INVITATORY
The Invitatory is said when this is the first ‘hour’ of the day.
Lord, + open my lips.
— And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
The antiphon is repeated. In individual recitation, the antiphon may be said only at the beginning of the psalm; it need not be repeated after each strophe.
Psalm 95
A call to praise God
Encourage each other daily while it is still today (Hebrews 3:13).
Come, let us sing to the Lord *
and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us.
Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving *
and sing joyful songs to the Lord.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
The Lord is God, the mighty God, *
the great king over all the gods.
He holds in his hands the depths of the earth *
and the highest mountains as well.
He made the sea; it belongs to him, *
the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Come, then, let us bow down and worship, *
bending the knee before the Lord, our maker.
For he is our God and we are his people, *
the flock he shepherds.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Today, listen to the voice of the Lord: †
Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did
in the wilderness, *
when at Meriba and Massah
they challenged me and provoked me, *
Although they had seen all of my works.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Forty years I endured that generation. *
I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray
and they do not know my ways.”
So I swore in my anger, *
“They shall not enter into my rest.”
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
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 has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
If the Invitatory is not said, then the following is used:
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.
HYMN
The Magi, when they see the child,
draw forth their gifts from Eastern lands,
and falling down they worship him
with incense, myrrh and royal gold.
Receive and own, O holy Child,
clear tokens of your kingly pow’r,
for which the Father preordained
a threefold nature, type, and plan.
From Saba perfumed frankincense
and gold proclaim you God and King,
and fragrant dust of bitter myrrh
foretells the tomb where you will lie.
You stand alone, O Bethlehem,
more noble than the greatest towns,
for you brought forth in human flesh
the heav’nly leader sent to save.
His Father, by the testament
that prophets witnessed, sealed, and signed,
now bids him to assume his reign,
receiving his inheritance:
A kingdom that extends to all,
embracing earth and sea and sky,
from rising sun to evening star,
from nether world to heav’n above.
To you, Lord Jesus, glory be,
revealed to nations on this day,
with God the Father, ever blest,
and loving Spirit, ever one. Amen.
Tune: Tune: BRESLAU, 8 8 8 8
Music: first appeared in As Hymnodus Sacer, Leipzig 1625, adapted by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, 1809-1847
or Mode III, melody 53; Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983*
Text: Magi videntes parvulum, Prudentius, ca. 348-405, © 2023 ICEL
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 Lord, in your anger, do not punish me.
Psalm 38
A sinner in extreme danger prays earnestly to God
All his friends were standing at a distance (Luke 23:49).
I
O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger; *
do not punish me, Lord, in your rage.
Your arrows have sunk deep in me; *
your hand has come down upon me.
Through your anger all my body is sick: *
through my sin, there is no health in my limbs.
My guilt towers higher than my head; *
it is a weight too heavy to bear.
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. Lord, in your anger, do not punish me.
Ant. 2 Lord, you know all my longings.
II
My wounds are foul and festering, *
the result of my own folly.
I am bowed and brought to my knees. *
I go mourning all the day long.
All my frame burns with fever; *
all my body is sick.
Spent and utterly crushed, *
I cry aloud in anguish of heart.
O Lord, you know all my longing: *
my groans are not hidden from you.
My heart throbs, my strength is spent; *
the very light has gone from my eyes.
My friends avoid me like a leper; *
those closest to me stand afar off.
Those who plot against my life lay snares; †
those who seek my ruin speak of harm, *
planning treachery all the day long.
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. Lord, you know all my longings.
Ant. 3 I confess my guilt to you, Lord; do not abandon me, for you are my savior.
III
But I am like the deaf who cannot hear, *
like the dumb unable to speak.
I am like a man who hears nothing, *
in whose mouth is no defense.
I count on you, O Lord: *
it is you, Lord God, who will answer.
I pray: “Do not let them mock me, *
those who triumph if my foot should slip.”
For I am on the point of falling *
and my pain is always before me.
I confess that I am guilty *
and my sin fills me with dismay.
My wanton enemies are numberless *
and my lying foes are many.
