Beatæ Mariæ Virginis a RosarioOur Lady of the Rosary

℣ O Lord, ✠ open my lips.

℟ And my mouth shall proclaim your praise.

℣ O God, ✠ come to my assistance.

℟ Lord, make haste to help me.

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.

Alleluia.

Ant. Let us celebrate the Solemnity of the Rosary of the Virgin Mary: * Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

Ant. Let us celebrate the Solemnity of the Rosary of the Virgin Mary: * Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

Come, let us exult in the Lord. Let us shout joyfully to God, our Savior. Let us anticipate his presence with confession, and let us sing joyfully to him with psalms.

Ant. Let us celebrate the Solemnity of the Rosary of the Virgin Mary: * Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

For the Lord is a great God and a great King over all gods. For the Lord will not drive away his people. For in his hand are all the limits of the earth, and he beholds the heights of the mountains.

Ant. Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

For the sea is his, and he made it, and his hands established the dry land. (kneel) Come, let us adore and fall prostrate before God, and let us weep before the Lord who made us. For he is the Lord our God, and we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

Ant. Let us celebrate the Solemnity of the Rosary of the Virgin Mary: * Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts: as in the provocation, according to the day of temptation in the wilderness, where your fathers tempted me; they tested and saw my works.

Ant. Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

For forty years, I was near to that generation, and I said: These have always strayed in heart. But they have not known my ways. To them I swore in my wrath: They shall not enter into my rest.

Ant. Let us celebrate the Solemnity of the Rosary of the Virgin Mary: * Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

℣ 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.

Ant. Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

Ant. Let us celebrate the Solemnity of the Rosary of the Virgin Mary: * Let us adore Christ her Son, the Lord.

The messenger from God's high throne

His secret counsel making known

Hails Mary, child of David's race,

God's Virgin-Mother, full of grace.

The Mother-Maid with joyous feet

Her friend, John's mother, goes to greet;

He, stirring in the enclosing womb,

Declares that Christ his Lord has come.

The Word, who ere the worlds began,

From God the Father's thought forth ran,

Of Mary, Virgin undefiled,

For us is born a mortal child.

Christ to the temple courts they bring;

The King's own law subjects the King;

The world's Redeemer for a price

Is there redeemed, our sacrifice.

The joyful Mother finds once more

The Son she mourned as lost before;

While doctors by his speech were shown

The mysteries they had never known.

The Mount of Olives witnesseth

The awful agony of God:

His soul is sorrowful to death,

His sweat of blood bedews the sod.

And now the traitor's work is done:

The clamorous crowds around him surge;

Bound to pillar, God the Son

Quivers beneath the blood-red scourge.

Lo! clad in purple soiled and worn,

Meekly the Saviour waiteth now

While wretches plait the cruel thorn

To crown with shame his royal brow.

Sweating and sighing, faint with loss

Of what hath flowed from life's red fount,

He bears the exceeding heavy cross

Up to the verge of Calvary's mount.

Nailed to the wood of ancient curse,

Between two thieves the sinless one

Still praying for his murderers,

Breathes forth his soul, and all is done!

Jesus, to you be glory,

Who were born of the Virgin,

With the Father and the loving Spirit,

For ever and ever.

Amen.

Nocturn I

Ant. The Angel Gabriel * announced to Mary: and she conceived by the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 8 [1]

8:2a O Lord, our Lord, * how admirable is your name throughout all the earth!

8:2b For your magnificence is elevated * above the heavens.

8:3 Out of the mouths of babes and infants, you have perfected praise, because of your enemies, * so that you may destroy the enemy and the revenger.

8:4 For I will behold your heavens, the works of your fingers: * the moon and the stars, which you have founded.

8:5 What is man, that you are mindful of him, * or the son of man, that you visit him?

8:6 You reduced him to a little less than the Angels; † you have crowned him with glory and honor, * (7) and you have set him over the works of your hands.

8:8 You have subjected all things under his feet, * all sheep and oxen, and in addition: the beasts of the field,

8:9 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, * which pass through the paths of the sea.

