November 25, 2021 – lauds

monk INVITATORY
The Invitatory is said when this is the first ‘hour’ of the day.
Psalm 95
Come, let us sing to the LORD; *
let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving *
and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the LORD is a great God, *
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth, *
and the heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it, *
and his hands have molded the dry land.
Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, *
and kneel before the LORD our Maker.
For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. *
Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!
Harden not your hearts,
as your forebears did in the wilderness, *
at Meribah, and on that day at Massah,
when they tempted me.
They put me to the test, *
though they had seen my works.
Forty years long I detested that generation and said, *
“This people are wayward in their hearts;
they do not know my ways.”
So I swore in my wrath, *
“They shall not enter into my rest.”
INTRODUCTION
If the Invitatory is not said, then the following is used:
HYMN – We Bless You Father
PSALMODY
Ant. 1. Stir up your mighty power, Lord; come to our aid.
Psalm 80
Hear, O Shepherd of Israel, leading Joseph like a flock; *
shine forth, you that are enthroned upon the cherubim.
In the presence of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, *
stir up your strength and come to help us.
Restore us, O God of hosts; *
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
O LORD God of hosts, *
how long will you be angered
despite the prayers of your people?
You have fed them with the bread of tears; *
you have given them bowls of tears to drink.
You have made us the derision of our neighbors, *
and our enemies laugh us to scorn.
Restore us, O God of hosts; *
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
You have brought a vine out of Egypt; *
you cast out the nations and planted it.
You prepared the ground for it; *
it took root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered by its shadow *
and the towering cedar trees by its boughs.
You stretched out its tendrils to the Sea *
and its branches to the River.
Why have you broken down its wall, *
so that all who pass by pluck off its grapes?
The wild boar of the forest has ravaged it, *
and the beasts of the field have grazed upon it.
Turn now, O God of hosts, look down from heaven;
behold and tend this vine; *
preserve what your right hand has planted.
They burn it with fire like rubbish; *
at the rebuke of your countenance let them perish.
Let your hand be upon the man of your right hand, *
the son of man you have made so strong for yourself.
And so will we never turn away from you; *
give us life, that we may call upon your Name.
Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; *
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.
Psalm Prayer
Lord God, eternal shepherd, you so tend the vineyard you planted that now it extends its branches even to the farthest coast. Look down on your Church and come to us. Help us remain in your Son as branches on the vine, that, planted firmly in your love, we may testify before the whole world to your great power working everywhere.
Ant. 1. Stir up your mighty power, Lord; come to our aid.
Ant. 2. The Lord has worked marvels for us; make it known to the ends of the world.
Canticle: Isaiah 12:1-6
O Lord, I will praise thee though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away and thou comfortedst me.
Behold God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid.
For the Lord is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.
Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation: and in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord call upon his Name,
Declare his doings among the people, make mention that his Name is exalted.
Sing unto the Lord for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.
Cry out and shout thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.
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. 2 The Lord has worked marvels for us; make it known to the ends of the world.
Ant. 3. Ring out your joy to God our strength.
Psalm 81
Sing with joy to God our strength *
and raise a loud shout to the God of Jacob.
Raise a song and sound the timbrel, *
the merry harp, and the lyre.
Blow the ram’s-horn at the new moon, *
and at the full moon, the day of our feast.
For this is a statute for Israel, *
a law of the God of Jacob.
He laid it as a solemn charge upon Joseph, *
when he came out of the land of Egypt.
I heard an unfamiliar voice saying *
“I eased his shoulder from the burden;
his hands were set free from bearing the load.”
You called on me in trouble, and I saved you; *
I answered you from the secret place of thunder
and tested you at the waters of Meribah.
Hear, O my people, and I will admonish you: *
O Israel, if you would but listen to me!
There shall be no strange god among you; *
you shall not worship a foreign god.
I am the LORD your God,
who brought you out of the land of Egypt and said, *
“Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.”
And yet my people did not hear my voice, *
and Israel would not obey me.
So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their hearts, *
to follow their own devices.
Oh, that my people would listen to me! *
that Israel would walk in my ways!
I should soon subdue their enemies *
and turn my hand against their foes.
Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, *
and their punishment would last for ever.
But Israel would I feed with the finest wheat *
and satisfy him with honey from the rock.Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.Psalm Prayer
Lord God, open our mouths to proclaim your glory. Help us to leave sin behind and to rejoice in professing your name.
Ant. 3. Ring out your joy to God our strength.
READING
Romans 14:17-19
The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating or drinking, but of justice, peace, and the joy that is given by the Holy Spirit. Whoever serves Christ in this way pleases God and wins the esteem of men. Let us, then, make it our aim to work for peace and to strengthen one another.
Ant. 4. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to him, alleluia.
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
Luke 1:68-79
The Messiah and his forerunner.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people;
And hath raised up a mighty salvation for us, in the house of his servant David;
As he spake by the mouth of his holy Prophets, which have been since the world began;
That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us.
To perform the mercy promised to our forefathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
To perform the oath which he swore to our forefather Abraham, that he would give us;
That we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear;
In holiness and righteousness before him, in all the days of our life.
And thou, child shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his people for the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us;
To give light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.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. 4. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to him, alleluia.
INTERCESSIONS
Let us sing a fitting song of praise to our Savior, who destroyed the power of death and made clear the path to life and immortality through the Gospel; and let us petition him in humble supplication:
Strengthen your Church in faith and love.

You gave wonderful guidance to your Church through her holy and distinguished teachers,
– may Christians rejoice always in the splendid legacy these teachers have given to your Church.
Strengthen your Church in faith and love.

When their holy pastors prayed to you, as Moses had done, you forgave the sins of the people,
– through the intercession of these holy pastors continue to sanctify and purify your Church.
Strengthen your Church in faith and love.

You anointed your holy ones in the midst of their brothers and called the Holy Spirit down upon them,
– fill all the leaders of your people with the Holy Spirit.
Strengthen your Church in faith and love.

You, Lord, are the sole possession of your holy pastors,
– grant that those you have redeemed with your blood may remain always in you.
Strengthen your Church in faith and love.
THE LORD’S PRAYER
(And now let us pray as the Lord told us:)
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
Lord our God, help us to prepare for the coming of Christ your Son.
May he find us waiting, eager in joyful prayer.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.Amen
DISMISSAL
May the Lord + bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.
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