Office of Readings
0923 Pastors Memorial
Invitatory Antiphon
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
Come, ring out our joy to the Lord;
hail the God who save us.
Let us come before him giving thanks,
with songs let us hail the Lord.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
A mighty God is the Lord,
a great king above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his.
To him belongs the sea, for he made it,
and the dry land shaped by his hands.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
Come in; let us bow and bend low;
let us kneel before the God who made us
for he is our God and we +
the people who belong to his pasture,
the flock that is led by his hand.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
O that today you would listen to his voice!
"Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the desert +
when your fathers put me to the test;
when they tried me, though they saw my work.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
For forty years I was wearied of these people
and I said: 'Their hearts are astray,
these people do not know my ways.' +
Then I took an oath in my anger:
'Never shall they enter my rest.'"
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit;v as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
HYMN
The king of love my shepherd is,
Whose goodness fails me never:v I nothing lack if I am his,
And he is mine for ever.
Where streams of living water flow,
To rest my soul he leads me:
Where fresh and fertile pastures grow,
With heav’nly food he feeds me.
Perverse and foolish I have strayed,
But he with love has sought me,
And on his shoulder gently laid,
And home, rejoicing, brought me.
In death’s dark vale, I fear no ill,
With you, dear Lord, beside me:
Your rod and staff my comfort still,
Your cross will ever guide.
You spread a banquet in my sight,
My head with oil anointing,
And let me taste the sweet delight
From your pure chalice flowing.
And so through all the length of days
Your goodness fails me never;
Good Shepherd, may I sing your praise
Within your house forever.
PSALMODY
Antiphons and Psalms and The First Reading of the Weekday
The Second Reading
From the letters of Saint Pio Forgione of Pietrelcina [Letters I, nn. 500&511]
I will raise up my voice to Him strongly and I will not desist
For this reason I am led to manifest to you what happened to me on the evening of the 5th of this month and all day on the 6th.
I am quite unable to convey to you what occurred during this period of utter torment. While I was hearing the boys’ confessions on the evening of the 5th, I was suddenly terrorized by the sight of a celestial Person who presented himself to my mind's eye. He had in his hand a sort of weapon like a very long sharp-pointed steel blade which seemed to emit fire. At the very instant that I saw all this, I saw that Person hurl the weapon into my soul with all his might. I cried out with difficulty and felt I was dying. I asked the boy to leave because I felt ill and no longer had the strength to continue.
This agony lasted uninterruptedly until the morning of the 7th. I cannot tell you how much I suffered during this period of anguish. Even my entrails were torn and ruptured by the weapon, and nothing was spared. From that day on I have been mortally wounded. I feel in the depths of my soul a wound that is always open and which causes me continual agony.
What can I tell you in answer to your questions regarding my crucifixion? My God! What embarrassment and humiliation I suffer by being obliged to explain what you have done to this wretched creature!
On the morning of the 20th of last month, in the choir, after I had celebrated Mass I yielded to a drowsiness similar to a sweet sleep. All the internal and external senses and even the very faculties of my soul were immersed in indescribable stillness. Absolute silence surrounded and invaded me. I was suddenly filled with great peace and abandonment which effaced everything else and caused a lull in the turmoil. All this happened in a flash.
While this was taking place I saw before me a mysterious Person similar to the one I had seen on the evening of the 5th August. The only difference was that his hands and feet and side were dripping blood. This sight terrified me and what I felt at that moment is indescribable. I thought I should die and really should have died if the Lord had not intervened and strengthened my heart which was about to burst out of my chest.
The vision disappeared and I became aware that my hands, feet and side were dripping blood. Imagine the agony I experienced and continue to experience almost every day. The heart wound bleeds continually, especially from Thursday evening until Saturday. Dear Father I am dying of pain because of the wounds and the resulting embarrassment I feel deep in my soul. I am afraid I shall bleed to death if the Lord does not hear my heartfelt supplication to relieve me of this condition. Will Jesus, who is so good, grant me this grace? Will he at least free me from the embarrassment caused by these outward signs. I will raise my voice and will not stop imploring him until in his mercy he takes away, not the wound or the pain, which is impossible since I wish to be inebriated with pain, but these outward signs which cause me such embarrassment and unbearable humiliation.
The Person of whom I spoke in a previous letter is none other than the One I mentioned having seen on the 5th August. He. continues his work incessantly, causing me extreme spiritual agony. There is a continual rumbling within me like the gushing of blood.
My God! Your punishment is just and your judgement right, but grant me your mercy. Lord, with your Prophet I shall continue to repeat: O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger; do not punish me in your rage.
Dear Father, now that my whole interior state is known to you, do not refuse to send me a word of comfort in the midst of such severe and harsh suffering.
Responsory [Mt. 16, 24; Heb. 12,2]
【V】:If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, *
【R】:take up your cross and follow me.
【V】:Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, *
【R】:take up your cross and follow me.
Concluding Prayer
Almighty and everlasting God, you gave your priest, Saint Pio, the singular grace of sharing in the cross of your Son, and by means of his ministry you renewed the wonders of your mercy. Grant, through his intercession, that we may be ever joined to the Passion of Christ, and joyously brought to the glory of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
Come, ring out our joy to the Lord;
hail the God who save us.