8:10 O Lord, our Lord, * how admirable is your name throughout all the earth!

℣ 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.

Ant. The Angel Gabriel announced to Mary: and she conceived by the Holy Spirit.

Ant. Mary entered * into the house of Zechariah, and greeted Elizabeth.

Psalm 18 [2]

18:2 The heavens describe the glory of God, * and the firmament announces the work of his hands.

18:3 Day proclaims the word to day, * and night to night imparts knowledge.

18:4 There are no speeches or conversations, * where their voices are not being heard.

18:5 Their sound has gone forth through all the earth, * and their words to the ends of the world.

18:6a He has placed his tabernacle in the sun, * and he is like a bridegroom coming out of his bedroom.

18:6b He has exulted like a giant running along the way; * (7a) his departure is from the summit of heaven.

18:7b And his course reaches all the way to its summit. * Neither is there anyone who can hide himself from his heat.

18:8 The law of the Lord is immaculate, converting souls. * The testimony of the Lord is faithful, providing wisdom to little ones.

18:9 The justice of the Lord is right, rejoicing hearts. * The precepts of the Lord are brilliant, enlightening the eyes.

18:10 The fear of the Lord is holy, enduring for all generations. * The judgments of the Lord are true, justified in themselves:

18:11 desirable beyond gold and many precious stones, * and sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.

18:12 For, indeed, your servant keeps them, * and in keeping them, there are many rewards.

18:13 Who can understand transgression? † From my hidden faults, cleanse me, * (14a) and from those of others, spare your servant.

18:14b If they will have no dominion over me, then I will be immaculate, * and I will be cleansed from the greatest transgression.

18:15a And the words of my mouth will be so as to please, * along with the meditation of my heart, in your sight, forever,

18:15b O Lord, my helper * and my redeemer.

℣ 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.

Ant. Mary entered into the house of Zechariah, and greeted Elizabeth.

Ant. She brought forth her firstborn Son * and laid him in a manger.

Psalm 23 [3]

23:1 The earth and all its fullness belong to the Lord: * the whole world and all that dwells in it.

23:2 For he has founded it upon the seas, * and he has prepared it upon the rivers.

23:3 Who will ascend to the mountain of the Lord? * And who will stand in his holy place?

23:4 The innocent of hands and the clean of heart, * who has not received his soul in vain, nor sworn deceitfully to his neighbor.

23:5 He will receive a blessing from the Lord, * and mercy from God, his Savior.

23:6 This is the generation that seeks him, * that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.

23:7 Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. * And the King of Glory shall enter.

23:8 Who is this King of Glory? * The Lord who is strong and powerful; the Lord powerful in battle.

23:9 Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. * And the King of Glory shall enter.

23:10 Who is this King of Glory? * The Lord of hosts. He himself is the King of Glory.

℣ 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.

Ant. She brought forth her firstborn Son and laid him in a manger.

℣ Holy Mother of God, ever-Virgin Mary.

℟ Intercede for us to the Lord our God.

The Our Father is said silently as far as And lead us not into temptation:

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 also forgive those who trespass against us:

℣ And lead us not into temptation:

℟ But deliver us from evil.

Absolution. Hear the prayers of your servants, Lord Jesus Christ, and have mercy on us: You who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever.

℟ Amen.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May the eternal Father bless us with his everlasting blessing.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 1

From the Book of Sirach

Sirach 24:11-16

11 In all things I have sought rest, and I will dwell in the inheritance of the Lord.

12 Then the Creator of all things instructed and spoke with me. And the One who created me rested in my tabernacle.

13 And he said to me: 'Let your dwelling place be with Jacob, and let your inheritance be in Israel, and take root among my elect.'

14 From the beginning, and before the world, I was created. And even unto the future world, I will not cease to exist. For I have ministered before him in the holy habitation.

15 And in this way, I was established in Zion. And likewise, in the holy city, I found rest. And my authority was in Jerusalem.

16 And I took root among an honorable people, within the portion of my God, within his inheritance. And so my abode is in the full assembly of the saints.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ Take up the pleasant psaltery on the solemn feast day:

* And rejoice in the Virgin, our helper.

