This is the Liturgy of the Hours for December 31. Your local date is .
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Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Ordinary: 632
Proper of Saints: 1309
Common of One Martyr: 1739
Christian Prayer:
Ordinary: 694
Proper of Saints: 1223
Common of One Martyr: 1420
Evening Prayer for the Feast of Lawrence, Deacon 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
O God, the crown and great reward
Of all your soldiers brave and true,
Absolve us from all bonds of sin
Who sing your loyal martyr's praise.
He spoke up fearlessly to prove
The steadfast faith deep in his heart,
So closely following our Lord
Like him, he gladly shed his blood.
Despising all the world could give
Its pleasures which can lead to harm,
Quite rightly counting them as dross,
He chose full happiness above.
With strength and courage he endured
The horrors of a cruel death,
And gave his life with joy to prove
His love for you, and life to gain.
Because of his great constancy,
We humbly beg, O Father kind,
On this your martyr's festal day,
Forgive our failing and our falls.
That we at last may also share
All martyrs' company on high,
Rejoicing with them evermore,
Enthroned with them in realms of light.
All praise and glory without end
Be yours, O Father, with the Son,
And with the Holy Spirit, too,
In time and in eternity. Amen.
| 𝄞 | "O God, the Crown and Great Reward - for him" by Kathleen Lundquist, Sara Faux • Title: O God, the Crown and Great Reward; Text: Deus, tuorum militum, 5th-7th c.; Tr. the Benedictines of Saint Cecilia’s Abbey, Ryde, UK; Tune: Chant, Mode VIII; Liber Hymnarius; Artist: Kathleen Lundquist; Recording copyright 2016 by Surgeworks, Inc. |
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 By his martyrdom Lawrence gave witness to our Lord Jesus Christ and gained the reward of heaven.
Psalm 116
Thanksgiving
We must endure many trials before entering God’s kingdom (Acts 14:21)
I
I love the Lord for he has heard
the cry of my appeal;
for he turned his ear to me
in the day when I called him.
They surrounded me, the snares of death,
with the anguish of the tomb;
they caught me, sorrow and distress.
I called on the Lord’s name.
O Lord, my God, deliver me!
How gracious is the Lord, and just;
our God has compassion.
The Lord protects the simple hearts;
I was helpless so he saved me.
Turn back, my soul, to your rest
for the Lord has been good;
he has kept my soul from death,
my eyes from tears
and my feet from stumbling.
I will walk in the presence of the Lord
in the land of the living.
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. By his martyrdom Lawrence gave witness to our Lord Jesus Christ and gained the reward of heaven.
Ant. 2 Blessed Lawrence cried out: I rejoice greatly because I have been considered worthy to be a sacrificial victim for Christ.
II
I trusted, even when I said:
“I am sorely afflicted,”
and when I said in my alarm:
“No man can be trusted.”
How can I repay the Lord
for his goodness to me?
The cup of salvation I will raise;
I will call on the Lord’s name.
My vows to the Lord I will fulfill
before all his people.
O precious in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his faithful.
Your servant, Lord, your servant am I;
you have loosened my bonds.
A thanksgiving sacrifice I make:
I will call on the Lord’s name.
My vows to the Lord I will fulfill
before all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
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. Blessed Lawrence cried out: I rejoice greatly because I have been considered worthy to be a sacrificial victim for Christ.
Ant. 3 I thank you, Lord Jesus Christ, for permitting me to enter the gates of your kingdom.
Canticle – Revelation 4:11; 5:9, 10, 12
Redemption hymn
O Lord our God, you are worthy
to receive glory and honor and power.
For you have created all things;
by your will they came to be and were made.
Worthy are you, O Lord,
to receive the scroll and break open its seals.
For you were slain;
with your blood you purchased for God
men of every race and tongue,
of every people and nation.
You made of them a kingdom,
and priests to serve our God,
and they shall reign on the earth.
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain
to receive power and riches,
wisdom and strength,
honor and glory and praise.
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. I thank you, Lord Jesus Christ, for permitting me to enter the gates of your kingdom.
READING 1 Peter 4:13-14
Rejoice, beloved, in the measure that you share Christ’s sufferings. When his glory is revealed, you will rejoice exultantly. Happy are you when you are insulted for the sake of Christ, for then God’s Spirit in its glory has come to rest on you.
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
You have tried us by fire, O God, then led us to a place of refreshment.
— You have tried us by fire, O God, then led us to a place of refreshment.
You refined us as silver in the furnace,
— then led us to a place of refreshment.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
— You have tried us by fire, O God, then led us to a place of refreshment.
CANTICLE OF MARY
Ant. Blessed Lawrence said: The night is not dark for me; all things shine as in the noonday light.
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. Blessed Lawrence said: The night is not dark for me; all things shine as in the noonday light.
INTERCESSIONS
This is the hour when the King of martyrs offered his life in the upper room and laid it down on the cross. Let us thank him and say:
We praise you, O Lord.
We praise you, O Lord, our Savior, inspiration and example for every martyr, for loving us to the end:
We praise you, O Lord.
For calling all repentant sinners to the rewards of life:
We praise you, O Lord.
For entrusting to your Church the blood of the new and everlasting
covenant poured out for the remission of sin:
We praise you, O Lord.
For our perseverance in your grace today:
We praise you, O Lord.
For incorporating our dead brothers and sisters into your own death today:
We praise you, O Lord.
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,
giver of that ardor of love for you
by which Saint Lawrence
was outstandingly faithful in service
and glorious in martyrdom,
grant that we may love what he loved
and put into practice what he taught.
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.
DISMISSAL
May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life.
— Amen.
The Faith Journey of our Community
Arlene on August 10th, 2023 at 15:24
Arlene on Evening Prayer for St. Lawrence, De & M on August 10th, 2023 at 15:17