Let us come before him giving thanks,
with songs let us hail the Lord.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
A mighty God is the Lord,
a great king above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his.
To him belongs the sea, for he made it,
and the dry land shaped by his hands.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
Come in; let us bow and bend low;
let us kneel before the God who made us
for he is our God and we +
the people who belong to his pasture,
the flock that is led by his hand.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
O that today you would listen to his voice!
"Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the desert +
when your fathers put me to the test;
when they tried me, though they saw my work.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
For forty years I was wearied of these people
and I said: 'Their hearts are astray,
these people do not know my ways.' +
Then I took an oath in my anger:
'Never shall they enter my rest.'"
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit;v as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.
【Ant.】:Come, let us worship Christ, chief shepherd of the flock.
HYMN
The king of love my shepherd is,
Whose goodness fails me never:v I nothing lack if I am his,
And he is mine for ever.
Where streams of living water flow,
To rest my soul he leads me:
Where fresh and fertile pastures grow,
With heav’nly food he feeds me.
Perverse and foolish I have strayed,
But he with love has sought me,
And on his shoulder gently laid,
And home, rejoicing, brought me.
In death’s dark vale, I fear no ill,
With you, dear Lord, beside me:
Your rod and staff my comfort still,
Your cross will ever guide.
You spread a banquet in my sight,
My head with oil anointing,
And let me taste the sweet delight
From your pure chalice flowing.
And so through all the length of days
Your goodness fails me never;
Good Shepherd, may I sing your praise
Within your house forever.
PSALMODY
Antiphons and Psalms and The First Reading of the Weekday
The Second Reading
From the letters of Saint Pio Forgione of Pietrelcina [Letters I, nn. 500&511]
I will raise up my voice to Him strongly and I will not desist
For this reason I am led to manifest to you what happened to me on the evening of the 5th of this month and all day on the 6th.
I am quite unable to convey to you what occurred during this period of utter torment. While I was hearing the boys’ confessions on the evening of the 5th, I was suddenly terrorized by the sight of a celestial Person who presented himself to my mind's eye. He had in his hand a sort of weapon like a very long sharp-pointed steel blade which seemed to emit fire. At the very instant that I saw all this, I saw that Person hurl the weapon into my soul with all his might. I cried out with difficulty and felt I was dying. I asked the boy to leave because I felt ill and no longer had the strength to continue.
This agony lasted uninterruptedly until the morning of the 7th. I cannot tell you how much I suffered during this period of anguish. Even my entrails were torn and ruptured by the weapon, and nothing was spared. From that day on I have been mortally wounded. I feel in the depths of my soul a wound that is always open and which causes me continual agony.
What can I tell you in answer to your questions regarding my crucifixion? My God! What embarrassment and humiliation I suffer by being obliged to explain what you have done to this wretched creature!
On the morning of the 20th of last month, in the choir, after I had celebrated Mass I yielded to a drowsiness similar to a sweet sleep. All the internal and external senses and even the very faculties of my soul were immersed in indescribable stillness. Absolute silence surrounded and invaded me. I was suddenly filled with great peace and abandonment which effaced everything else and caused a lull in the turmoil. All this happened in a flash.
While this was taking place I saw before me a mysterious Person similar to the one I had seen on the evening of the 5th August. The only difference was that his hands and feet and side were dripping blood. This sight terrified me and what I felt at that moment is indescribable. I thought I should die and really should have died if the Lord had not intervened and strengthened my heart which was about to burst out of my chest.
The vision disappeared and I became aware that my hands, feet and side were dripping blood. Imagine the agony I experienced and continue to experience almost every day. The heart wound bleeds continually, especially from Thursday evening until Saturday. Dear Father I am dying of pain because of the wounds and the resulting embarrassment I feel deep in my soul. I am afraid I shall bleed to death if the Lord does not hear my heartfelt supplication to relieve me of this condition. Will Jesus, who is so good, grant me this grace? Will he at least free me from the embarrassment caused by these outward signs. I will raise my voice and will not stop imploring him until in his mercy he takes away, not the wound or the pain, which is impossible since I wish to be inebriated with pain, but these outward signs which cause me such embarrassment and unbearable humiliation.
The Person of whom I spoke in a previous letter is none other than the One I mentioned having seen on the 5th August. He. continues his work incessantly, causing me extreme spiritual agony. There is a continual rumbling within me like the gushing of blood.
My God! Your punishment is just and your judgement right, but grant me your mercy. Lord, with your Prophet I shall continue to repeat: O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger; do not punish me in your rage.
Dear Father, now that my whole interior state is known to you, do not refuse to send me a word of comfort in the midst of such severe and harsh suffering.
Responsory [Mt. 16, 24; Heb. 12,2]
【V】:If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, *
【R】:take up your cross and follow me.
【V】:Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, *
【R】:take up your cross and follow me.
Concluding Prayer
Almighty and everlasting God, you gave your priest, Saint Pio, the singular grace of sharing in the cross of your Son, and by means of his ministry you renewed the wonders of your mercy. Grant, through his intercession, that we may be ever joined to the Passion of Christ, and joyously brought to the glory of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.