℣ Sing to her a new song: proclaim her glory among the nations.

℟ And rejoice in the Virgin, our helper.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May the Only Begotten Son of God be pleased to bless and assist us.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 2

Sir 24:17-22

17 I was exalted like a cedar in Lebanon and like a cypress on Mount Zion.

18 I was exalted like a palm tree in Kadesh and like a rose bush in Jericho.

19 I was exalted like a beautiful olive tree in the plains, and like a sycamore tree beside the waters along a wide road.

20 I gave off an aromatic fragrance like cinnamon or balsam. I produced a sweet odor like the best myrrh.

21 And like storax, galbanum, onycha and stacte, and like uncut frankincense, I perfumed my dwelling place, and my fragrance was like unmixed balsam.

22 I have extended my branches like a terebinth tree, and my branches are of honor and grace.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ I saw a beautiful woman ascending above the streams of waters, whose fragrance was beyond all measure;

* And as on spring days, flowers of roses and lilies of the valleys surrounded her.

℣ The Queen stood at your right hand in gilded vesture, arrayed in varied beauty.

℟ And as on spring days, flowers of roses and lilies of the valleys surrounded her.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May the grace of the Holy Spirit enlighten our minds and hearts.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 3

Sir 24:24-31

24 I am the mother of the beauty of love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope.

25 All grace of the way and of the truth is in me; all hope of life and of virtue is in me.

26 Journey toward me, all you who desire me, and be filled by my harvest.

27 For my spirit is sweeter than honey, and my inheritance is better than honey and the honeycomb.

28 My memory is for the generations of all ages.

29 Whoever consumes me will hunger still. And whoever drinks me will thirst still.

30 Whoever listens to me will not be confounded. And whoever acts in me will not sin.

31 Whoever elucidates me will have eternal life.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ Who is she who has come forth like the sun, and beautiful as Jerusalem? The daughters of Zion saw her, and called her blessed,

* and the queens praised her.

℣ And as on spring days, flowers of roses and lilies of the valleys surrounded her.

℟ and the queens praised her.

℣ Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Spirit.

℟ and the queens praised her.

Nocturn II

Ant. When his parents * brought Jesus in, to present him to the Lord, Simeon received him into his arms, and blessed God.

Psalm 44 [4]

44:2a My heart has uttered a good word. * I speak of my works to the king.

44:2b My tongue is like the pen of a scribe * who writes quickly.

44:3 You are more beautiful in form than the sons of men. † Grace has been poured freely into your lips. * Because of this, God has blessed you in eternity.

44:4 Fasten your sword to your thigh, * O most powerful one.

44:5a With your splendor and your excellence * extended, proceed prosperously, and reign

44:5b for the sake of truth and meekness and justice, * and so will your right hand lead you wondrously.

44:6 Your arrows are sharp; the people will fall under you, * into the hearts of the enemies of the king.

44:7 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. * The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of true aim.

44:8 You have loved justice and hated iniquity. * Because of this, God, your God, has anointed you, before your co-heirs, with the oil of gladness.

44:9 Myrrh and balsam and cinnamon perfume your garments, from the houses of ivory. * From these, they have delighted you: (10a) the daughters of kings in your honor.

44:10b The queen stood at your right hand, in clothing of gold, * encircled with diversity.

44:11 Listen, daughter, and see, and incline your ear. * And forget your people and your father’s house.

44:12 And the king will desire your beauty. * For he is the Lord your God, and they will adore him.

44:13 And the daughters of Tyre * will entreat your countenance with gifts: all the rich men of the people.

44:14 All the glory of the daughter of its king is inside, * in golden fringes, (15a) clothed all around with diversities.

44:15b After her, virgins will be led to the king. * Her neighbors will be brought to you.

44:16 They will be brought with gladness and exultation. * They will be led into the temple of the king.

44:17 For your fathers, sons have been born to you. * You will establish them as leaders over all the earth.

44:18a They will remember your name always, * for generation after generation.

