O Lord, open our lips:
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever. Amen.
PSALMODY
Antiphon: Christ has been raised from the dead:*
the first fruits of those who sleep. (1 Cor 15-20)
Opening – Easter Anthems
Christ our passover has been sacrificed for us;*
so let us celebrate the feast.
Not with the old leaven of corruption and wickedness,*
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Christ once raised from the dead dies no more;*
death has no more dominion over him.
In dying, he died to sin once for all;*
in living, he lives to God.
See yourselves therefore as dead to sin,*
and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Christ has been raised from the dead,*
the first fruits of those who sleep.
For as by man came death,*
by man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all die,*
even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
Glory be to the Father…
Psalm 9
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart;*
I will tell of all your marvellous works.
I will be glad and rejoice in you;*
I will sing to your name, O Most High.
When my enemies are driven back,*
they will stumble and perish at your presence.
For you have maintained my right and my cause;*
you sit upon your throne judging right.
You have rebuked the ungodly and destroyed the wicked;*
you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.
As for the enemy, they are finished, in perpetual ruin,*
their cities ploughed under, the memory of them perished;
But the Lord is enthroned for ever;*
he has set up his throne for judgement.
It is he who rules the world with righteousness;*
he judges the peoples with equity.
The Lord will be a refuge for the oppressed,*
a refuge in time of trouble.
Those who know your name will put their trust in you,*
for you never forsake those who seek you, O Lord.
Sing praise to the Lord who dwells in Zion;*
proclaim to the peoples the things he has done.
The avenger of blood will remember them;*
he will not forget the cry of the afflicted.
Have pity on me, O Lord;*
see the misery I suffer from those who hate me,
O you who lift me up from the gate of death;
So that I may tell of all your praises
and rejoice in your salvation*
in the gates of the city of Zion.
The ungodly have fallen into the pit they dug,*
and in the snare they set is their own foot caught.
The Lord is known by his acts of justice;*
the wicked are trapped in the works of their own hands.
The wicked shall be given over to the grave,*
and also all the peoples that forget God.
For the needy shall not always be forgotten,*
and the hope of the poor shall not perish for ever.
Rise up, O Lord, let not the ungodly have the upper hand;*
let them be judged before you.
Put fear upon them, O Lord;*
let the ungodly know they are but mortal.
Glory be to the Father . . .
Conclusion (from Wisdom 10)
Wisdom freed a holy people and a blameless race,*
from a nation of oppressors.
She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord,*
and withstood fearsome rulers with wonders and signs.
To the saints she gave the reward of their labours,*
and led them by a marvellous road.
She was their shelter by day,*
and a blaze of stars by night.
She brought them across the Red Sea;*
she led them through mighty waters.
She swallowed their enemies in the waves,*
and spat them out from the depths of the sea.
Then, Lord, the righteous sang the glories of your name,*
and praised together your protecting hand.
For wisdom opened the mouths of the silent.*
and gave speech to the tongues of her children.
Glory be to the Father…
Antiphon: Christ has been raised from the dead: the first
fruits of those who sleep.
READINGS
Daniel 1:1-21
In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. The Lord let
King Jehoiakim of Judah fall into his power, as well as some of the vessels
of the house of God. These he brought to the land of Shinar, and placed the
vessels in the treasury of his gods.
Then the king commanded his palace master Ashpenaz to bring some of the
Israelites of the royal family and of the nobility, young men without
physical defect and handsome, versed in every branch of wisdom, endowed
with knowledge and insight, and competent to serve in the king’s palace;
they were to be taught the literature and language of the Chaldeans. The
king assigned them a daily portion of the royal rations of food and wine.
They were to be educated for three years, so that at the end of that time
they could be stationed in the king’s court. Among them were Daniel,
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, from the tribe of Judah. The palace master
gave them other names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called
Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego.
But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the royal rations
of food and wine; so he asked the palace master to allow him not to defile
himself. Now God allowed Daniel to receive favour and compassion from the
palace master. The palace master said to Daniel, ‘I am afraid of my lord
the king; he has appointed your food and your drink. If he should see you
in poorer condition than the other young men of your own age, you would
endanger my head with the king.’ Then Daniel asked the guard whom the
palace master had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah:
‘Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given vegetables to eat
and water to drink. You can then compare our appearance with the appearance
of the young men who eat the royal rations, and deal with your servants
according to what you observe.’ So he agreed to this proposal and tested
them for ten days. At the end of ten days it was observed that they
appeared better and fatter than all the young men who had been eating the
royal rations. So the guard continued to withdraw their royal rations and
the wine they were to drink, and gave them vegetables. To these four young
men God gave knowledge and skill in every aspect of literature and wisdom;
Daniel also had insight into all visions and dreams.
At the end of the time that the king had set for them to be brought in, the
palace master brought them into the presence of Nebuchadnezzar, and the
king spoke with them. And among them all, no one was found to compare with
Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; therefore they were stationed in
the king’s court. In every matter of wisdom and understanding concerning
which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all
the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom. And Daniel continued
there until the first year of King Cyrus.
Silence
1 John 3:19-4:6
And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our
hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than
our hearts, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn
us, we have boldness before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask,
because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.
And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son
Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who
obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we
know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us. Beloved,
do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are
from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this
you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ
has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess
Jesus is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which
you have heard that it is coming; and now it is already in the world.
Little children, you are from God, and have conquered them; for the one
who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from
the world; therefore what they say is from the world, and the world
listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us, and
whoever is not from God does not listen to us. From this we know the
spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
Silence
Response (Ps. 96.4)
V. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.
R. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.
V. He is more to be feared than all gods.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
V. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
R. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.
BENEDICTUS
Benedictus Antiphon: Peace be with you,* says the Lord; alleluia!
Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel,*
for he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,*
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old*
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our forebears,*
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:*
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,*
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
You my child shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of
death,*
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory be to the Father.
Benedictus Antiphon: Peace be with you,* says the Lord; alleluia!
PRAYERS
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Collects
Almighty and eternal God, the strength of those who believe and the hope of those who doubt, may we, who have not seen, have faith and receive the fullness of Christ’s blessing, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
God most holy, we give you thanks for bringing us out of the shadow of
night into the light of morning; and we ask you for the joy of spending
this day in your service, so that when evening comes, we may once more give
you thanks, through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!
