In those places where this Memorial is observed as a Solemnity or Feast, please use the texts found in the Common of One Martyr or the Common of Virgins with the proper texts below.
INTRODUCTION
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
Child of the Virgin, Maker of your Mother,
Jesus, once carried in the womb of Mary,
we sing of triumph on this Virgin’s feast day:
heed our petitions.
Faithful and blessed in her twofold portion,
striving to master her own human weakness,
your holy Virgin mastered worldly cruelty
in her own body.
So, fearing nothing, neither shameful dying,
nor death’s companions, savage pain and torment,
she shed her lifeblood, meriting to enter
heaven’s high portal.
Lord, God all-loving, by this Virgin’s merits,
pardon our failings, tear from us our vices,
that through all ages, hearts made pure and holy
echo your praises. Amen.
Tune: ISTE CONFESSOR (ROUEN/POITIERS) 11 11 11 5
Music: Poitiers Antiphoner , 1746
or Mode I, melody 5; Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983*
Text: Virginis Proles opifexque Matris, ca. 9th c,, © 2023 ICEL
PSALMODY
Ant. 1 He is my comfort and my refuge. In him I put my trust.
Psalm 144
Prayer for victory and peace
Christ learned the art of warfare when he overcame the world, as he said: “I have overcome the world” (Saint Hilary).
I
Blessed be the Lord, my rock †
who trains my arms for battle, *
who prepares my hands for war.
He is my love, my fortress; *
he is my stronghold, my savior,
my shield, my place of refuge. *
He brings peoples under my rule.
Lord, what is man that you care for him, *
mortal man, that you keep him in mind;
man, who is merely a breath, *
whose life fades like a shadow?
Lower your heavens and come down; *
touch the mountains; wreathe them in smoke.
Flash your lightnings; rout the foe, *
shoot your arrows and put them to flight.
Reach down from heaven and save me; *
draw me out from the mighty waters,
from the hands of alien foes †
whose mouths are filled with lies, *
whose hands are raised in perjury.
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. He is my comfort and my refuge. In him I put my trust.
Ant. 2 Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.
II
To you, O God, will I sing a new song; *
I will play on the ten-stringed harp
to you who give kings their victory, *
who set David your servant free.
You set him free from the evil sword; *
you rescued him from alien foes
whose mouths were filled with lies, *
whose hands were raised in perjury.
Let our sons then flourish like saplings *
grown tall and strong from their youth:
our daughters graceful as columns, *
adorned as though for a palace.
Let our barns be filled to overflowing *
with crops of every kind;
our sheep increasing by thousands, †
myriads of sheep in our fields, *
our cattle heavy with young,
no ruined wall, no exile, *
no sound of weeping in our streets.
Happy the people with such blessings; *
happy the people whose God is the Lord.
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
Lord, God of strength, you gave your Son victory over death. Direct your Church’s fight against evil in the world. Clothe us with the weapons of light and unite us under the one banner of love, that we may receive our eternal reward after the battle of earthly life.
Ant. Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.
Ant. 3 Now the victorious reign of our God has begun.
Canticle: Revelation 11:17-18; 12:10b-12a
The judgment of God
We praise you, the Lord God Almighty, *
who is and who was.
You have assumed your great power, *
you have begun your reign.
The nations have raged in anger, *
but then came your day of wrath
and the moment to judge the dead: *
the time to reward your servants the prophets
and the holy ones who revere you, *
the great and the small alike.
Now have salvation and power come, †
The reign of our God and the authority *
of his Anointed One.
For the accuser of our brothers is cast out, *
who night and day accused them before God.
They defeated him by the blood of the Lamb †
and by the word of their testimony; *
love for life did not deter them from death.
So rejoice, you heavens, *
and you that dwell therein!
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. Now the victorious reign of our God has begun.
READING
[Martyrs] 1 Peter 4:13-14
Rejoice, beloved, in the measure that you share Christ’s sufferings. When his glory is revealed, you will rejoice exultantly. Happy are you when you are insulted for the sake of Christ, for then God’s Spirit in its glory has come to rest on you.
RESPONSORY
The Lord chose her, his loved one from the beginning.
— The Lord chose her, his loved one from the beginning.
He has taken her to live with him,
— his loved one from the beginning.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
— The Lord chose her, his loved one from the beginning.
Or:
READING
[Virgins] 1 Corinthians 7:32b, 34
The unmarried man is busy with the Lord’s affairs, concerned with pleasing the Lord. The virgin—indeed, any unmarried woman—is concerned with things of the Lord, in pursuit of holiness in body and spirit.
RESPONSORY
The virgins are led into the presence of the King, amid gladness and joy.
— The virgins are led into the presence of the King, amid gladness and joy.
They are brought into the King’s dwelling-place,
— amid gladness and joy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
— The virgins are led into the presence of the King, amid gladness and joy.
GOSPEL CANTICLE
Ant. Lord Jesus Christ, my beloved Master, it is you who have given me victory in the midst of torments. Call me, Lord, to undying happiness with you.
Canticle of Mary
Luke 1:46-55
The soul rejoices in the Lord
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.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.
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 Jesus Christ, my beloved Master, it is you who have given me victory in the midst of torments. Call me, Lord, to undying happiness with you.
INTERCESSIONS
[Martyrs]
This is the hour when the King of martyrs offered his life in the upper room and laid it down on the cross. Let us thank him and say:
We praise you, O Lord.
We praise you, O Lord, our Savior, inspiration and example for every martyr, for loving us to the end:
We praise you, O Lord.
For calling all repentant sinners to the rewards of life:
We praise you, O Lord.
For entrusting to your Church the blood of the new and everlasting covenant poured out for the remission of sin:
We praise you, O Lord.
For our perseverance in your grace today:
We praise you, O Lord.
For incorporating our dead brothers and sisters into your own death today:
We praise you, O Lord.
[Virgins]
Christ extolled those who practiced virginity for the sake of the kingdom. Let us praise him joyfully and pray to him:
Jesus, example of virgins, hear us.
Christ, you presented the Church to yourself as a chaste virgin to her spouse,
— keep her holy and inviolate.
Jesus, example of virgins, hear us.
Christ, the holy virgins went out to meet you with their lamps alight,
— keep the fidelity of your consecrated handmaids burning brightly.
Jesus, example of virgins, hear us.
Lord, your virgin Church has always kept its faith whole and untarnished,
— grant all Christians a whole and untarnished faith.
Jesus, example of virgins, hear us.
You have given your people joy in celebrating the feast of your holy virgin Agatha,
— give us constant joy through her intercesion.
Jesus, example of virgins, hear us.
You have admitted the holy virgins to your marriage banquet,
— in your mercy lead the dead to your heavenly feast.
Jesus, example of virgins, hear us.
THE LORD’S PRAYER
(Gathering our prayer and praises into one, let us offer the prayer Christ himself taught 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,
let your forgiveness be won for us
by the pleading of Saint Agatha,
who found favor with you by her chastity
and by her courage in suffering death for the gospel.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
— Amen.
Or:
May the Virgin Martyr Saint Agatha
implore your compassion for us, O Lord, we pray,
for she found favor with you
by the courage of her martyrdom
and the merit of her chastity.
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.
DISMISSAL
If a priest or deacon presides, he dismisses the people:
The Lord be with you.
— And with your spirit.
May almighty God bless you,
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
— Amen.
Another form of the blessing may be used, as at Mass.
Then he adds:
Go in peace.
— Thanks be to God.
In the absence of a priest or deacon and in individual recitation, Evening Prayer concludes:
May the Lord + bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
— Amen.
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