44:18b Because of this, people will confess to you in eternity, * even forever and ever.

℣ 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.

Ant. When his parents brought Jesus in, to present him to the Lord, Simeon received him into his arms, and blessed God.

Ant. Seeking Jesus, * his parents found him after three days in the midst of the teachers.

Psalm 45 [5]

45:2 Our God is our refuge and strength, * a helper in the tribulations that have greatly overwhelmed us.

45:3 Because of this, we will not be afraid when the earth will be turbulent * and the mountains will be transferred into the heart of the sea.

45:4 They thundered, and the waters were stirred up among them; * the mountains have been disturbed by his strength.

45:5 The rushing of the river rejoices the city of God. * The Most High has sanctified his tabernacle.

45:6 God is in its midst; it will not be shaken. * God will assist it in the early morning.

45:7 The peoples have been disturbed, and the kingdoms have been bowed down. * He uttered his voice: the earth has been moved.

45:8 The Lord of hosts is with us. * The God of Jacob is our supporter.

45:9 Draw near and behold the works of the Lord: what portents he has set upon the earth, * carrying away wars even to the end of the earth.

45:10 He will crush the bow and break the weapons, * and he will burn the shield with fire.

45:11 Be still, and see that I am God. * I will be exalted among the peoples, and I will be exalted upon the earth.

45:12 The Lord of hosts is with us. * The God of Jacob is our supporter.

℣ 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.

Ant. Seeking Jesus, his parents found him after three days in the midst of the teachers.

Ant. He began to be sorrowful, * and his sweat in the garden became like drops of blood.

Psalm 86 [6]

86:1 Its foundations are in the holy mountains: * the Lord loves the gates of Zion above all the tabernacles of Jacob.

86:3 Glorious things are being said of you, * O City of God.

86:4 I will be mindful of Rahab and of Babylon * knowing me.

86:4 Behold, the foreigners, and Tyre, and the people of the Ethiopians: * these have been there.

86:5 Will not Zion say that this man and that man were born in her? * And the Most High himself has founded her.

86:6 The Lord will explain, in the writings of peoples and of leaders, * about those who have been in her.

86:7 The dwelling of all who rejoice * is in you.

℣ 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.

Ant. He began to be sorrowful, and his sweat in the garden became like drops of blood.

℣ After giving birth, O Virgin, you remained inviolate.

℟ Mother of God, intercede for us.

The Our Father is said silently as far as And lead us not into temptation:

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 also forgive those who trespass against us:

℣ And lead us not into temptation:

℟ But deliver us from evil.

Absolution. May his loving kindness and mercy assist us, he who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever.

℟ Amen.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May God the almighty Father be gracious and merciful to us.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 4

When the Albigensian heresy was raging impiously through the region of Toulouse and striking its roots ever deeper from day to day, Saint Dominic, who had recently laid the foundations of the Order of Preachers, devoted himself wholly to uprooting it. That he might accomplish this more effectively, he implored with earnest prayers the assistance of the Blessed Virgin, whose dignity was being most shamefully assailed by those errors, and to whom it had been given to destroy all heresies throughout the whole world. When he had been advised by her (as has been handed down to memory) to preach the Rosary to the people as a singular defense against heresies and vices, it is wonderful with what fervor of mind and how happy a success he carried out the task enjoined upon him. Now, the Rosary is a certain fixed form of prayer in which we distinguish fifteen decades of angelic salutations, with the Lord's Prayer interposed, and with each decade we devoutly recollect in meditation a corresponding mystery of our redemption. From that time, therefore, this pious manner of prayer began to be proclaimed and increased wonderfully by Saint Dominic. That he was its founder and originator, the Supreme Pontiffs have repeatedly affirmed in apostolic letters.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ You are the glory of Jerusalem, you are the joy of Israel, you are the honor of our people, you have acted valiantly:

* For you alone have destroyed all heresies.

℣ You are fair and beautiful, terrible as an army set in battle array.

