The Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Aperi Domine
(Prayer before the hours)
Prayer Before Matins and Lauds
O divine and adorable Lord Jesus Christ, who hast graciously redeemed us by Thy bitter passion and death; I offer these Matins and Lauds to Thy honour and glory; and most humbly beseech Thee, through the vile treatment Thou didst receive from the Jews, who dragged Thee to the courts of the impious high priests, where Thou wast fasely accused, smitten on the face, called a blasphemer, and declared guilty of death; through the cruel torments, the blows, the bruises, and unheard-of injuries, which Thou enduredst during the whole night; to grant us resignation and silence under all calumnies, detractions, and sufferings, for the love of Thee, and to give us grace never to return injury for injury, but to practice the truly Christian revenge of overcoming evil with good, to do good to those who hate us, to bless those who curse us, and to pray for those who persecute and calumniate us. Amen.
1. Matins
Standing, All say the Hail Mary in silence. All then make the sign of the Cross on their lips with the thumb, as the Officiant begins:
V. Thou shalt open my lips, O Lord,
R. And my mouth shall show forth thy praise.
Now ALL make the large sign of the Cross:
V. O God, be intent on mine aid,
R. 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.
Invitatory
Invit. Hail Mary, full of grace, * the Lord is with thee.
Hail Mary, full of grace, * the Lord is with thee.
Psalm 94 (95) - Venite, exultemus.
An invitation to praise God, and to obey Him
1. Come let us praise the Lord with joy: * let us joyfully sing to God our saviour.
2. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving; * and make a joyful noise to him with psalms.
Invit. Hail Mary, full of grace, * the Lord is with thee.
3. For the Lord is a great God, * and a great King above all gods.
4. For in his hand are all the ends of the earth: * and the heights of the mountains are his.
Invit. The Lord is with thee.
5. For the sea is his, and he made it: * and his hands formed the dry land.
Here ALL kneel.
6. Come let us adore and fall down: * and weep before the Lord that made us.
7. For he is the Lord our God: * and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
All Rise
Invit. Hail Mary, full of grace, * the Lord is with thee.
8. Today if you shall hear his voice, * harden not your hearts:
9. As in the provocation, according to the day of temptation in the wilderness: * where your fathers tempted me, they proved me, and saw my works.
Invit. The Lord is with thee.
10. Forty years long was I offended with that generation, * and I said: These always err in heart.
11. And these men have not known my ways: * so I swore in my wrath that they shall not enter into my rest.
Invit. Hail Mary, full of grace, * the Lord is with thee.
R. 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.
Invit. The Lord is with thee.
R. Hail Mary, full of grace, * the Lord is with thee.
Hymn
1. The Lord, whom earth, and sea, and sky, * With one adoring voice proclaim;
Who rules them all in majesty; * Enclosed himself in Mary's frame.
2. Lo! in a humble Virgin's womb, * O'ershadowed by almighty power;
He whom the stars, and sun, and moon, * Each serve in their appointed hour.
3. O Mother blest! to whom was given, * Within thy body to contain;
The Architect of earth and heaven, * Whose hands the universe sustain.
4. To thee was sent an angel down, * In thee the Spirit was enshrined;
Of thee was born that mighty One, * The long-desired of all mankind.
5. O Jesus, born of Virgin bright, * Immortal glory be to thee;
Praise to the Father infinite, * And Holy Ghost eternally. Amen.
I. MATINS - The Nocturn (Sundays, Mondays, and Thursdays)
Ant. Blessed art thou.
Psalm 8 - Domine, Dominus noster.
God is wonderful in His works; especially in mankind, singularly exalted by the Incarnation of Christ
1. O Lord, our Lord, how admirable is Thy name in the whole earth! For Thy magnificence is elevated above the heavens.
2. Out of the mouth of infants and of sucklings thou hast perfected praise, because of Thy enemies, that thou mayst destroy the enemy and the avenger.
3. For I will behold Thy heavens, the works of Thy fingers: the moon and the stars which thou hast founded.
4. What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man that thou visitest him?
5. Thou hast made him a little less than the angels, thou hast crowned him with glory and honour:
6. and hast set him over the works of Thy hands.
7. Thou hast subjected all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen: moreover the beasts also of the fields.
