Mercy

Introduction:
The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
— Amen.

God, come to my assistance.
— Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Hymn:  Softly and Tenderly

Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling,
Calling for you and for me;
See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching,
Watching for you and for me.

Oh, for the wonderful love He has promised,
Promised for you and for me!
Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon,
Pardon for you and for me.

Refrain:
Come home, come home,
Ye who are weary, come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
Calling, O sinner, come home!

Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
Calling, O sinner, come home!

The Sacred Heart of Jesus:
Antiphon 1:  Save, O Lord, all those who have no one to pray for them.

Lord Jesus, Your Divine Heart is so passionately in Love with men that it cannot contain within itself the flames of its ardent charity. Save, O Lord, all those who have no one to pray for them.

You have promised that your Heart shall dilate and pour out the influences of its Love abundantly on all those that suitably honor it. If men would render you some return of your Love, you would esteem little all you have done for them. Instead, they meet your eager Love with coldness and rebuffs.

Please, O Lord, allow my humble prayers to supply some measure of recompense for our ingratitude. May they console and rejoice you in whatever small way my all too human intentions can muster.

 “O my Jesus, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of thy mercy.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm Prayer:  (Excerpt from The Earlier Rule)
Let us be very much on our guard that, under the guise of some reward or assistance, we do not take our mind away from God.  But, in the holy love which is God, after overcoming every impediment and putting aside every care and anxiety, I beg all to serve, love, honor and adore the Lord God with a clean heart and pure mind in whatever way they are best able, for that is what He wants above all else. 

Antiphon 1:  Save, O Lord, all those who have no one to pray for them.

On Mercy in the Moment
Antiphon 2:  Please, Lord, expand your Mercy to its fullness.

I have been astray far too long,
forlorn and wandering,
bereft of the fair countenance and firm loving hand of my Master.

I long to return to the fold, but I do not know the way.
The enemy has shuttered my senses, closing me off from all that should be familiar.
I am deaf to the voice of the Shepherd inviting me home.

I know, Lord, that you remain steadfast, devoted and determined.
You summon me incessantly, seeking me earnestly, always hoping for my repentance.
You are persistent and watchful, eager for my return.

Please Lord, thwart the enemy. 
Unlock my attentiveness.
Compel me to harken to your call.

I know the opportunities are omnipresent.
They occur in simple moments and come disguised as simple thoughts.
I have missed them more times than there are stars in the sky or grains of sand on the beach.
Please, Lord, do not hold me accountable for my multitude of failures.
Forgive me my sins.

I beg you, Lord, expand your Mercy to its fullness.
Allow me into your Presence.  Transport me into your Light.
Be ever more involved, ever more active in my life.

Walk with me and talk with me.
Place your hand upon me, guide me and pray for me.
Speak your Word and grant me the Grace to heed and fulfill it.

I wish, Lord, to be yours, hour by hour.
Nay, minute by minute.
Nay, second by second.

Please, Lord, send your Spirit to announce your Will.
In your Mercy, bestow on me the Grace and awareness to hear.
In your Mercy, confer on me the Grace and resolve to act. 

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Antiphon 2:  Please, Lord, expand your Mercy to its fullness.

On Mercy and Love
Antiphon 3:  Your Mercy, Lord, Lights the Way.

Often, Lord, I feel as if I am groping in the dark,
fumbling blindly for a switch that will activate my holiness,
a key that will allow me to follow You reliably, completely and effortlessly.

Or perhaps I am a drifter confronted by fork after fork after fork in the road.
At each juncture, one choice leads to sin, death, and worldly distraction.
The other leads to harmony, peace and eternal life.

Sometimes I wish, Lord, that in Your Mercy, You would flip the switch for me,
or command me to take the proper turn.
Too often, Lord, I wish You would choose for me.

Then I recall what Mercy teaches: My ability to Love depends on my freedom to choose.
I remember I must find the key on my own.
I remember I must recognize the righteous road for myself.