℟ For you alone have destroyed all heresies.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May Christ grant us the joys of eternal life.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 5

Moreover, countless fruits flowed from this most salutary institution into the Christian commonwealth. Among these, that victory is rightly counted which the most holy Pontiff Pius the Fifth and the Christian princes inflamed by him won at the Echinades Islands over the most powerful tyrant of the Turks. For since that victory was won on that very same day on which the confraternities of the Most Holy Rosary throughout the entire world were performing their customary supplications and offering their appointed prayers in the usual manner, it is by no means undeservedly attributed to those prayers. And since Gregory the Thirteenth had also testified to this, in order that perpetual thanks might be given everywhere to the Blessed Virgin under the name of the Rosary for so singular a benefit, he decreed that the Office be celebrated in perpetuity with the greater double rite in all churches where there was an altar of the Rosary; and other Pontiffs granted almost innumerable indulgences to those who recite the Rosary and to the confraternities of the same Rosary.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ Your right hand is magnified in strength, your right hand has shattered the enemies:

* They sank in the mighty waters, and the sea covered them.

℣ The Lord blessed you by his power, because through you he reduced our enemies to nothing.

℟ They sank in the mighty waters, and the sea covered them.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May God kindle the fire of his love in our hearts.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 6

But Clement the Eleventh, reflecting in his mind upon the notable victory likewise won in the year seventeen hundred and sixteen in the kingdom of Hungary by Charles the Sixth, elected Emperor of the Romans, over innumerable forces of the Turks, taking note that it had occurred on the day when the feast of the Dedication of Saint Mary of the Snows was being celebrated, and at almost the same time when the confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary, performing a public and solemn procession in the Eternal City with an enormous gathering of people and great devotion, was pouring forth fervent prayers to God for the defeat of the Turks and humbly imploring the powerful aid of the Virgin Mother of God in assistance of the Christians; — for this reason, he piously deemed that this victory, and also the liberation soon after of the island of Corfu from the siege of those same Turks, was to be attributed to the patronage of the same Blessed Virgin. Wherefore, in order that a perpetual memory and gratitude for this so remarkable a benefit might always endure, he extended the feast of the Most Holy Rosary, to be celebrated with the same rite, to the universal Church. All these things Benedict the Thirteenth commanded to be inserted in the Roman Breviary. But Leo the Thirteenth, in the most turbulent times of the Church and amid the fierce storm of long-pressing evils, stirred up all the faithful throughout the world, by repeated apostolic letters, with the greatest urgency toward the frequent recitation of the Marian Rosary, especially during the month of October, also having augmented the rite of the annual feast's solemnity, having added the invocation of the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary to the Litany of Loreto, and having granted to the whole Church a proper Office of the same solemnity. Let us therefore continually venerate the Most Holy Mother of God with this devotion most dear to her; so that she who so many times, prevailed upon by Rosary prayers, has granted Christ's faithful to rout and destroy earthly enemies, may likewise grant that they overcome those of hell as well.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet,

* And on her head a crown of twelve stars.

℣ An increase of graces shall be given to your head, and a glorious crown shall protect you.

℟ And on her head a crown of twelve stars.

℣ Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Spirit.

℟ And on her head a crown of twelve stars.

Nocturn III

Ant. Pilate took hold of Jesus * and scourged him.

Psalm 95 [7]

95:1 Sing to the Lord a new song. * Sing to the Lord, all the earth.

95:2 Sing to the Lord and bless his name. * Announce his salvation from day to day.

95:3 Announce his glory among the Gentiles, * his miracles among all peoples.

95:4 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised. * He is terrible, beyond all gods.

95:5 For all the gods of the Gentiles are demons, * but the Lord made the heavens.

95:6 Confession and beauty are in his sight. * Sanctity and magnificence are in his sanctuary.

95:7 Bring to the Lord, you families of the nations, bring to the Lord glory and honor. * Bring to the Lord glory for his name.

95:8 Lift up sacrifices, and enter into his courts. * Adore the Lord in his holy court.

95:9 Let the entire earth be shaken before his face. * Say among the Gentiles: The Lord has reigned.