They repay me evil for good *
and attack me for seeking what is right.
O Lord, do not forsake me! *
My God, do not stay afar off!
Make haste and come to my help, *
O Lord, my God, my savior!
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
Do not abandon us, Lord our God; you did not forget the broken body of your Christ, nor the mockery his love received. We, your children, are weighed down with sin; give us the fullness of your mercy.
Ant. I confess my guilt to you, Lord; do not abandon me, for you are my savior.
My eyes keep watch for your saving help.
— Awaiting the word that will justify me.
READINGS
FIRST READING
From the book of the prophet Isaiah
65:13-25
A new heaven and a new earth
Thus says the Lord God:
Lo, my servants shall eat,
but you shall go hungry;
My servants shall drink,
but you shall be thirsty;
My servants shall rejoice,
but you shall be put to shame;
My servants shall shout
for joy of heart,
But you shall cry out for grief of heart
and howl for anguish of spirit.
The Lord God shall slay you,
and the name you leave
Shall be used by my chosen ones for cursing;
but my servants shall be called by another name
By which he will be blessed
on whom a blessing is invoked in the land;
He who takes an oath in the land
shall swear by the God of truth;
For the hardships of the past shall be forgotten,
and hidden from my eyes.
Lo, I am about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
The things of the past shall not be remembered
or come to mind.
Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness
in what I create;
For I create Jerusalem to be a joy
and its people to be a delight;
I will rejoice in Jerusalem
and exult in my people.
No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there,
or the sound of crying;
No longer shall there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not round out his full lifetime;
He dies a mere youth who reaches but a hundred years,
and he who fails of a hundred shall be thought accursed.
They shall live in the houses they build,
and eat the fruit of the vineyards they plant;
They shall not build houses for others to live in,
or plant for others to eat.
As the years of a tree, so the years of my people;
and my chosen ones shall long enjoy the produce of their hands.
They shall not toil in vain,
nor beget children for sudden destruction;
For a race blessed by the Lord
are they and their offspring.
Before they call, I will answer;
while they are yet speaking, I will hearken to them.
The wolf and the lamb shall graze alike,
and the lion shall eat hay like the ox
[but the serpent’s food shall be dust].
None shall hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain, says the Lord.
RESPONSORY
Revelation 21:1, 3, 4
I saw the new heaven and the new earth;
and I heard a loud voice from heaven, saying:
— This is God’s dwelling place among men.
He shall live with them.
The Lord will wipe away every tear from their eyes;
death will no longer hold sway over them,
for all that used to be has passed away.
— This is God’s dwelling place among men.
He shall live with them.
SECOND READING
From a sermon by Saint Maximus of Turin, bishop
(Sermo 100, de sancta Epiphania 1, 3: CCL 23, 398-400)
The mystery of the Lord’s baptism
The Gospel tells us that the Lord went to the Jordan River to be baptized and that he wished to consecrate himself in the river by signs from heaven.
Reason demands that this feast of the Lord’s baptism, which I think could be called the feast of his birthday, should follow soon after the Lord’s birthday, during the same season, even though many years intervened between the two events.
At Christmas he was born a man; today he is reborn sacramentally. Then he was born from the Virgin; today he is born in mystery. When he was born a man, his mother Mary held him close to her heart; when he is born in mystery, God the Father embraces him with his voice when he says: This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased: listen to him. The mother caresses the tender baby on her lap; the Father serves his Son by his loving testimony. The mother holds the child for the Magi to adore; the Father reveals that his Son is to be worshiped by all the nations.
That is why the Lord Jesus went to the river for baptism, that is why he wanted his holy body to be washed with Jordan’s water.
Someone might ask, “Why would a holy man desire baptism?” Listen to the answer: Christ is baptized, not to be made holy by the water, but to make the water holy, and by his cleansing to purify the waters which he touched. For the consecration of Christ involves a more significant consecration of the water.
For when the Savior is washed all water for our baptism is made clean, purified at its source for the dispensing of baptismal grace to the people of future ages. Christ is the first to be baptized, then, so that Christians will follow after him with confidence.
