(Make the sign of the cross with your right thumb on your lips, saying:)

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.

INVITATORY: The Lord is king, robed in splendor, alleluia.

Psalm 8
How great is your name, O Lord our God,
through all the earth!

Your majesty is praised above the heavens;
on the lips of children and of babes
you have found praise to foil your enemy,
to silence the foe and the rebel.

When I see the heavens, the work of your hands,
the moon and the stars which you arranged,
what are we that you should keep us in mind,
men and women that you care for us?

Yet you have made us little less than gods;
and crowned us with glory and honor,
gave us power over the works of your hands,
put all things under our feet.

All of them, sheep and cattle,
yes, even the savage beasts,
birds of the air, and fish that make their way through the waters.

How great is your name, O Lord our God,
through all the earth!

Glory be 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

The Lord is king, robed in splendor, alleluia.

ANT: All creation will be freed; all peoples will know the freedom of the children of God, alleluia.

Psalm 18a (17)
I love you, Lord, my strength,
my rock, my fortress, my savior.
God, you are the rock where I take refuge;
my shield, my mighty help, my stronghold.
Lord, you are worthy of all praise,
when I call I am saved from my foes.

The waves of death rose about me;
the torrents of destruction assailed me;
the snares of the grave entangled me;
the traps of death confronted me.

In my anguish I called to you, Lord;
I cried to you, God, for help.
From your temple you heard my voice;
my cry came to your ears.

Glory be 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: All creation will be freed; all peoples will know the freedom of the children of God, alleluia.

READING (Acts 13:30-33)
God raised Jesus from the dead, and for many days thereafter Jesus appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. These are his witnesses now before the people. We ourselves announce to you the good news that what God promised our fathers he has fulfilled for us, their children, in raising up Jesus, according to what is written in the second psalm, "You are my son, this day I have begotten you."

[Reflect on the Reading, applying it to your life today.]

ANT: I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end;
I am the root and offspring of David's race; I am the splendor of the morning star, alleluia.

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH (Luke 1:68-79)
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
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 who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers
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 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, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen

ANT: I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end;
I am the root and offspring of David's race; I am the splendor of the morning star, alleluia.

INTERCESSIONS
Jesus is the spotless Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, we ask him to forgive us our sins.

Grant that today we may put aside all friction and jealousy, and show greater concern for the needs of others.

May we live as Jesus wants us to live so that we may be a positive role model for those we meet today.

Send into our hearts the spirit of the Gospel, that we may walk in the way of your commandments, today and for ever.

(Pray for your special intentions.)

OUR FATHER
And now we pray to God the Father in the words that Jesus 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.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen

PRAYER
All-powerful God, help us to proclaim the power of the Lord's resurrection. May we who accept the sign of the love of Christ come to share the eternal life he reveals, for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen