Hymn:
1.
My soul proclaims the Lord my God
My Spirit sings His praise
He looks on me, He fills me up
And gladness fills my days.
2.
All nations now will share my joy
His gifts He has out poured
His little ones He has made great
I magnify the Lord.
3.
His mercy is forever more
His name I praise again
His strong right arm
Puts down the proud and raises lowly ones.
4.
He fills the hungry with good things
The rich He sends away
The promise made to Abraham
Is filled by Him each day.
The origin of this hymn is Luke; 1:46-55. It is known as the Magnificat. During the evening service or Vespers we reflect on this hymn of our Mother Mary.
Liturgy Of The Hours
Liturgy of the Hours is a liturgical celebration at certain hours of the day. It is a prayer of praise including the Psalms.
This type of prayer is not something new to our celebrations of prayers. It is a custom from ancient times. The prayer is based on the Bible. When the Jews prayed in the Synagogue, they used the Book of Psalms from the Bible. In these prayers an essential item was the use of the psalms.
In the olden times these prayers were said by the priests, religious and laity. Later as they became complex the laity abandoned these prayers. The priests and religious are bound to say these prayers daily.
According to the custom of the Jews, a feast began with the setting of the sun the previous evening with a prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours. In our Churches today, this service is known as Vespers. It is held on the eve of the feast. It is an evening service. The laity too participate in this service today.
We can name the liturgy of the hours as:
1. Morning prayer or Lauds
2. Prayer at noon
3. Evening prayer/Vespers
4. Night prayer
The programme for Vespers.
Three hymns (two psalms and a canticle from the Bible)
Scripture Reading
Homily
Magnificat. Mary's Song of Praise
Apostles Creed or I Believe....
Our Father or The Lord's Prayer
Prayer
Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
The evening Vespers ends with the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. We honour our Lord Jesus living in the sacred host. The Eucharist. We place all our needs before the living God. We must permit our Lord Jesus Christ to let His blessings flow into us. Hence, this moment is very important for us. We must receive this solemn blessing on our knees. Also when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed on the altar in the monstrance we must genuflect on both knees and pay homage to Jesus.
Besides the evening Vespers, Benediction can also be given on;
the first Thursday or Friday of each month.
the feast of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ or Corpus Christi.
Retreats.
the Day of the Sick at Tewatta.
The Liturgy of the Hours is a prayer of praise to the Creator, God our Father. We can participate in the celebrations by joining the parish priests in the preparation for vespers, helping to keep the Church and the premises clean and tidy. Also by joining in the services with great devotion and piety. It is our duty as Christians.
