Opening
God, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me.
Hymn
The sun goes down, yet You remain, Unfailing light of every soul. We lay the day’s unfinished stories Into Your hands that make us whole. Forgive the sharp word and the silence; Bless what was done in simple care. And as the shadows lengthen gently, Keep hope alive in evening prayer.
Original, Prayer on Fire
Psalm I
Antiphon
Forgive what was harsh; heal what was hurried; keep what was true.
Psalm 34 (33):2–4, 9
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Psalm
I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will be ever in my mouth. In the Lord, my soul will be praised. May the meek listen and rejoice. Magnify the Lord with me, and let us extol his name in itself. Taste and see that the Lord is sweet. Blessed is the man who hopes in him.
Glory Be
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
Forgive what was harsh; heal what was hurried; keep what was true.
Psalm II
Antiphon
In the evening sacrifice of praise, receive my thanks and my tears.
Psalm 113 (112):1–3
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Psalm
Praise the Lord, children. Praise the name of the Lord. Blessed is the name of the Lord, from this time forward and even forever. From the rising of the sun, even to its setting, praiseworthy is the name of the Lord.
Glory Be
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
In the evening sacrifice of praise, receive my thanks and my tears.
Silence
A moment of silence
Reading
Colossians 1:21–23
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
And you, though you had been, in times past, understood to be foreigners and enemies, with works of evil, yet now he has reconciled you, by his body of flesh, through death, so as to offer you, holy and immaculate and blameless, before him. So then, continue in the faith: well-founded and steadfast and immovable, by the hope of the Gospel that you have heard, which has been preached throughout all creation under heaven, the Gospel of which I, Paul, have become a minister.
Responsory
Into your hands I return this day. You have been our dwelling place. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Magnificat
Antiphon
He has scattered the proud; unclench our hearts before sleep.
Luke 1:46–55
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Canticle
And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord. And my spirit leaps for joy in God my Savior. For he has looked with favor on the humility of his handmaid. For behold, from this time, all generations shall call me blessed. For he who is great has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is from generation to generations for those who fear him. He has accomplished powerful deeds with his arm. He has scattered the arrogant in the intentions of their heart. He has deposed the powerful from their seat, and he has exalted the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has taken up his servant Israel, mindful of his mercy, just as he spoke to our fathers: to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
Glory Be
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
He has scattered the proud; unclench our hearts before sleep.
Intercessions
For the Church at the turning of the day, still a lamp in the world.
R. Speak, Lord, we are listening.
For those who work through the evening, and those who have no rest.
R. Speak, Lord, we are listening.
For children falling asleep, and parents who keep watch.
R. Speak, Lord, we are listening.
For our city, that bitterness may not keep the last word.
R. Speak, Lord, we are listening.
For thanksgiving that outlasts the fading sky.
R. Speak, Lord, we are listening.
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.
Closing prayer
Soften what grew hard today. Let pardon have the last word. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.