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Liturgy of the Hours for December 18

Evening Prayer for December 18th

Please Note

This is the Liturgy of the Hours for December 31. Your local date is .

Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:
Ordinary: 668
All from the Psalter: Friday, Week II, 953

Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV:
Ordinary: 632
All from the Psalter: Friday, Week II, 916

Christian Prayer:
Ordinary: 694
All from the Psalter: Friday, Week II, 840

Evening Prayer for Friday in Ordinary Time

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

The hours are passing swiftly by,
And into night the shades will flow,
So let us sing to God with joy
The grateful hymn of praise we owe.

The burden and the heat of day
Have passed in working for our Lord,
So may his vineyard workers all
Receive from him the great reward.

Lord Jesus Christ, you call us now
To labor for our recompense,
Assist our work, then grant us rest,
Until your love shall call us hence.

All glory, Lord, to you we bring,
Creation’s true and only King,
Whom with the Father we adore
And Holy Ghost, for evermore. Amen.

𝄞"The Hours Are Passing Swiftly By" by Kathleen Lundquist • Title: The Hours Are Passing Swiftly By; Text: Horis peractis undecim, Anon.; Tr. St. Cecilia's Abbey, Ryde, Isle of Wight, UK; Tune: Chant, Mode I; Lumen Christi Hymnal; Artist: Kathleen Lundquist; Recording copyright 2016 by Surgeworks, Inc.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Lord, keep my soul from death, never let me stumble.

Psalm 116
Thanksgiving

We must endure many trials before entering God’s kingdom (Acts 14:21).

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.

Psalm-prayer

God of power and mercy, through your Son’s passion and resurrection you have freed us from the bonds of death and the anguish of separation from you. Be ever with us on our pilgrimage; then we shall sing rather than weep. Keep our feet from stumbling, so that we may be able to follow you until we come to eternal rest.

Ant. Lord, keep my soul from death, never let me stumble.

Ant. 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

Psalm 121
Guardian of his people

Never again will they hunger and thirst, never again know scorching heat (Revelation 7:16).

I lift up my eyes to the mountains:
from where shall come my help?
My help shall come from the Lord
who made heaven and earth.

May he never allow you to stumble!
Let him sleep not, your guard.
No, he sleeps not nor slumbers,
Israel’s guard.

The Lord is your guard and your shade,
at your right side he stands.
By day the sun shall not smite you
nor the moon in the night.

The Lord will guard you from evil,
he will guard your soul.
The Lord will guard your going and coming
both now and 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

Lord Jesus Christ, you have prepared a quiet place for us in your Father’s eternal home. Watch over our welfare on this perilous journey, shade us from the burning heat of day, and keep our lives free of evil until the end.

Ant. My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

Ant. 3 King of all the ages, your ways are perfect and true.

Canticle – Revelation 15:3-4
Hymn of adoration

Mighty and wonderful are your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Righteous and true are your ways,
O King of the nations!

Who would dare refuse you honor,
or the glory due your name, O Lord?

Since you alone are holy,
all nations shall come
and worship in your presence.
Your mighty deeds are clearly seen.

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. King of all the ages, your ways are perfect and true.

READING 1 Corinthians 2:7-10a

What we utter is God’s wisdom: a mysterious, a hidden wisdom. God planned it before all ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age knew the mystery; if they had known it, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory. Of this wisdom it is written:

“Eye has not seen, ear has not heard
nor has it so much as dawned on man
what God has prepared for those who love him.”

Yet God has revealed this wisdom to us through the Spirit.

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

Christ died for our sins to make of us an offering to God.
Christ died for our sins to make of us an offering to God.

He died to this world of sin, and rose in the power of the Spirit.
To make of us an offering to God.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
Christ died for our sins to make of us an offering to God.

CANTICLE OF MARY

Ant. Remember your mercy, Lord, the promise of mercy you made to our fathers.

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. Remember your mercy, Lord, the promise of mercy you made to our fathers.

INTERCESSIONS

Let us bless Christ, the compassionate and merciful Lord, who wipes away the tears of those who weep. Let us cry out to him in love and ask:
Have mercy on your people, Lord.

Lord Jesus, you console the humble,
be attentive to the tears of the poor.
Have mercy on your people, Lord.

Merciful God, hear the cries of the dying,
comfort them with your presence.
Have mercy on your people, Lord.

Make exiles aware of your providential care,
may they return to their home on earth and finally enter their home in heaven.
Have mercy on your people, Lord.

Be merciful to sinners who have fallen away from your love,
reconcile them to yourself and to your Church.
Have mercy on your people, Lord.

Save our brothers who have died,
let them share in the fullness of redemption.
Have mercy on your people, 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

God our Father,
the contradiction of the cross
proclaims your infinite wisdom.
Help us to see that the glory of your Son
is revealed in the suffering he freely accepted.
Give us faith to claim as our only glory
the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who lives and reigns with you and 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.

Personal Reflections

The Faith Journey of our Community

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hazcompat on November 29th, 2024 at 18:36

Taste and see the goodness of The Lord
As the body tastes earthly sweetness and has a sure sense for it, so too the mind can infallibly recognize the Holy Spirit’s consolation far above those of the flesh: Taste, it is said and...
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hazcompat on August 9th, 2024 at 18:32

Prayer is the point of departure, faith is the path, union is the goal!
“This sublime knowledge can be received only by a person who has arrived at union with God, for it is itself that very union,” consisting “in a certain touch between the Divinity and the soul”...
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Christopher Bradley on August 9th, 2024 at 18:28

Lord, keep my soul from death, never let me stumble.
Lord, for the times the weight of my cross was “almost” too much to bear thank you for never letting me stumble. Lord, when I was young and discerning your holy priesthood and I like...
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hazcompat on July 12th, 2024 at 21:56

Pray day and night!
…praying day and night is mentioned several times in Scripture: “Blessed is the man . . . [whose] delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night”...
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Jeanne on June 14th, 2024 at 16:35

The Lord protects the simple hearts; I was helpless so he saved me.
I count the period of my life when I was most helpless to be one of the most blessed times of my life -to be helpless is the safest place to be – when I...
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Maggie on June 14th, 2024 at 15:22

GOD'S SUPREMACY
Sometimes we feel abandoned especially when tribulations come. We should be consoled in the supremacy of God who guides us no matter our situation. Be encouraged, God is ever present and in total control. Our...
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onette de vera on January 19th, 2024 at 20:55

"Give us faith to claim as our only glory the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,"
This faith we ask from you Lord, we humbly request to receive faith’s fruit: eternal life. Never allow us to waver in Your truth no matter how tempting it is to “go with the flow”,...
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seanmoylantd on December 1st, 2023 at 13:10

My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Another day of fasting down Grateful thanks to Immaculate Conception and all her Saints
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Leticias Yap on November 3rd, 2023 at 22:21

O Lord God please heal me body and soul. I’m thank for all everything you have provided us.
O Lord God thank you for kindness and compassion pour upon us all and we always remember to pray and thank God for everythings He gave us all. We love ❤️ you Lord Jesus Christ...
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Leticias Yap on October 6th, 2023 at 21:13

O Lord God You are the greatest person I have faith in you and I would never ever to betray.I will always be with you as long as I live To youI put all my trust.
O Lord God make me rejoice and be glad for all the good things you have provided us all .To live comfortably and enjoy the splendor of your kingdom..Thank you my Lord Jesus Christ..Amen Alleluia
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