SECOND, FOURTH, AND SIXTH WEEKS
MORNING PRAYER
READING
Isaiah 50:4b-8a
Morning by morning God wakens -
wakens my ear
to listen as those who are taught.
The Lord God has opened my ear,
and I was not rebellious,
I did not turn backward.
I gave my back to those who struck me,
and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;
I did not hide my face
from insult and spitting.
The Lord God helps me;
therefore I have not been disgraced;
therefore I have set my face like flint,
and I know that I shall not be
put to shame:
he who vindicates me is near.
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
God has opened our ears to the good news of salvation.
Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
who shepherds the people and sets them free.
God raises from David’s house
a child with power to save.
Through the holy prophets
God promised in ages past
to save us from enemy hands,
from the grip of all who hate us.
The Lord favored our ancestors
recalling the sacred covenant,
the pledge to our ancestor Abraham,
to free us from our enemies,
so we might worship without fear
and be holy and just all our days.
And you child, will be called
Prophet of the Most High,
for you will come to prepare
a pathway for the Lord
by teaching the people salvation
through forgiveness of their sin.
Out of God’s deepest mercy
a dawn will come from on high,
light for those shadowed by death,
a guide for our feet on the way to peace.
INTERCESSIONS
Our eyes have seen your salvation, O God.
May our lives show forth your goodness.
True light of the world:
~ Illuminate the darkness which keeps us
from seeing you.
Giver of life:
~ May we receive this day as a gift, and
return it to you through our works of mercy.
Healer of hearts:
~ Let your word motivate us to let go of any
resentments to which we cling.
Transforming Fire:
~ Purify and renew your church and its
leaders as we strive to build your kingdom.
Holy Christ:
~ Through the mystery of your cross may we
come to know you as the way, the truth and
the life.
THE LORD'S PRAYER
PRAYER
O Triune God, we know you in many ways,
each gift as our faith seeks understanding. May
we reflect carefully on the mysteries in which
you manifest yourself to us, thus coming to know
you in your infinite richness. May loving you
lead us to a deeper appreciation of our commu-
nities and our world. We ask this in faith,
knowing that you call us to love one another.
Amen.
BLESSING
Purify our hearts, O God, that we may be freed from sin. Amen.
Renew our hearts, O God, that they may burn with love for you. Amen.
Open our hearts, O God, that we may welcome all persons as our brothers and sisters. Amen.
EVENING PRAYER
READING: Ephesians 4:32-5:2
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving
one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved
children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and
gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and
sacrifice to God.
CANTICLE OF MARY
Our charity must be in our hearts and from our hearts, a charity such as Jesus Christ practiced while on earth.
I acclaim the greatness of the Lord,
I delight in God my savior,
who regarded my humble state.
Truly from this day on
all ages will call me blest.
For God, wonderful in power,
has used that strength for me.
Holy the name of the Lord!
Whose mercy embraces the faithful,
one generation to the next.
The mighty arm of God
scatters the proud in their conceit,
pulls tyrants from their thrones,
and raises up the humble.
The Lord fills the starving
and lets the rich go hungry.
God rescues lowly Israel,
recalling the promise of mercy,
the promise made to our ancestors,
to Abraham’s heirs for ever.
INTERCESSIONS
Merciful God, through Catherine McAuley you
called us to union and charity. For this grace
we pray:
~ Hear us, O God.
May all who are leaders listen with love to the
discernment of the community, we pray:
May all those who are considering a vocation
to religious life be strengthened in their desire,
we pray:
May all who suffer be sustained by the faith and
compassion of the community, we pray:
May all who seek holiness make the life of Jesus
the pattern of their lives, we pray:
May all who are dying find courage in the
promise of the communion of saints, we pray:
THE LORD'S PRAYER
PRAYER
Hold us steady in love and confidence, O God,
as we pass with Jesus through the mystery of
the cross. In the unity of his body we are marked
for resurrection. Through the grace of this
paschal mystery may we find the courage to let
ourselves be transformed. We ask this as a com-
munity called to merciful love. Amen.
BLESSING
Purify our hearts, O God, that we may be freed from sin. Amen.
Renew our hearts, O God, that they may burn with love for you. Amen.
Open our hearts, O God, that we may welcome all persons as our brothers and sisters. Amen.