after her death.
That her husband, now 91, and three children attended her canonization ceremony is one of several historic “firsts” connected with her canonization. (Pierluigi, an engineer, is married; Laura is a political scientist; Gianna Emanuela is a physician who specializes in Alzheimer’s disease.)
Gianna Beretta Molla is the first married laywoman to be declared a saint (though there are many sainted widows). She is also the first canonized woman physician — a professional woman who was also a “working mom” four decades ago, when this was unusual.
Her witness of abiding faith in Christ, and her example of generous, loving, self-donation — wherever and however she was called to serve the Lord — provide particular inspiration for women of our time and in our culture, where conflicting demands and confusing signals are a daily part of our lives.
There is another aspect of this new saint’s life that is worth pondering – and this book affords a glimpse of it. That is, the role of her family – the example of her parents – in her formation as a committed, active young Catholic. Her family was outstanding for its deep Christian faith, expressed not only in worship, in private prayer and family devotions, but in generously extending their gift of faith to others.
Her family’s example of unselfish love set the direction of young Gianna’s life. It gave her the firm foundation upon which, through the grace of God and her trusting acceptance of His will for her, she confidently built her life – a life that would shelter, nurture, guide, and inspire countless others. Gianna’s plans for raising her own children in the faith was influenced by her own experiences growing up. Her understanding of motherhood came from her own mother. Even though her own children could not know her tender motherly presence while they were growing up, she interceded for them. At the very end of her life, as Gianna suffered mortal pain, she sought her mother’s prayers. As we – especially mothers of young families – may now seek hers.
Saint Gianna, pray for us.
Helen Hull Hitchcock
Feast of Saint Joachim and Saint Anne
July 26, 2004
Ignatius Press

Saint Peter Chanel, Missionary and Martyr
Saint Peter Chanel[Priest and Martyr] 1803-1841
Peter Louis Mary Chanel, Priest M (AC)

JESUS LIVING IN MARY: HANDBOOK, SPIRITUALITY OF ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT, ROSARY [Ecumenical]
St. Louis de Montfort Apostle of Mary for Today
A href="http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1825173/posts" target=_blank>St. Louis de Montfort's teaching on genuine Marian devotion [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
St. Louis Mariei de Montfort
Letter to the Friends of the Cross (St. Louis de Montfort)

St. Louis de Montfort's teaching on genuine Marian devotion [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]

Daughter of St. Gianna Molla to Visit U.S. for the First Time
A Holy Couple Reunited in Heaven—Death of Pietro Molla, Husband of St. Gianna Beretta Molla ....
Catholic Health Center for Women Opens in Manhattan (Gianna Center)
Daughter of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla Attends US March for Life
A patron saint for life (Gianna Beretta Molla)
Pope Canonizes Gianna Molla; Secular Media at a Loss
Bl. Gianna Beretta Molla
Gianna Beretta, Who Died for Her Unborn Child, to Be Canonized (She Refused Cancer Treatment)
Gianna Beretta Molla Offered Life For Her [Unborn]Child
Blessed Gianna[Gianna Beretta Molla]

Information: St. Peter Chanel

Feast Day:	April 28
Born:	July 12, 1803, Cuet, near Belley, France
Died:	April 28, 1841, Futuna Island
Canonized:	12 June 1954, Rome by Pope Pius XII
Major Shrine:	Futuna
Patron of:	Oceania

April 28, 2012

Saturday of the Third Week of Easter

Reading 1 Acts 9:31-42

Responsorial Psalm Ps 116:12-13, 14-15, 16-17

Gospel Jn 6:60-69

Regina Coeli

In Latin

In English