Every day, we will post a few brief prayers inspired by the Liturgy of the Hours.
O Lord, open my lips. And my mouth shall declare your praise.
Psalm 63:2-9
O God, you are my God, for you I long; for you my soul is thirsting. My body pines for you like a dry, weary land without water. So I gaze on you in the sanctuary to see your strength and your glory. For your love is better than life, my lips will speak your praise. So I will bless you all my life, in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul shall be filled as with a banquet, my mouth shall praise you with joy. On my bed I remember you. On you I muse through the night for your have been my help; in the shadow of your wings I rejoice. My soul clings to you; your right hand holds me fast.
Reading: From a sermon by Saint Maximus of Turin, bishop
Christ is risen! He has burst open the gates of hell and let the dead go free; he has renewed the earth through the members of his Church now born again in baptism, and has made it blossom afresh with men brought back to life. His Holy Spirit has unlocked the doors of heaven, which stand wide open to receive those who rise up from the earth. Because of Christ’s resurrection the thief ascends to paradise, the bodies of the blessed enter the holy city, and the dead are restored to the company of the living. There is an upward movement in the whole of creation, each element raising itself to something higher. We see hell restoring its victims to the upper regions, earth sending its buried dead to heaven, and heaven presenting the new arrivals to the Lord. In one and the same movement, our Savior’s passion raises men from the depths, lifts them up from the earth, and sets them in the heights.
The Canticle of Mary
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.
Intercessions
Raise us up to new life in you. Save us, Savor of the World! Send into our hearts the fire of your Spirit. Save us, Savor of the World! Fill the dead with new life. Save us, Savor of the World!
Dear Jesus, May we bear fruit for you and be filled with your new life. We ask the Father for this in your name in union with the Holy Spirit. Amen.
