Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. I:
Ordinary: 667
Proper of Seasons: 256
Psalter: Sunday, Week III, 920

Christian Prayer:
Ordinary: 694
Proper of Seasons: 87
Psalter: Sunday, Week III, 851

Evening Prayer I for the Third Sunday of Advent

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

Creator of the stars of night,
your people’s everlasting light,
Jesus, Redeemer save us all,
And hear your servants when they call.

Now, grieving that the ancient curse
should doom to death a universe,
You heal all men who need your grace
to save and heal a ruined race.

At whose great Name, majestic now,
all knees must bend, all hearts must bow;
all things in heaven and earth adore
And own the King for evermore.

To God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Spirit, Three in One,
praise, honor, might, and glory be
from age to age eternally.

𝄞 “Creator of the Stars at Night” by Erika Provinzano • Available for Purchase • Title: Creator of the Stars at Night; Text: Latin (9th C); Music: Erika Provinzano; Artist: Erika Provinzano; Used with permission from Erika Provinzano

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Rejoice, Jerusalem, let your joy overflow; your Savior will come to you, alleluia.

Psalm 113
Praise the name of the Lord
He has cast down the mighty and has lifted up the lowly (Luke 1:52).

Praise, O servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord!
May the name of the Lord be blessed
both now and for evermore!
From the rising of the sun to its setting
praised be the name of the Lord!

Ant. Rejoice, Jerusalem, let your joy overflow; your Savior will come to you, alleluia.

High above all nations is the Lord,
above the heavens his glory.
Who is like the Lord, our God,
who has risen on high to his throne
yet stoops from the heights to look down,
to look down upon heaven and earth?

Ant. Rejoice, Jerusalem, let your joy overflow; your Savior will come to you, alleluia.

From the dust he lifts up the lowly,
from his misery he raises the poor
to set him in the company of princes,
yes, with the princes of his people.
To the childless wife he gives a home
and gladdens her heart with children.

Ant. Rejoice, Jerusalem, let your joy overflow; your Savior will come to you, alleluia.

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, Word of God, surrendering the brightness of your glory you became man so that we may be raised from the dust to share your very being. May there be innumerable children of the Church to offer homage to your name from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Ant. Rejoice, Jerusalem, let your joy overflow; your Savior will come to you, alleluia.

Ant. 2 I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

Psalm 116
Thanksgiving in the Temple
Through Christ let us offer God a continual sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15).

I trusted, even when I said:
“I am sorely afflicted,”
and when I said in my alarm:
“No man can be trusted.”

Ant. I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

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.

Ant. I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

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.

Ant. I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

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.

Ant. I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

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.

Ant. I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

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

Father, precious in your sight is the death of the saints, but precious above all is the love with which Christ suffered to redeem us. In this life we will fill up in our own flesh what is still lacking in the sufferings of Christ; accept this as our sacrifice of praise, and we shall even now taste the joy of the new Jerusalem.

Ant. I, the Lord, am coming to save you; already I am near; soon I will free you from your sins.

Ant. 3 Lord, send the Lamb, the ruler of the earth, from the rock in the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.

Canticle — Philippians 2:6-11
Christ, God’s holy servant

Though he was in the form of God,
Jesus did not deem equality with God
something to be grasped at.

Ant. Lord, send the Lamb, the ruler of the earth, from the rock in the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.

Rather, he emptied himself
and took the form of a slave,
being born in the likeness of men.

Ant. Lord, send the Lamb, the ruler of the earth, from the rock in the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.

He was known to be of human estate
and it was thus that he humbled himself,
obediently accepting even death,
death on a cross!

Ant. Lord, send the Lamb, the ruler of the earth, from the rock in the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.

Because of this,
God highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
above every other name,

So that at Jesus’ name
every knee must bend
in the heavens, on the earth,
and under the earth,
and every tongue proclaim
to the glory of God the Father:
JESUS CHRIST IS LORD!

Ant. Lord, send the Lamb, the ruler of the earth, from the rock in the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.

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. Lord, send the Lamb, the ruler of the earth, from the rock in the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.

READING 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

May the God of peace make you perfect in holiness. May he preserve you whole and entire, spirit, soul, and body, irreproachable at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls us is trustworthy, therefore he will do it.
The audio for this hour uses a longer reading taken from the single volume Christian Prayer book, while this abbreviated text is from the 4 volume Liturgy of the Hours.

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

Lord, show us your mercy and love.
— Lord, show us your mercy and love.

And grant us your salvation,
— your mercy and love.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
— Lord, show us your mercy and love.

CANTICLE OF MARY

Ant. There was no god before me and after me there will be none; every knee shall bend in worship, and every tongue shall praise me.

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. There was no god before me and after me there will be none; every knee shall bend in worship, and every tongue shall praise me.

INTERCESSIONS

Jesus Christ is the joy and happiness of all who look forward to his coming. Let us call upon him and say:
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

In joy, we wait for your coming,
— come, Lord Jesus.
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

Before time began, you shared life with the Father,
— come now and save us.
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

You created the world and all who live in it,
— come to redeem the work of your hands.
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

You did not hesitate to become man, subject to death,
— come to free us from the power of death.
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

You came to give us life to the full,
— come and give us your unending life.
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

You desire all people to live in love in your kingdom,
— come and bring together those who long to see you face to face.
Come, Lord, and do not delay!

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 see how your people
faithfully await the feast of the Lord’s Nativity,
enable us, we pray,
to attain the joys of so great a salvation,
and to celebrate them always
with solemn worship and glad rejoicing.
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.