O Lord, open my lips.
And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Invitatory Psalm
Psalm 23 (24)
Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
– Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,
the world and all who live in it.
He himself founded it upon the seas
and set it firm over the waters.
– Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
Who will climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who will stand in his holy place?
The one who is innocent of wrongdoing and pure of heart,
who has not given himself to vanities or sworn falsely.
He will receive the blessing of the Lord
and be justified by God his saviour.
This is the way of those who seek him,
seek the face of the God of Jacob.
– Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors,
and let the king of glory enter.
Who is the king of glory?
The Lord of might and power.
The Lord, strong in battle.
– Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors,
and let the king of glory enter.
Who is the king of glory?
The Lord of hosts
– he is the king of glory.
– Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
– Come, let us worship the Lord, the King who is to come.
Hymn
The Advent of our God
With eager prayers we greet
And singing haste up on the road
His glorious gift to meet.
The everlasting Son
Scorns not a Virgin’s womb;
That we from bondage may be won
He bears a bondsman’s doom.
Daughter of Zion, rise
To meet thy lowly King;
Let not thy stubborn heart despise
The peace he deigns to bring.
In clouds of awful light,
As Judge he comes again,
His scattered people to unite,
With them in heaven to reign.
Let evil flee away
Ere that dread hour shall dawn.
Let this old Adam day by day
God’s image still put on.
Praise to the Incarnate Son,
Who comes to set us free,
With God the Father, ever One,
To all eternity.
A lament at the ruin of the house of David
Psalm 88 (89)
Pay heed, Lord, and see how we are taunted.
But you have spurned and rejected him;
you are enraged against your anointed.
You have repudiated the covenant of your servant,
you have trampled his crown in the dust.
You have demolished his walls
and laid his fortifications in ruins.
Anyone who passes can despoil him;
he is a mockery among his neighbours.
You have strengthened the arm of those who oppress him,
you have gladdened the hearts of his enemies.
You have turned back the sharp edge of his sword;
you have deprived him of your help in battle.
You have put an end to his splendour,
and cast his throne to the ground.
You have cut short the days of his youth;
you have covered him from head to foot in shame.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Pay heed, Lord, and see how we are taunted.
Psalm 88 (89)
I am the root and stock of David; I am the splendid morning star.
How long, O Lord, will you hide yourself? For ever?
Will your anger always burn like fire?
Remember how short is my time.
Was it truly so pointless, your creation of man?
Who is the man who can live and not die,
who can save his life from the grasp of the underworld?
Where are the kindnesses you showed us of old?
Where is the truth of your oath to David?
Remember, Lord, how your servants are taunted,
the taunts I bear in my bosom, the taunts of the nations –
the insults of your enemies, Lord,
the insults that follow the steps of your anointed!
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
I am the root and stock of David; I am the splendid morning star.
Psalm 89 (90)
Let the Lord's glory shine upon us
Our years pass like grass; but you, God, are without beginning or end.
Lord, you have been our refuge
from generation to generation.
Before the mountains were born,
before earth and heaven were conceived,
from all time to all time, you are God.
You turn men into dust,
you say to them “go back, children of men.”
A thousand years in your sight
are like yesterday, that has passed;
like a short watch in the night.
When you take them away, they will be nothing but a dream;
like the grass that sprouts in the morning:
in the morning it grows and flowers,
in the evening it withers and dries.
For we are made weak by your anger,
thrown into confusion by your wrath.
You have gazed upon our transgressions;
the light of your face illuminates our secrets.
All our days vanish in your anger,
we use up our years in a single breath.
Seventy years are what we have,
or eighty for the stronger ones;
and most of that is labour and sadness –
quickly they pass, and we are gone.
Who can comprehend the power of your wrath?
Who can behold the violence of your anger?
Teach us to reckon our days like this,
so that our hearts may be led at last to wisdom.
Turn to us, Lord, how long must we wait?
Let your servants call on you and be answered.
Fill us with your kindness in the morning,
and we shall rejoice and be glad all the days of our life.
Give us joy for as long as you afflicted us,
for all the years when we suffered.
Let your servants see your great works,
and let their children see your glory.
Let the glory of the Lord God be upon us:
make firm the work of your hands.
Make firm the work of your hands.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Our years pass like grass; but you, God, are without beginning or end.
Listen, nations, to the word of the Lord.
– Take the news to the ends of the earth.
Reading
Isaiah 32:15-33:6
Once more there will be poured on us
the spirit from above;
then shall the wilderness be fertile land
and fertile land become forest.
In the wilderness justice will come to live
and integrity in the fertile land;
integrity will bring peace,
justice give lasting security.
My people will live in a peaceful home,
in safe houses,
in quiet dwellings
– the forest shall be beaten down and the city laid low.
Happy will you be, sowing by every stream,
letting ox and donkey roam free.
Woe to you, ravager never ravaged,
plunderer never plundered!
When your ravaging is over, you shall be ravaged;
when your plundering is done, you shall be plundered.
O Lord, have pity on us,
we hope in you.
Be our strong arm each morning,
our salvation in time of distress.
At the sound of your threat peoples flee,
when you rise nations scatter,
they gather loot as the grasshopper gathers,
they leap on it as locusts leap.
The Lord is exalted, for he is enthroned above,
and fills Zion with justice and integrity.
Your continuance is assured;
wisdom and knowledge are riches that save,
the fear of the Lord is his treasure.
Responsory
My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and righteousness will yield peace.
My peace I give to you: do not let your hearts be troubled nor let them be afraid, and righteousness will yield peace.
Reading
The Dogmatic Constitution "Dei Verbum"
Christ fulfils all prophecies
God, who through the Word creates all things and keeps them in existence, gives men an enduring witness to himself in created realities. Planning to make known the way of heavenly salvation, he went further and from the start manifested himself to our first parents.
Then after their fall his promise of redemption aroused in them the hope of being saved and from that time on he ceaselessly kept the human race in his care, to give eternal life to those who perseveringly do good in search of salvation).
Then, at the time he had appointed he called Abraham in order to make of him a great nation). Through the patriarchs, and after them through Moses and the prophets, he taught this people to acknowledge him as the one living and true God, provident father and just judge, and to wait for the Saviour promised by him. Thus he prepared the way for the Gospel down through the centuries.
Then, after speaking in many and varied ways through the prophets, now at last in these days God has spoken to us in his Son.
For he sent his Son, the eternal Word, who enlightens all men, so that he might dwell among men and tell them of the innermost being of God.
Jesus Christ, therefore, the Word made flesh, was sent as a man to men. He speaks the words of God and completes the work of salvation which his Father gave him to do
To see Jesus is to see his Father. For this reason Jesus perfected revelation by fulfilling it through his whole work of making himself present and manifesting himself. He did this through his words and deeds, his signs and miracles, but especially through his death and glorious resurrection from the dead and through his final sending of the Spirit of truth. Moreover he confirmed with divine testimony what revelation proclaimed, that God is with us to free us from the darkness of sin and death, and to raise us up to eternal life.
The Christian dispensation, therefore, as the new and definitive covenant, will never pass away and we now await no further new public revelation before the glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Responsory
You will see your teacher with your own eyes; and your ears will hear his words of instruction, ‘This is the way, follow it.’
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet from among yourselves, from your own brothers, and your ears will hear his words of instruction, ‘This is the way, follow it.’
Let us pray.
With sorrow, Lord, we confess our sins,
unworthy servants that we are.
Heal us and bring us joy
by the coming of your only Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
Amen.
