Opening
Lord, open my lips. And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Hymn
Morning by morning you awaken me. Help me to listen before I speak. Let praise be the first word I find, And mercy the last I keep. Christ of the rising light, go with me. Where I am weary, be my rest. Where I am eager, make me wise. In all things, make me blessed.
Original – Prayer on Fire
Psalm I
Antiphon
From the first light, teach me to walk in your peace.
Psalm 143 (142)
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Psalm
O Lord, hear my prayer. Incline your ear to my supplication in your truth. Heed me according to your justice. And do not enter into judgment with your servant. For all the living will not be justified in your sight. For the enemy has pursued my soul. He has lowered my life to the earth. He has stationed me in darkness, like the dead of ages past. And my spirit has been in anguish over me. My heart within me has been disturbed. I have called to mind the days of antiquity. I have been meditating on all your works. I have meditated on the workings of your hands. I have extended my hands to you. My soul is like a land without water before you. O Lord, heed me quickly. My spirit has grown faint. Do not turn your face away from me, lest I become like those who descend into the pit. Make me hear your mercy in the morning. For I have hoped in you. Make known to me the way that I should walk. For I have lifted up my soul to you. O Lord, rescue me from my enemies. I have fled to you. Teach me to do your will. For you are my God. Your good Spirit will lead me into the righteous land. For the sake of your name, O Lord, you will revive me in your fairness. You will lead my soul out of tribulation. And you will scatter my enemies in your mercy. And you will destroy all those who afflict my soul. For I am your servant.
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
From the first light, teach me to walk in your peace.
Psalm II
Antiphon
You restore my soul; lead me in paths of quiet faithfulness.
Psalm 24 (23)
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Psalm
The earth and all its fullness belong to the Lord: the whole world and all that dwells in it. For he has founded it upon the seas, and he has prepared it upon the rivers. Who will ascend to the mountain of the Lord? And who will stand in his holy place? The innocent of hands and the clean of heart, who has not received his soul in vain, nor sworn deceitfully to his neighbor. He will receive a blessing from the Lord, and mercy from God, his Savior. This is the generation that seeks him, that seeks the face of the God of Jacob. Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. And the King of Glory shall enter. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord who is strong and powerful; the Lord powerful in battle. Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. And the King of Glory shall enter. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of virtue. He himself is the King of Glory.
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
You restore my soul; lead me in paths of quiet faithfulness.
Silence
Let the last verse rest in you.
Reading
Romans 13:11b–14
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
And we know the present time, that now is the hour for us to rise up from sleep. For already our salvation is closer than when we first believed. The night has passed, and the day draws near. Therefore, let us cast aside the works of darkness, and be clothed with the armor of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the daylight, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and sexual immorality, not in contention and envy. Instead, be clothed with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in its desires.
Responsory
Send forth your light and your truth. Let them lead me. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Benedictus
Antiphon
Direct our feet, O Lord, in the way of peace.
Luke 1:68–79
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Canticle
“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel. For he has visited and has wrought the redemption of his people. And he has raised up a horn of salvation for us, in the house of David his servant, just as he spoke by the mouth of his holy Prophets, who are from ages past: salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all those who hate us, to accomplish mercy with our fathers, and to call to mind his holy testament, the oath, which he swore to Abraham, our father, that he would grant to us, so that, having been freed from the hand of our enemies, we may serve him without fear, in holiness and in justice before him, throughout all our days. And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High. For you will go before the face of the Lord: to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people for the remission of their sins, through the heart of the mercy of our God, by which, descending from on high, he has visited us, to illuminate those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to direct our feet in the way of peace.”
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
Direct our feet, O Lord, in the way of peace.
Intercessions
For the hungry, the unhoused, and the overlooked.
R. Lord, hear our prayer.
For just wages and honest work.
R. Lord, hear our prayer.
For those who have enough, that we may share.
R. Lord, hear our prayer.
For children who will go without today.
R. Lord, hear our prayer.
For eyes to see Christ in need.
R. Lord, hear our prayer.
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
Lord Jesus, we offer you the morning — its work, its waiting, and its hidden fears. Keep our first steps near your quiet fire. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.