This is the Liturgy of the Hours for December 31. Your local date is .
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Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Ordinary: 615
Psalter: Saturday, Week II, 922
Common of Virgins: 1791 (verse before first reading)
Proper of Seasons: 336 (first reading)
Proper of Saints: 1450 (second reading, concluding prayer)
Christian Prayer:
Does not contain Office of Readings.
Office of Readings for Saturday in Ordinary Time, for the Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church
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
Blest are the pure in heart,
for they shall see our God;
the secret of the Lord is theirs,
their soul is Christ's abode.
The Lord, who left the heavens
our life and peace to bring,
to dwell in lowliness with us,
our pattern and our King;
He to the lowly soul
will still himself impart and
for his dwelling and his throne
will choose the pure in heart.
Lord, we thy presence seek;
may ours this blessing be;
give us a pure and lowly heart,
a temple fit for thee.
| 𝄞 | "Blest are the Pure in Heart" by Eva Zlatkovic Ristic • Title: The Christian Life; Words: Sts. 1 and 3, John Keble (1792-1866), alt.; sts. 2 and 4, William John Hall (1793-1861), alt.; Music: Franconia, melody Johann Makhasar Konig (1691-1758); Adapt. and harmony: William Henry Havergal (1793-1870); Artist: Eva Zlatkovic Ristic; Copyright 2016 Surgeworks |
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 None but the Lord has done such marvels; his love endures for ever.
Psalm 136
Paschal hymn
We praise God by recalling his marvelous deeds (Cassiodorus).
I
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good,
for his love endures for ever
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his love endures for ever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his love endures for ever;
who alone has wrought marvelous works,
for his love endures for ever;
whose wisdom it was made the skies,
for his love endures for ever;
who fixed the earth firmly on the seas,
for his love endures for ever.
It was he who made the great lights,
for his love endures for ever,
the sun to rule in the day,
for his love endures for ever,
the moon and the stars in the night,
for his love endures 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. None but the Lord has done such marvels; his love endures for ever.
Ant. 2 He brought Israel out of Egypt with powerful hand and arm outstretched.
II
The first-born of the Egyptians he smote,
for his love endures for ever.
He brought Israel out from the midst,
for his love endures for ever;
arm outstretched, with power in his hand,
for his love endures for ever.
He divided the Red Sea in two,
for his love endures for ever;
he made Israel pass through the midst,
for his love endures for ever;
he flung Pharaoh and his force in the sea,
for his love endures 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. He brought Israel out of Egypt with powerful hand and arm outstretched.
Ant. 3 Give praise to the God of heaven; he has ransomed us from our enemies.
III
Through the desert his people he led,
for his love endures for ever.
Nations in their greatness he struck,
for his love endures for ever.
Kings in their splendor he slew,
for his love endures for ever.
Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his love endures for ever,
and Og, the king of Bashan,
for his love endures for ever.
He let Israel inherit their land,
for his love endures for ever.
On his servant their land he bestowed,
for his love endures for ever.
He remembered us in our distress,
for his love endures for ever.
And he snatched us away from our foes,
for his love endures for ever.
He gives food to all living things,
for his love endures for ever.
To the God of heaven give thanks,
for his love endures 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 Creator, how wonderfully you made us. You transformed dust into your own image and gave it a share in your own nature; yet you are more wonderful in pardoning the one who had rebelled against you. Grant that where sin has abounded, grace may more abound, so that we can become holier through forgiveness and be more grateful to you.
Ant. Give praise to the God of heaven; he has ransomed us from our enemies.
Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell) – a moment to reflect and receive in our hearts the full resonance of the voice of the Holy Spirit and to unite our personal prayer more closely with the word of God and public voice of the Church.
You have shown me how to live.
— You will fill me with joy in your presence.
READINGS
First reading
From the letter of the apostle Paul to the Philippians
4:10-23
The generosity of the Philippians toward Paul
It gave me great joy in the Lord that your concern for me bore fruit once more. You had been concerned all along, of course, but lacked the opportunity to show it. I do not say this because I am in want, for whatever the situation I find myself in I have learned to be self-sufficient. I am experienced in being brought low, yet I know what it is to have an abundance. I have learned how to cope with every circumstance — how to eat well or go hungry, to be well provided for or do without. In him who is the source of my strength I have strength for everything.
Nonetheless, it was kind of you to want to share in my hardships. You yourselves know, my dear Philippians, that at the start of my evangelizing, when I left Macedonia, not a single congregation except yourselves shared with me by giving me something for what it had received. Even when I was at Thessalonica you sent something for my needs, not once but twice. It is not that I am eager for the gift; rather, my concern is for the ever-growing balance in your account.
Herewith is my receipt, which says that I have been fully paid and more. I am well supplied because of what I received from you through Epaphroditus, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.
My God in turn will supply your needs fully, in a way worthy of his magnificent riches in Christ Jesus. All glory to our God and Father for unending ages! Amen.
Give my greetings in Christ Jesus to every member of the church. My brothers here send you theirs, as do all those who believe, particularly those in Caesar’s service. May the favor of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
RESPONSORY Philippians 4:12-13; 2 Corinthians 12:10
I know what it is like to be rich and what it is like to be poor. I have eaten well and gone hungry, have experienced poverty and plenty.
— With Christ’s help I can do all things.
For the sake of Christ I am content with my weaknesses and frustrations.
— With Christ’s help I can do all things.
Second reading
From the autobiography of Saint Theresa of the Child Jesus, virgin
In the heart of the Church I will be love
Since my longing for martyrdom was powerful and unsettling, I turned to the epistles of Saint Paul in the hope of finally finding an answer. By chance the twelfth and thirteenth chapters of the first epistle to the Corinthians caught my attention, and in the first section I read that not everyone can be an apostle, prophet or teacher, that the Church is composed of a variety of members, and that the eye cannot be the hand. Even with such an answer revealed before me, I was not satisfied and did not find peace.
I persevered in the reading and did not let my mind wander until I found this encouraging theme: Set your desires on the greater gifts. And I will show you the way which surpasses all others. For the Apostle insists that the greater gifts are nothing at all without love and that this same love is surely the best path leading directly to God. At length I had found peace of mind.
When I had looked upon the mystical body of the Church, I recognized myself in none of the members which Saint Paul described, and what is more, I desired to distinguish myself more favorably within the whole body. Love appeared to me to be the hinge for my vocation. Indeed I knew that the Church had a body composed of various members, but in this body the necessary and more noble member was not lacking; I knew that the Church had a heart and that such a heart appeared to be aflame with love. I knew that one love drove the members of the Church to action, that if this love were extinguished, the apostles would have proclaimed the Gospel no longer, the martyrs would have shed their blood no more. I saw and realized that love sets off the bounds of all vocations, that love is everything, that this same love embraces every time and every place. In one word, that love is everlasting.
Then, nearly ecstatic with the supreme joy in my soul, I proclaimed: O Jesus, my love, at last I have found my calling: my call is love. Certainly I have found my place in the Church, and you gave me that very place, my God. In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and thus I will be all things, as my desire finds its direction.
RESPONSORY See Psalm 21:4; Job 31:18; Ephesians 3:18; Psalm 31:20
From the very beginning, O God, you came to me with your love, which has grown since my childhood.
— Its depths I cannot fully grasp.
O Lord, how great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you.
— Its depths I cannot fully grasp.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
O God,
who open your Kingdom
to those who are humble and to little ones,
lead us to follow trustingly
in the little way of Saint Theresa,
so that through her intercession
we may see your eternal glory revealed.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
— Amen.
ACCLAMATION (at least in the communal celebration)
Let us praise the Lord.
— And give him thanks.