Your Mercy, which is Love, sunders gates and collapses walls.
Your Incarnation and Passion open wide the Way to Redemption.
If I choose to respond in kind, with Love, I am welcome to walk the path to Salvation.

Fortunately, You are always there to aid me.  You will never abandon me.
Whenever I am uncertain, unsure, undecided, hesitant, tentative or faltering,
Your Mercy and Love Light the Way.

If I stumble in the darkness, Mercy is there, at my side, willing to be the Light.
As I walk the road, Love is there, at my side, willing to be the Way.
You sustain and assist me by every means that does not nullify my freedom.

Relying on You, Lord, in my frailty, is to elect Love, to practice Love.
Relying on You, Lord, in my vulnerability, is to welcome Love, to exercise Love.
Relying on You, Lord, in my powerlessness, is to adopt Love, to prefer Love.

Your Mercy, Lord, encourages me to cling to Love.
It inspires me to traverse the road to Love.
It emboldens me to seek the eternal life that is assured and granted by Love.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm Prayer:  (excerpt from the Later Admonition and Exhortation)
How happy and blessed are those who love God and do as the Lord Himself says in the Gospel:  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.”  Let us love God, therefore, and adore Him with a pure heart and a pure mind.  And day and night let us direct praises and prayers to Him, for we should pray always and never become weary.

Antiphon 3:  Your Mercy, Lord, Lights the Way.

Reading:  (Mark 4:13-20)
Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?

The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.  Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.

Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

Responsorial: (Office of the Passion, Part IV, Matins):
I will praise you, Lord, Most Holy Father, King of heaven and earth.
   -I will seek God, and my soul shall live.

You are my God and my Savior.  I will act with confidence and not be afraid.
   -My soul shall live.

The Lord is my strength and my glory.  He has become my salvation.
   -I will seek God and my soul shall live.

Psalm 96: (Office of the Passion, Vespers of the Lord’s Birth)
Antiphon:  Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to those of good will!

Sing to the Lord a new song;
    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, praise his name;
    proclaim his salvation day after day.
Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
    he is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are idols,
    but the Lord made the heavens.
Splendor and majesty are before him;
    strength and glory are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations,
    ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
    bring an offering and come into his courts.

Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness;
    tremble before him, all the earth.
Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
    The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
    he will judge the peoples with equity.

Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
    let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
    let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes,
    he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
    and the peoples in his faithfulness.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Antiphon:  Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to those of good will!

Intercession (excerpt from a Prayer Inspired by the Our Father):
May knowledge of You become clear in us, that we may love You:
   -With our whole heart, by always thinking of You,
    With our whole soul, by always desiring You,
    With our whole mind, by always directing all our intentions to You,
    and with our whole strength, by always exerting all our energies in Your service.

Forgive us our trespasses through your ineffable mercy:
   -And through the power of the Passion of Your beloved Son,
    And through the merits and intercessions of the ever blessed Virgin and all Your elect.

And lead us not into temptation:
   -Hidden or obvious, sudden or persistent.

But deliver us from evil:
   -Past, present, and yet to come.

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 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.
Amen.

Concluding Prayer (Canticle of Exhortation for the Ladies of San Damiano):
Lord, you called Clare and her Sisters to be “little poor ones.”  Please, persuade me to follow in Your footsteps, and theirs.  Inspire me to live always in truth that I may die in obedience.  Teach me not to look for life without, but instead within, for the life of the Spirit is better.  Help me use with great love and discernment the gifts you bestow on me.  When weighed down by tribulation, suffering and distress, encourage me to bear my hardship in peace and love, in the hope that one day I might join You and them in the eternal life of heaven. 
Amen.

Dismissal (excerpt from a Prayer Inspired by the Our Father):
Give me this day remembrance, understanding and reverence for the Love my Lord Jesus Christ has for me, and for the things He said, did and suffered for me. 
— Amen.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
— Amen.