May 15, Evening Prayer for Thursday of the 4th week of Easter

Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. II:
Ordinary: 1064
Proper of Seasons: 792
Psalter: Thursday, Week IV, 1582

Christian Prayer:
Ordinary: 694
Proper of Seasons: 513
Psalter: Thursday, Week IV, 973

Evening Prayer for Thursday in Week 4 of Easter

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.

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 The Lord is my stronghold and my savior, alleluia.

Psalm 144
Prayer for victory and peace
Christ learned the art of warfare when he overcame the world, as he said: “I have overcome the world” (Saint Hilary).

I

Blessed be the Lord, my rock,
who trains my arms for battle,
who prepares my hands for war.

He is my love, my fortress;
he is my stronghold, my savior
my shield, my place of refuge.
He brings peoples under my rule.

Lord, what is man that you care for him,
mortal man, that you keep him in mind;
man, who is merely a breath
whose life fades like a shadow?

Lower your heavens and come down;
touch the mountains; wreathe them in smoke.
Flash your lightnings; rout the foe,
shoot your arrows and put them to flight.

Reach down from heaven and save me;
draw me out from the mighty waters,
from the hands of alien foes
whose mouths are filled with lies,
whose hands are raised in perjury.

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. The Lord is my stronghold and my savior, alleluia.

Ant. 2 Thanks be to God who has given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ, alleluia.

II

To you, O God, will I sing a new song;
I will play on the ten-stringed Harp
to you who give kings their victory,
who set David your servant free.

You set him free from the evil sword;
you rescued him from alien foes
whose mouths were filled with lies,
whose hands were raised in perjury.

Let our sons then flourish like saplings
grown tall and strong from their youth,
our daughters graceful as columns,
adorned as though for a palace.

Let our barns be filled to overflowing
with crops of every kind;
our sheep increasing by thousands,
myriads of sheep in our fields,
our cattle heavy with young,

no ruined wall, no exile,
no sound of weeping in our streets.
Happy the people with such blessings;
happy the people whose God is the Lord.

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, God of strength, You gave your Son victory over death. Direct Your Church’s fight against evil in the world. Clothe us with the weapons of light and unite us under one banner of love, that we may receive our eternal reward after the battle of earthly life.

Ant. Thanks be to God who has given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ, alleluia.

Ant. 3 Christ yesterday and today: he is the same for ever, alleluia.

Canticle – Revelation 11:17-18; 12:10b-12a
The judgment of God

We praise you, the Lord God Almighty,
who is and who was.
You have assumed your great power,
you have begun your reign.

The nations have raged in anger,
but then came your day of wrath
and the moment to judge the dead:
The time to reward your servants the prophets
and the holy ones who revere you,
the great and the small alike.

Now have salvation and power come,
the reign of our God and the authority
of his Anointed One.
For the accuser of our brothers is cast out,
who night and day accused them before God.

They defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
love for life did not deter them from death.
So rejoice, you heavens,
and you that dwell therein!

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. Christ yesterday and today: he is the same for ever, alleluia.

READING 1 Peter 3:18, 22

The reason why Christ died for sins once for all, the just man for the sake of the unjust, was that he might lead you to God. He was put to death in so far as fleshly existence goes, but he was given life in the realm of the spirit. He went to heaven and is at God’s right hand with angelic rulers and powers subjected to him.

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

The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.
— The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.

When they saw the risen Lord,
— alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
— The disciples rejoiced, alleluia, alleluia.

CANTICLE OF MARY

Ant. I am the shepherd of my sheep. I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly, alleluia.

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. I am the shepherd of my sheep. I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly, alleluia.

INTERCESSIONS

The Father has established in Christ the foundation of all our hope and the principle of our resurrection. Let us rejoice in Christ, and cry out to him, saying:
King of glory, hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus, through your resurrection you entered the sanctuary of heaven to offer the blood of your own sacrifice
— lead us with you into the glory of the Father.
King of glory, hear our prayer.

Through your resurrection you confirmed the faith of your disciples and sent them out into the world
— make all bishops and priests faithful preachers of the Gospel.
King of glory, hear our prayer.

Through your resurrection you became our peace and reconciliation
— unite the baptized in perfect communion of faith and love.
King of glory, hear our prayer.

Through your resurrection the crippled man was healed at the gate of the temple
— look on the sick and reveal in them the power of your glory.
King of glory, hear our prayer.

You became the firstborn from the dead, the firstfruits of the resurrection
— grant to the dead who hoped in you a share in your glory.
King of glory, hear our prayer.

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 restores human nature
to yet greater dignity than at its beginnings,
look upon the amazing mystery of your loving kindness,
and in those you have chosen to make new
through the wonder of rebirth,
may you preserve the gifts of your enduring grace and blessing.
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.