I understand the mystery as this. The column of fire went before the sons of Israel through the Red Sea so they could follow on their brave journey; the column went first through the waters to prepare a path for those who followed. As the apostle Paul said, what was accomplished then was the mystery of baptism. Clearly it was baptism in a certain sense when the cloud was covering the people and bringing them through the water.
Bur Christ the Lord does all these things: in the column of fire he went through the sea before the sons of Israel; so now, in the column of his body, he goes through baptism before the Christian people. At the time of the Exodus the column provided light for the people who followed; now it gives light to the hearts of believers. Then it made a firm pathway through the waters; now it strengthens the footsteps of faith in the bath of baptism.
RESPONSORY
John 1:29; Isaiah 53:11
John saw Jesus coming to him and said:
Behold the Lamb of God;
— behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
He will justify many and he himself will bear our sins.
— Behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Let us pray.
All-powerful Father,
you have made known the birth of the Savior
by the light of a star.
May he continue to guide us with his light,
for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
— Amen.
Or:
Grant, we ask, almighty God,
that the Nativity of the Savior of the world,
made known by the guidance of a star,
may be revealed ever more fully to our minds.
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.
ACCLAMATION
Let us praise the Lord.
— And give him thanks.
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Psalm 24
The Lord’s entry into his temple
Christ opened heaven for us in the manhood he assumed (Saint Irenaeus).
The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, *
the world and all its peoples.
It is he who set it on the seas; *
on the waters he made it firm.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord? *
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The man with clean hands and pure heart, †
who desires not worthless things, *
who has not sworn so as to deceive his neighbor.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
He shall receive blessings from the Lord *
and reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who seek him, *
seek the face of the God of Jacob.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Who is the king of glory? †
The Lord, the mighty, the valiant, *
the Lord, the valiant in war.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Who is he, the king of glory? †
He, the Lord of armies, *
he is the king of glory.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
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 has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Psalm 67
People of all nations will worship the Lord
You must know that God is offering his salvation to all the world (Acts 28:28).
O God, be gracious and bless us *
and let your face shed its light upon us.
So will your ways be known upon earth *
and all nations learn your saving help.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Let the nations be glad and exult *
for you rule the world with justice.
With fairness you rule the peoples, *
you guide the nations on earth.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
The earth has yielded its fruit *
for God, our God, has blessed us.
May God still give us his blessing *
till the ends of the earth revere him.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
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 has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Psalm 100
The joyful song of those entering God’s temple
The Lord calls his ransomed people to sing songs of victory (Saint Athanasius).
Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth. †
Serve the Lord with gladness. *
Come before him, singing for joy.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Know that he, the Lord, is God. †
He made us, we belong to him, *
we are his people, the sheep of his flock.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Go within his gates, giving thanks. †
Enter his courts with songs of praise. *
Give thanks to him and bless his name.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Indeed, how good is the Lord, †
eternal his merciful love. *
He is faithful from age to age.
Ant. Christ has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
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 has appeared to us; come, let us adore him.
Songs of thankfulness and praise,
Jesus, Lord, to you we raise,
Manifested by the star
To the sages from afar;
Branch of royal David’s stem
In your birth at Bethlehem;
Anthems be to you addrest,
God in flesh made manifest.
Manifest at Jordan’s stream,
Prophet, Priest, and King supreme;
And at Cana, wedding guest,
In your Godhead manifest;
Manifest in power divine,
Changing water into wine;
Anthems be to you addrest,
God in flesh made manifest.
Manifest in making whole,
Palsied limbs and fainting soul;
Manifest in valiant fight,
Quelling all the devil’s might;
Manifest in gracious will,
Ever changing good from ill;
Anthems be to you addrest,
God in flesh made manifest.
Grant us grace to see you, Lord,
Mirrored in your holy word;
May we imitate you now,
And your grace on us endow;
That we like to you may be,
At your great epiphany;
And may praise you ever blest,
God in flesh made manifest. Amen.
Tune: Salzburg 77.77 D
Music: Jakob Hintze, 1622-1702
Text: Christopher Wordsworth, 1807-1885