This is the Liturgy of the Hours for December 31. Your local date is .
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 16:48 — 20.8MB)
Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Ordinary: 618
Psalter: Wednesday, Week I, 712
Common of Virgins: 1802 (reading, responsory, intercessions)
Proper of Saints: 1578 (canticle antiphon, concluding prayer)
Christian Prayer:
Ordinary: 689
Psalter: Wednesday, Week I, 738
Common of Virgins: 1441 (reading, responsory, intercessions)
Proper of Saints: 1323 (canticle antiphon, concluding prayer)
Morning Prayer for Wednesday in Ordinary Time, the Memorial of Saint Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr
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
Great leader of the pure of heart,
And every martyr's source of strength,
Of both the highest recompense,
In mercy hear our humble prayer.
We eagerly exalt and praise
This virgin's pure and valiant soul,
Ennobled by the two-fold psalm
Of martyrdom and chastity.
Unflinching, she confessed your name,
And faced all torture's anguish keen,
She bravely bid it do its worst
Until her soul took flight to you.
As earth's attractions she despised;
And spurned its false but fair caress,
So does she teach us faith unmoved,
Resisting even unto death.
By her kind favor, gentle Lord,
Forgive the wrong which we have done;
Restrain our tendency to ill,
Subdue our hearts unto your grace.
All glory, Jesus, be to you,
Once born of Virgin undefiled,
Who, with the Spirit of your Love
And God the Father, ever reign. Amen.
𝄞 | "Great Leader of the Pure of Heart" by Kathleen Lundquist, Sara Faux • Available for Purchase • Title: Great Leader of the Pure of Heart; Text: from Latin; Anon; Tr. St. Cecilia’s Abbey, Ryde, UK; Tune: Chant, Mode VIII; Liber Hymnarius; Artist: Kathleen Lundquist; Accompaniment: Sara Faux; Recording copyright 2017 by Surgeworks, Inc. • Albums that contain this Hymn: Hymns and Chants of Divine Office, Vol. 1 |
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 O Lord, in your light we see light itself.
Psalm 36
The malice of sinners and God’s goodness
No follower of mine wanders in the dark; he shall have the light of life (John 8:12).
Sin speaks to the sinner
in the depths of his heart.
There is no fear of God
before his eyes.
He so flatters himself in his mind
that he knows not his guilt.
In his mouth are mischief and deceit.
All wisdom is gone.
He plots the defeat of goodness
as he lies on his bed.
He has set his foot on evil ways,
he clings to what is evil.
Your love, Lord, reaches to heaven;
your truth to the skies.
Your justice is like God’s mountain,
your judgments like the deep.
To both man and beast you give protection.
O Lord, how precious is your love.
My God, the sons of men
find refuge in the shelter of your wings.
They feast on the riches of your house;
they drink from the stream of your delight.
In you is the source of life
and in your light we see light.
Keep on loving those who know you,
doing justice for upright hearts.
Let the foot of the proud not crush me
nor the hand of the wicked cast me out.
See how the evil-doers fall!
Flung down, they shall never rise.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm-prayer
Lord, you are the source of unfailing light. Give us true knowledge of your mercy so that we may renounce our pride and be filled with the riches of your house.
Ant. O Lord, in your light we see light itself.
Ant. 2 O God, you are great and glorious; we marvel at your power.
Canticle — Judith 16:2-3a, 13-15
God who created the world takes care of his people
They were singing a new song (Revelation 5:9).
Strike up the instruments,
a song to my God with timbrels,
chant to the Lord with cymbals.
Sing to him a new song,
exalt and acclaim his name.
A new hymn I will sing to my God.
O Lord, great are you and glorious,
wonderful in power and unsurpassable.
Let your every creature serve you;
for you spoke, and they were made,
you sent forth your spirit, and they were created;
no one can resist your word.
The mountains to their bases, and the seas are shaken;
the rocks, like wax, melt before your glance.
But to those who fear you,
you are very merciful.
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. O God, you are great and glorious; we marvel at your power.
Ant. 3 Exult in God’s presence with hymns of praise.
Psalm 47
The Lord Jesus is King of all
He is seated at the right hand of the Father, and his kingdom will have no end.
All peoples, clap your hands,
cry to God with shouts of joy!
For the Lord, the Most High, we must fear,
great king over all the earth.
He subdues peoples under us
and nations under our feet.
Our inheritance, our glory, is from him,
given to Jacob out of love.
God goes up with shouts of joy;
the Lord goes up with trumpet blast.
Sing praise for God, sing praise,
sing praise to our king, sing praise.
God is king of all the earth.
Sing praise with all your skill.
God is king over the nations;
God reigns on his holy throne.
The princes of the peoples are assembled
with the people of Abraham’s God.
The rulers of the earth belong to God,
to God who reigns over all.
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, King of all peoples and all ages, it is your victory we celebrate as we sing with all the skill at our command. Help us always to overcome evil by good, that we may rejoice in your triumph for ever.
Ant. Exult in God’s presence with hymns of praise.
READING Song of Songs 8:7
Deep waters cannot quench love,
nor floods sweep it away.
Were one to offer all he owns to purchase love,
he would be roundly mocked.
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.
RESPONSORY
My heart is ever pleading, show me your face.
— My heart is ever pleading, show me your face.
I long to gaze upon you, Lord.
— Show me your face.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
— My heart is ever pleading, show me your face.
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
Ant. At daybreak, Cecilia cried out: Come, soldiers of Christ, cast off the works of darkness, and clothe yourselves in the armor of light.
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. At daybreak, Cecilia cried out: Come, soldiers of Christ, cast off the works of darkness, and clothe yourselves in the armor of light.
INTERCESSIONS
Christ is the spouse and crowning glory of virgins. Let us praise him with joy in our voices and pray to him with sincerity in our hearts:
Jesus, crown of virgins, hear us.
Christ, the holy virgins loved you as their one true spouse,
— grant that nothing may separate us from your love.
Jesus, crown of virgins, hear us.
You crowned Mary, your mother, queen of virgins, through her intercession,
— let us continually serve you with pure hearts.
Jesus, crown of virgins, hear us.
Your handmaids were always careful to love you with whole and undivided attention, that they might be holy in body and spirit,
— through their intercession grant that the lure of this passing world may not distract our attention from you.
Jesus, crown of virgins, hear us.
Lord Jesus, you are the spouse whose coming was anticipated by the wise virgins,
— grant that we may wait for you in hope and expectation.
Jesus, crown of virgins, hear us.
Through the intercession of this saint, who was one of the wise and prudent virgins,
— grant us wisdom and innocence of life.
Jesus, crown of virgins, hear 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
O God,
who gladden us each year
with the feast day of your handmaid Saint Cecilia,
grant, we pray,
that what has been devoutly handed down concerning her
may offer us examples to imitate
and proclaim the wonders worked in his servants by Christ your Son.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
— Amen.
DISMISSAL
May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life.
— Amen.
The Faith Journey of our Community
Leticias Yap on November 22nd, 2023 at 8:40
O Lord God You are the mercy full love ❤️ and kindness. May I always follow your footstep to heaven where I find peace, love, and happiness. Amenonette de vera on November 22nd, 2023 at 5:04
"In you is the source of life and in your light we see light"seanmoylantd on November 22nd, 2023 at 2:42
St Cecilia