Introductory Rite:
God, come to my assistance R/ Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
R/ as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
Joy to the world, the Lord has come
Let earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing
And heaven, and heaven and nature sing
[Verse 2]
Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy, repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy
[Verse 3]
No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found
[Verse 4]
He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love, and wonders of His love.
PSALMODY
Antiphon 1 Awake, lyre and harp, with praise let us awake the dawn.
.
Psalm 57
Have mercy on me, God, have mercy for in you my soul has taken refuge. In the shadow of your wings I take refuge till the storms of destruction pass by.
I call to you God the Most High, to you who have always been my help. May you send from heaven and save me and shame those who assail me.
O God, send your truth and your love.
My soul lies down among lions, who would devour the sons of men. Their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue a sharpened sword.
O God, arise above the heavens; may your glory shine on earth!
They laid a snare for my steps my soul was bowed down. They dug a pit in my path but fell in it themselves.
My heart is ready, O God,my heart is ready.I will sing, I will sing your praise.Awake, my soul;awake, lyre and harp,I will awake the dawn.
I will thank you, Lord, among the peoples,
among the nations I will praise you
for your love reaches to the heavens
and your truth to the skies. Glory…
Psalm Prayer: Lord, send your mercy and your truth to rescue us from the snares of the devil, and we will praise you among the peoples and proclaim you to the nations, happy to be known as companions of your Son.
Antiphon 1: Awake, lyre and harp, with praise let us awake the dawn.
Antiphon 2: My people, says the Lord, will be filled with my blessings.
Canticle – Jeremiah 31:10-14
Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
proclaim it on distant coasts, and say:
He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,
he guards them as a shepherd his flock.
The Lord shall ransom Jacob,
he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.
Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,
they shall come streaming to the Lord’s blessings:
The grain, the wine, and the oil,
the sheep and the oxen;
They themselves shall be like watered gardens,
never again shall they languish.
Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,
and young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.
I will lavish choice portions upon the priests,
and my people shall be filled with my blessings,
says the Lord. Glory…
Antiphon 2: My people, says the Lord, will be filled with my blessings.
Antiphon 3: The Lord is great and worthy to be praised in the city of our God.
Psalm 48
The Lord is great and worthy to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain rises in beauty,
the joy of all the earth.
Mount Zion, true pole of the earth,
the Great King’s city!
God, in the midst of its citadels,
has shown himself its stronghold.
For the kings assembled together,
together they advanced.
They saw; at once they were astounded;
dismayed, they fled in fear.
A trembling seized them there,
like the pangs of birth.
By the east wind you have destroyed
the ships of Tarshish.
As we have heard, so we have seen
in the city of our God,
in the city of the Lord of hosts
which God upholds for ever.
O God, we ponder your love
within your temple.
Your praise, O God, like your name
reaches the ends of the earth.
With justice your right hand is filled.
Mount Zion rejoices;
the people of Judah rejoice
at the sight of your judgments.
Walk through Zion, walk all round it;
count the number of its towers.
Review all its ramparts,
examine its castles,
that you may tell the next generation
that such is our God,
our God for ever and always.
It is he who leads us. Glory…
Psalm Prayer: Father, the body of your risen Son is the temple not made by human hands and the defending wall of the new Jerusalem. May this holy city, built of living stones, shine with spiritual radiance and witness to your greatness in the sight of all nations.
Antiphon 3: The Lord is great and worthy to be praised in the city of our God.
Opening Prayer (please stand)
All sit for the Liturgy of the Word.
INTERCESSIONS (Universal Prayer)
Christ embodied the wisdom of God, his justice, his holiness and his saving power. Let us praise him and call upon him confidently:
Lord, save us by your birth.
King of the world, the shepherd found you wrapped in swaddling clothes,
– make us willing participants in your poverty and simplicity.
Lord of heaven, from your royal throne you came down to the world,
– teach us to respect our less fortunate brothers and sisters.
Christ, light eternal, when you assumed our nature your did not take on its stain,
– help your faithful people to use the good things of the earth for your honor and glory.
You are the divine spouse of your Church; you stand in its midst as an impregnable tower,
– help the faithful to persevere in your Church toward salvation.
Presider:
O God, who by the Nativity of your Only Begotten Son
wondrously began for your people the work of redemption,
grant, we pray, to your servants such firmness of faith,
that by his guidance they may attain the glorious prize you have promised.
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.
(All are seated for the Liturgy of the Eucharist)
Lord’s Prayer Pater noster, qui es in cælis Sanctificétur nomen tuum Advéniat regnum tuum Fiat volúntas tua Sicut in cælo et in terra Panem nostrum quotidiánum da nobis hódie Et dimítte nobis débita nostra Sicut et nos dimíttimus debitóribus nostris Et ne nos indúcas in tentatiónem Sed libera nos a malo
After Holy Communion, all stand for the Benedictus.
BENEDICTUS/Canticle of Zachariah Benedictus – Luke 1: 68-79
Antiphon: The Lord God has come to his people and set them free.
(While making the Sign of the Cross, we pray the following)
Blest be the God of Israel who comes to set us free
and raises up new hope for us: a Branch for David’s tree.
So have the prophets long declared that with a mighty arm
God would turn back our enemies and all who wish us harm
.
With promised mercy will God still the covenant recall,
the oath once sworn to Abraham from foes to save us all;
that we might worship without fear and offer lives of praise,
in holiness and righteousness to serve God all our days.
My child, as prophet of the Lord you will prepare the way,
to tell God’s people they are saved from sin’s eternal sway.
Then shall God’s mercy from on high shine forth and never cease
to drive away the gloom of death and lead us into peace.
Antiphon: The Lord God has come to his people and set them free.
Prayer After Communion
Dismissal & Final Blessing