95:10 For he has even corrected the whole world, which will not be shaken. * He will judge the peoples with fairness.

95:11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth exult; let the sea and all its fullness be moved. * The fields and all the things that are in them will be glad.

95:12 Then all the trees of the forest will rejoice before the face of the Lord: for he arrives. * For he arrives to judge the earth.

95:13 He will judge the whole world with fairness * and the peoples with his truth.

℣ 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.

Ant. Pilate took hold of Jesus and scourged him.

Ant. The soldiers plaiting a crown * of thorns placed it upon his head.

Psalm 96 [8]

96:1 The Lord has reigned, let the earth exult. * Let the many islands rejoice.

96:2 Clouds and mist are all around him. * Justice and judgment are the establishment of his throne.

96:3 A fire will precede him, * and it will enflame his enemies all around.

96:4 His lightnings have enlightened the whole world. * The earth saw, and it was shaken.

96:5 The mountains flowed like wax before the face of the Lord, * before the face of the Lord of all the earth.

96:6 The heavens announced his justice, * and all peoples saw his glory.

96:7 May all those who adore graven images be confounded, * along with those who glory in their false images.

96:7 All you his Angels: Adore him. * Zion heard, and was glad.

96:8 And the daughters of Judah exulted * because of your judgments, O Lord.

96:9 For you are the Most High Lord over all the earth. * You are greatly exalted above all gods.

96:10 You who love the Lord: hate evil. * The Lord watches over the souls of his holy ones. He will free them from the hand of the sinner.

96:11 The light has risen for the just, * and joy for the upright of heart.

96:12 Rejoice in the Lord, you just ones, * and confess to the remembrance of his holiness.

℣ 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.

Ant. The soldiers plaiting a crown of thorns placed it upon his head.

Ant. The dominion of the Cross * is upon his shoulder: God reigned from the wood.

Psalm 97 [9]

97:1 Sing to the Lord a new song, * for he has performed wonders.

97:1 His right hand has accomplished salvation for him, * with his holy arm.

97:2 The Lord has made known his salvation. * He has revealed his justice in the sight of the nations.

97:3 He has remembered his mercy * and his truth toward the house of Israel.

97:3 All the ends of the earth have seen * the salvation of our God.

97:4 Sing joyfully to God, all the earth. * Sing and exult, and sing psalms.

97:5 Sing psalms to the Lord with stringed instruments, with the harp and the sound of a psalm, * with hammered trumpets and the sound of the horn.

97:6 Make a joyful noise before the Lord our king. * Let the sea be moved and all its fullness, the whole world and all who dwell in it.

97:8 The rivers will clap their hands, the mountains will exult together, before the presence of the Lord. * For he comes to judge the earth.

97:9 He will judge the whole world with justice, * and the peoples with fairness.

℣ 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.

Ant. The dominion of the Cross is upon his shoulder: God reigned from the wood.

℣ You have become beautiful and sweet,

℟ In your delights, O holy Mother of God.

The Our Father is said silently as far as And lead us not into temptation:

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 also forgive those who trespass against us:

℣ And lead us not into temptation:

℟ But deliver us from evil.

Absolution. May the almighty and merciful Lord absolve us from the bonds of our sins.

℟ Amen.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May the evangelical reading be our salvation and protection.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 7

A Reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

Luc 1:26-38

At that time: The Angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a Virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the name of the Virgin was Mary. And so forth.

A Homily of Saint Bernard the Abbot

Sermon on Saint Mary

To commend his grace and to confound human wisdom, God was pleased to take flesh from a woman, yet a virgin, that he might render like to like, cure contrary by contrary, pluck out the pestilent thorn, and most mightily blot out the handwriting of sin. Eve was a thorn; Mary appeared as a rose. Eve a thorn, by wounding; Mary a rose, by soothing the hearts of all. Eve a thorn, piercing death into all; Mary a rose, restoring to all a saving lot. Mary was a rose, white through virginity, red through charity; white in flesh, red in mind; white by following virtue, red by trampling down vice; white by purifying affection, red by mortifying the flesh; white by loving God, red by compassion toward neighbor.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ I, like a vine, have brought forth a sweet fragrance,

* and my flowers are the fruit of honor and of virtue.