8. The birds of the air, and the fishes of the sea, that pass through the paths of the sea.
9. O Lord, our Lord, how admirable is Thy name in all the earth!
10. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, *
11. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. * Alleluia.
Ant. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
Ant. Like the choicest myrrh.
Psalm 18 (19) - Coli enarrant.
The works of God show forth His glory
1. The heavens shew forth the glory of God, * and the firmament declareth the work of his hands.
2. Day to day uttereth speech, * and night to night sheweth knowledge.
3. There are no speeches nor languages, * where their voices are not heard.
4. Their sound hath gone forth into all the earth: * and their words unto the ends of the world.
5. He hath set his tabernacle in the sun: * and he, as a bridegroom coming out of his bride chamber,
6. Hath rejoiced as a giant * to run the way:
7. His going out is from the end of heaven, And his circuit even to the end thereof: * and there is no one that can hide himself from his heat.
8. The law of the Lord is unspotted, converting souls: * the testimony of the Lord is faithful, giving wisdom to little ones.
9. The justices of the Lord are right, rejoicing hearts: * the commandment of the Lord is lightsome, enlightening the eyes.
10. The fear of the Lord is holy, enduring for ever and ever: * the judgments of the Lord are true, justified in themselves.
11. More to be desired than gold and many precious stones: * and sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.
12. For Thy servant keepeth them, * and in keeping them there is a great reward.
13. Who can understand sins? * from my secret ones cleanse me, O Lord:
14. and from those of others spare Thy servant. * If they shall have no dominion over me, then shall I be without spot: and I shall be cleansed from the greatest sin.
15. And the words of my mouth shall be such as may please: * and the meditation of my heart always in Thy sight.
16. O Lord, my helper, and my redeemer.
17. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, *
18. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. * Alleluia.
Ant. Like the choicest myrrh thou hast yielded an odor of sweetness, O holy Mother of God.
Ant. Before the couch.
Psalm 23 (24) - Domini est terra.
A song of triumph for the translation of the Ark to Mount Sion
1. The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof: * the world, and all they that dwell therein.
2. For he hath founded it upon the seas; * and hath prepared it upon the rivers.
3. Who shall ascend into the mountain of the Lord: * or who shall stand in his holy place?
4. The innocent in hands, and clean of heart, * who hath not taken his soul in vain, nor sworn deceitfully to his neighbour.
5. He shall receive a blessing from the Lord, * and mercy from God his Saviour.
6. This is the generation of them that seek him, * of them that seek the face of the God of Jacob.
7. Lift up your gates, O ye princes, and be ye lifted up, * O eternal gates: and the King of Glory shall enter in.
8. Who is this King of Glory? * the Lord who is strong and mighty: the Lord mighty in battle.
9. Lift up your gates, O ye princes, * and be ye lifted up, O eternal gates: and the King of Glory shall enter in.
10. Who is this King of Glory? * the Lord of hosts, he is the King of Glory.
11. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,*
12. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. * Alleluia.
Ant. Before the couch of the Virgin sing often unto us sweet chants with solemnity.
V. Grace is shed forth on thy lips.
R. Therefore hath God blessed thee forever.
Here the Officient only intones the Our Father, the rest till toward the end being said in silence.
O. Our Father...
V. And lead us not into temptation,
R. But deliver us from evil. Amen.
I. MATINS - (Conclusion)
The Absolution
O. By the prayers and merits of the blessed Mary, ever Virgin, and of all the Saints, may the Lord bring us to the kingdom of Heaven.
R. Amen.
The Petition
V. Pray, Lord, a blessing.
The Blessing
O. May the Virgin Mary, with her loving Child, bless us.
A. Amen.
(These lessons are for all times not in Advent, or the Feast of the Annunciation.)
Lesson I.
Ecclus. xxiv. 11-13 (Sirach 24: 7-8)
O. In all these I sought rest, and I shall abide in the inheritance of the Lord. Then the Creator of all things commanded and said to me; and he that made me rested in my tabernacle, and he said to me: Let thy dwelling be in Jacob, and thy inheritance in Israel, and take root in mine elect. But thou, Lord, have mercy on us.
R. Thanks be to God.
I. Responsory
R O holy and immaculate Virgin, with what praises I shall extol thee, I know not. * For he whom the heavens could not contain, rested in thy bosom.
V. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.* For he whom the heavens could not contain, rested in thy bosom.
The Petition
V. Pray, Lord, a blessing.
The Blessing
O. May the Virgin of Virgins herself intercede for us with the Lord.
R Amen.
Lesson II.
Ecclus. xxiv. 15-16 (Sirach 24: 11-12)
O. And so was I established in Sion, and in the holy city likewise I rested; and my power was in Jerusalem. And I took root in an honorable people, and in the portion of my God his inheritance, and my abode is in the full assembly of Saints. But thou, Lord, have mercy on us.
R. Thanks be to God.
II. Responsory
R. Blessed art thou, O Virgin Mary, who didst bear the Lord, the Creator of the world: * Thou wast the mother of Him who made thee, and thou remainest a virgin forever.
V. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
R. Thou wast the mother of Him who made thee, and thou remainest a virgin forever.
R. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. * Thou wast the mother of Him who made thee, and thou remainest a virgin forever.
The Petition
V. Pray, Lord, a blessing.
The Blessing
O. Through the Virgin Mother, may the Lord grant unto us salvation and peace.
R. Amen.
Lesson III.
Ecclus. xxiv. 17-20 (Sirach 24: 13-15)
O. I was exalted like a cedar in Libanus, and as a cypress tree on Mount Sion. I was exalted like a palm tree in Cades and as a rose-plant in Jericho. As a fair olive tree in the plains, and as a plane tree by the water in streets, was I exalted. I gave forth a sweet fragrance like cinnamon and aromatic balm. I yielded a sweetness of odor like the choicest myrrh. But thou, Lord, have mercy on us.
R. Thanks be to God.
Te Deum
(To be said from Christmas to the Purification, from Easter until Advent, or on feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary.)
1. We praise thee, O God. * We acknowledge thee to be the Lord.
2. All the earth doth worship thee, * the Father everlasting.
3. To thee all the angels, * the heavens and all the powers therein,
4. To thee cherubim and seraphim * with voice unceasing cry,
5. Holy, holy, holy, * Lord God of Sabaoth,
6. Heaven and earth are full * of the majesty of thy glory.
7. The glorious choir * of the Apostles,
8. The admirable company * of the Prophets,
9. The white-robed army of the Martyrs, * all give praise to thee.
10. The Holy Church throughout all the world * doth acknowledge thee,
11. The Father * of infinite majesty,
12. Thy adorable, true, * and only Son,
13. Also the Holy Ghost, * the Comforter.
14. Thou art the King of Glory, * O Christ.
15. Thou art the everlasting Son * of the Father.
16. Thou, when about to take upon thee to deliver man, * didst not shrink back from the Virgin's womb.
17. When thou hadst overcome the sting of death, * thou didst open to all believers the kingdom of Heaven.
18. Thou sittest at the right hand of God * in the glory of the Father.
19. We believe that thou shalt come * to be our Judge.
Here all kneel
20. We pray thee, therefore, help thy servants, * whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood.
All rise.
21. Make them to be numbered with thy Saints * in glory everlasting.
22. O Lord, save thy people, * and bless thine inheritance.
23. Govern them * and lift them up for ever.
24. Day by day * we glorify thee.
25. And we praise thy name for ever, * yea, for ever and ever.
26. Vouchsafe, O Lord, this day * to keep us without sin.
27. Have mercy on us, Lord, * have mercy on us.
28. Thy mercy, O Lord, come down upon us, * just as we have hoped it of thee.
29. In thee, O Lord, have I hoped, * let me not be confounded for ever.
On to Lauds or continue on to close the hour.
Say the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Apostles Creed and then close with the Sacrosanctae.
The Sacrosanctae
(Or Act of Atonement After the Office)
All. To the most holy and undivided Trinity, * to the humanity of our crucified Lord Jesus Christ, * to the fruitful purity of the most blessed and glorious Mary ever Virgin, * and to the company of all the saints, * be everlasting praise, honor, power and glory rendered by every creature; * and to us be given the remission of all our faults for all eternity. Amen.
V. Blessed womb of the Virgin Mary, which bore the Son of the eternal Father.
R. And blessed breasts which nursed the Christ, our Lord.
All say the Our Father and Hail Mary in silence.
