Christi animam heart of mine, that thou custodiat meam in vitam æternam. Amen. mayest dwell in it, and do with me what thou wilt. Then the priest takes the Chalice, in thanksgiving, and says: Quid retribuam Domino pro omnibus quæ retribuit mihi? Calicem salutaris accipiam, et nomen Domini invocabo. Laudans invocabo Dominum, et ab inimicis meis salvus ero. What return shall I make to the Lord for all he hath given to me? I will take the Chalice of salvation, and will call upon the name of the Lord. Praising, I will call upon the Lord, and I shall be saved from mine enemies. But if you are to make a sacramental Communion, you should at this moment of the priest's receiving the precious Blood, again adore the God who is coming to you, and keep to your prayer: Come, Lord Jesus, come! If you are going to communicate only spiritually, again adore your divine Master, and say to him: Sanguis Domini nostri Jesu Christi custodiat animam meam in vitam æterAmen. nam. I unite myself to thee, my beloved Jesus! do thou unite thyself to me and never let us be separated. It is here that you must approach to the altar, if you are going to Communion. The Communion being finished, whilst the priest is purifying the Chalice the first time, say : Quod ore sumpsimus, Domine, pura mente capiamus; et de munere temporali fiat nobis remedium sempiter num. Thou hast visited me, O God, in these days of my pilgrimage: give me grace to treasure up the fruits of this visit, and to make it tell upon my eternity. Whilst the priest is purifying the Chalice the second time, say : Corpus tuum, Domine, Be thou for ever blessed, quod sumpsi, et Sanguis, O my Saviour, for having adquem potavi, adhæreat vi- mitted me to the sacred myssceribus meis: et præsta ut tery of thy Body and Blood. in me non remaneat scele- May my heart and senses rum macula, quem pura et preserve, by thy grace, the sancta refecerunt Sacramen- purity thou hast imparted to ta. Qui vivis et regnas in them, and I be thus rendered sæcula sæculorum. Amen. less unworthy of thy divine visit. The priest, having read the anthem, called the Communion, which is the first part of his thanksgiving for the favour just received from God, whereby he has renewed his divine presence among us,-turns to the people, greeting them with the usual salutation; and then recites the prayer, called the Postcommunion, which is the continuation of the thanksgiving. You will join him here also, and thank God for the uuspeakable gift he has just lavished upon you, of admitting you to the celebration and participation of mysteries so divine. As soon as these prayers have been recited, the priest again turns to the people; and, full of joy at the immense favour he and they have been receiving, he says: The priest makes a last prayer, before giving you his blessing; pray with him : Placeat tibi, sancta Trinitas, obsequium servitutis meæ, et præsta ut sacrificium, quod oculis tuæ Majestatis indignus obtuli, tibi sit acceptabile, mihique, et omnibus pro quibus illud obtuli, sit te miserante, propitiabile. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen. Eternal thanks be to thee, O adorable Trinity, for the mercy thou hast shown to me, in permitting me to assist at this divine Sacrifice. Pardon me the negligence and coldness wherewith I have received so great a favour; and deign to confirm the blessing, which thy minister is about to give me in thy name. The priest raises his hand, Benedicat vos omnipotens and blesses you thus; May the almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, bless you! B. Amen. He then concludes the Mass, by reading the first fourteen verses of the Gospel according to St. John, which tell us of the eternity of the Word, and of the mercy which led him to take upon himself our flesh, and to dwell among us. Pray that you may be of the number of those who received him, when he came unto his own people, and who, thereby, were made sons of God. . Dominus vobiscum. B. Et cum spiritu tuo. . The Lord be with you. B. And with thy spirit. THE LAST GOSPEL. Initium sancti Evangelii se- In principio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum. Hoc erat in principio apud Deum. Omnia per ipsum facta sunt; et sine ipso factum est nihil The beginning of the Holy In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him, quod factum est; in ipso vita erat, et vita erat lux hominum; et lux in tenebris lucet, et tenebræ eam non comprehenderunt. Fuit homo missus a Deo, cui nomen erat Joannes. Hic venit in testimonium, ut testimonium perhiberet de lumine, ut omnes crederent per illum. Non erat ille lux, sed ut testimonium perhiberet de lumine. Erat lux vera, quæ illuminat omnem hominem venientem in hunc mundum. In mundo erat, et mundus per ipsum factus est, et mundus eum non cognovit. In propria venit, et sui eum non receperunt. Quotquot autem receperunt eum, dedit eis potestatem filios Dei fieri, his qui credunt in nomine ejus: qui non ex sanguinibus, neque ex voluntate carnis, neque ex voluntate viri, sed ex Deo, nati sunt. ET VERBUM CARO FACTUM EST, et habitavit in nobis: et vidimus gloriam ejus, gloriam quasi Unigeniti a Patre, plenum gratiæ et veritatis. B. Deo gratias. and without him was made nothing that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men; and the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to give testimony of the light, that all men might believe through him. He was not the light, but was to give testimony of the light. That was the true light which enlighteneth every man that cometh into this world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them he gave power to be made the sons of God; to them that believe in his name, who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. AND THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH, and dwelt among us; and we saw his glory, as it were the glory of the OnlyBegotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. B. Thanks be to God. CHAPTER THE SECOND. ON THE OFFICE OF VESPERS, FOR SUNDAYS AND FEASTS, DURING THE TIME AFTER PENTECOST. THE Office of Vespers, or Even Song, consists firstly of the five following Psalms. For certain Feasts some of these Psalms are changed for others, which are more appropriate to the day; but those we now give are the ones for Sunday's Vespers. After the Pater and Ace have been said in secret, the Church commences this Hour with her favourite supplication: . Deus, in adjutorium . Incline unto my aid, O meum intende. B. Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina. Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in sæcula sæculorum. Amen. Alleluia. ANT. Dixit Dominus. God. B. O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Alleluia. ANT. The Lord said. The first Psalm is a prophecy of the future glory of the Messias. The Son of David shall sit on the right hand of the heavenly Father. He is King; he is Priest; he is Son of Man; and Son of God. His enemies will attack him, but he will crush them. He will be humbled; but this voluntary humiliation will lead him to highest glory. PENT. VI. D |