℣ I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope.

℟ and my flowers are the fruit of honor and of virtue.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May she whose feast we celebrate, the Virgin of virgins, intercede for us to the Lord.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 8

Sermon on the Aqueduct

The Word was made flesh, and now dwells in us. He dwells in our memory, he dwells in our thought, because he has descended even to our imagination. In what way, you ask? As he lay in the manger, as he reclined in the virginal lap, as he preached on the mountain, as he passed the night in prayer, as he hung on the Cross, as he was pale in death, free among the dead and reigning in hell, or again as he rose on the third day and showed the Apostles the places of the nails — the signs of victory — and finally, in their sight, ascended to the secrets of heaven. Which of these is not truly, devoutly, and holily contemplated?

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℟ Rise up, make haste, my love; for winter has now passed; the rain has decreased and gone away,

* The flowers have appeared in our land.

℣ The Lord will give his goodness, and our land will yield its fruit.

℟ The flowers have appeared in our land.

℣ Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Spirit.

℟ The flowers have appeared in our land.

℣ Grant a blessing, O Lord.

Benediction. May the King of Angels lead us to the company of the citizens on high.

℟ Amen.

Lesson 9

Whatever of these things I contemplate, I contemplate God; and through all things he is my God. This I said it was wisdom to meditate upon, and I judged it prudence to bring forth the memory of sweetness; for in these kernels the priestly rod abundantly brought forth, which Mary, drawing from on high, has poured out more abundantly to us. Truly from on high and beyond the Angels, she who received the Word from the very heart of the Father.

℣ But you, O Lord, have mercy on us.

℟ Thanks be to God.

Te Deum

O God, we praise you; * O Lord, we acclaim you.

Eternal Father, * all the earth reveres you.

To you all the Angels, * the heavens and all the Powers of heaven:

To you the Cherubim and Seraphim * cry out in endless praise:

(A bow is made) Holy, Holy, Holy * Lord God of hosts;

Heaven and earth are filled * with the majesty of your glory.

The glorious choir of Apostles * sings to you,

the noble company of Prophets * praises you,

the white-robed army of Martyrs * glorifies you.

Holy Church throughout the earth * proclaims you,

the Father * of boundless majesty;

your true and only Son, * worthy of adoration;

and the Holy Spirit, * the Paraclete.

You, O Christ, * are the King of glory.

You are * the Father's everlasting Son.

(A bow is made) When you resolved to save the human race, * you did not spurn the Virgin's womb.

You overcame the sting of death * and opened the Kingdom of Heaven to those who put their faith in you.

You are seated at the right hand of God * in the glory of the Father.

We believe you are the Judge * who is to come.

(The following verse is said kneeling) And so we beg you, help your servants, * redeemed by your most precious blood.

Number them * among your Saints in eternal glory.

Save your people, Lord, * and bless your inheritance.

Shepherd them * and raise them to eternal life.

Day by day * we bless you,

(A bow is made, according to custom) and we praise your name * for endless ages evermore.

Be gracious, Lord, on this day, * and keep us from all sin.

Have mercy on us, O Lord, * have mercy.

May your mercy be upon us, Lord, * as we place our trust in you.

In you, O Lord, I rest my hope: * let me never be put to shame.

The rest is omitted unless Lauds is said separately.

℣ O Lord, hear my prayer.

℟ And let my cry come before you.

Let us pray.

O God, whose Only Begotten Son by his life, death, and Resurrection has won for us the rewards of eternal salvation: grant, we pray, that, meditating upon these mysteries by the most holy Rosary of the blessed Virgin Mary, we may both imitate what they contain and attain what they promise.

Through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.

℟ Amen.

℣ O Lord, hear my prayer.

℟ And let my cry come before you.

℣ Let us bless the Lord.

℟ Thanks be to God.

℣ May the souls of the faithful, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

℟ Amen.