Invitatory
Lord, open Thou my lips.
And my mouth shall declare Thy praise.
O God, come to my assistance.
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.
Hymn
Now with the rising golden dawn,
Let us our hearts to God upraise;
That He, in all our work begun,
May guide our thoughts and guard our ways.
Let truth, not noise, possess the mind;
Let grace, not fear, command the day;
Let Christ, who leaves no soul behind,
Lead all our wandering steps His way.
Amen.
Psalmody
Psalm 77
I cried to the Lord with my voice; to God with my voice, and he gave ear to me.
In the day of my trouble I sought God; with my hands lifted up to him in the night, and I was not deceived.
I remembered God, and was delighted, and was exercised, and my spirit swooned away.
My eyes prevented the watches; I was troubled, and I spoke not.
I thought upon the days of old, and I had in my mind the eternal years.
And I meditated in the night with my own heart: and I was exercised and I swept my spirit.
Will God then cast off for ever? or will he never be more favourable again?
Or will he cut off his mercy for ever, from generation to generation?
And I said, Now have I begun: this is the change of the right hand of the most High.
I remembered the works of the Lord: for I will be mindful of thy wonders from the beginning.
Canticle
1 Samuel 2:1–10
My heart hath rejoiced in the Lord, and my horn is exalted in my God:
my mouth is enlarged over my enemies: because I have joyed in thy salvation.
There is none holy as the Lord is: for there is no other beside thee,
and there is none strong like our God.
The Lord maketh poor and maketh rich, he humbleth and he exalteth.
He raiseth up the needy from the dust, and lifteth up the poor from the dunghill.
The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth,
and he shall give empire to his king, and shall exalt the horn of his Christ.
Psalm 97
Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: because he hath done wonderful things.
His right hand hath wrought for him salvation, and his arm is holy.
The Lord hath made known his salvation:
he hath revealed his justice in the sight of the Gentiles.
He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Sing joyfully to God, all the earth; make melody, rejoice and sing.
Sing praise to the Lord on the harp, on the harp, and with the voice of a psalm.
Short Reading
John 16:12–15
I have yet many things to say to you: but you cannot bear them now.
But when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will teach you all truth. For he shall not speak of himself; but what things soever he shall hear, he shall speak; and the things that are to come, he shall shew you.
He shall glorify me; because he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it to you.
All things whatsoever the Father hath, are mine. Therefore I said, that he shall receive of mine, and shew it to you.
Responsory
The Spirit of truth will teach us all truth. Alleluia.
The Spirit of truth will teach us all truth. Alleluia.
He shall receive of Christ and show it to us.
Alleluia.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
The Spirit of truth will teach us all truth. Alleluia.
Benedictus
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; because he hath visited and wrought the redemption of his people.
And hath raised up an horn of salvation to us, in the house of David his servant.
As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets, who are from the beginning.
Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us.
To perform mercy to our fathers, and to remember his holy testament.
The oath, which he swore to Abraham our father, that he would grant to us.
That being delivered from the hand of our enemies, we may serve him without fear.
In holiness and justice before him, all our days.
And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways.
To give knowledge of salvation to his people, unto the remission of their sins.
Through the bowels of the mercy of our God, in which the Orient from on high hath visited us.
To enlighten them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death: to direct our feet into the way of peace.
Intercessions
Lord Jesus Christ, Thou didst promise the Spirit of truth to Thy Church:
Teach us what we cannot yet bear.
When we are impatient for answers, give us humility.
Teach us what we cannot yet bear.
When truth seems too bright for our frightened eyes, give us courage.
Teach us what we cannot yet bear.
When the world is loud with false certainties, give us the quiet strength of faith.
Teach us what we cannot yet bear.
When we seek wisdom for our families, our work, our homes, and our calling, send Thy Holy Ghost.
Teach us what we cannot yet bear.
Our Father
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 supersubstantial bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation.
But deliver us from evil. Amen.
Concluding Prayer
O God, who by the resurrection of Thy Son hast opened for us the road to eternal life, send into our hearts the Spirit of truth, that we may receive what Christ gives, believe what Christ teaches, and live as children of the Father. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Paradox of the Day
The truth is often too large for us, not because it is vague, but because it is solid.
G.K. Chesterton Quote
“Angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly.”
Reflection
There are truths that do not enter the soul by force. They wait at the door like good guests. Christ tells His disciples, “I have yet many things to say to you: but you cannot bear them now.” This is not the voice of a teacher hiding information. It is the voice of a physician measuring medicine. It is the voice of a Father who knows that a child cannot carry the whole house simply because he is destined to inherit it.
Modern man often imagines that truth must be instant, blunt, and total. But God’s truth is not a brick thrown through the window. It is sunrise. It comes with mercy, because brightness without mercy blinds. The Spirit of truth does not flatter us with little inventions of our own; He receives what is Christ’s and shows it to us. Revelation is not self-expression. It is a gift.
This is why humility is not the enemy of knowledge. It is the doorway to knowledge. The proud man demands the whole map before he will take one step. The faithful man takes the next step because he trusts the Guide.
And so today we ask not merely to know more, but to bear more. We ask for the strange Christian strength that can receive truth without turning it into vanity, argument, or fear. The Holy Ghost does not make us clever spectators of divine things. He makes us children inside the house of the Father.
Chesterton Radio
A daily return to wonder, faith, and the sanity of the Gospel.