Universalis
Saturday 14 March 2026    (other days)
Saturday of the 3rd week of Lent 

Using calendar: Australia - Rockhampton. You can change this.

Morning Prayer (Lauds)

If you have already recited the Invitatory Psalm today, you should use the alternative opening.
Lord, open our lips.
  And we shall praise your name.
Invitatory PsalmPsalm 66 (67)
Christ the Lord was tempted and suffered for us. Come, let us adore him.
Or: O that today you would listen to his voice: harden not your hearts.
(repeat antiphon*)
O God, take pity on us and bless us,
  and let your face shine upon us,
so that your ways may be known across the world,
  and all nations learn of your salvation.
  (repeat antiphon*)
Let the peoples praise you, O God,
  let all the peoples praise you.
Let the nations be glad and rejoice,
  for you judge the peoples with fairness
  and you guide the nations of the earth.
  (repeat antiphon*)
Let the peoples praise you, O God,
  let all the peoples praise you.
The earth has produced its harvest:
  may God, our God, bless us.
May God bless us,
  may the whole world revere him.
  (repeat antiphon*)
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.
(repeat antiphon*)

* If you are reciting this on your own, you can choose to say the antiphon once only at the start of the psalm and not repeat it.

Hymn
Lord, who throughout these forty days
For us didst fast and pray,
Teach us with thee to mourn our sins,
And close by thee to stay.
As thou with Satan didst contend,
And didst the victory win,
O give us strength in thee to fight,
In thee to conquer sin.
As thirst and hunger thou didst bear,
So teach us, gracious Lord,
To die to self, and daily live
By thy most holy word.
And through these days of penitence,
And through thy Passiontide,
Yea, evermore, in life and death,
Jesus, with us abide.

Psalm 118 (119): 145-152

You, O Lord, are close; your ways are truth.
I call on you with all my heart –
  answer me, Lord.
  I will obey your laws.
I call on you –
  save me
  so that I can keep your decrees.
At first light I cry to you,
  I put all my hope in your word.
In the night I keep watch,
  pondering your sayings.
In your mercy, Lord, hear my voice;
  in your justice, give me life.
My persecutors come to do me harm:
  they are far from your law.
But you, Lord, are near to me,
  and you are trustworthy in all your precepts.
From the beginning I have known your decrees,
  how you have made them to last for ever.
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.
You, O Lord, are close; your ways are truth.

How to listen
CanticleWisdom 9

Lord, give me wisdom

Lord, let your wisdom be with me to help me and to work with me.
God of my fathers and Lord of mercy,
  who made all things by your word;
  who in your wisdom set man to rule over all that you created
  – to arrange the world in holiness and justice
  – to make right judgements according to the guidance of his heart:
give me Wisdom, who stands by your throne,
  and let me not be unworthy to be your servant.
For I am your slave and the son of your servant-girl,
  a man, weak, short-lived,
  slow to understand your judgements and laws.
Even the highest of the children of men
  – if your wisdom is absent – counts for nothing.
With you abides Wisdom, who knows your works.
  She was with you when you made the world.
  She knew what was pleasing to your eyes.
  She saw what was right according to your precepts.
Send your Wisdom from the highest heaven;
  send her from the throne of your greatness;
  that she may abide with me and work with me,
  so that I may know what it is that pleases you.
For Wisdom knows everything, and understands;
  she will lead me wisely in what I do,
  and protect me in her glory.
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.
Lord, let your wisdom be with me to help me and to work with me.

Psalm 116 (117)
Praise of the merciful Lord

The truth of the Lord will stand firm for ever.
Praise the Lord, all nations; all peoples, praise him.
For his mercy is strong over us and his faithfulness is for ever.
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.
The truth of the Lord will stand firm for ever.
Scripture ReadingIsaiah 1:16-18
Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean. Take your wrong-doing out of my sight. Cease to do evil. Learn to do good, search for justice, help the oppressed, be just to the orphan, plead for the widow. Come now, let us talk this over, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
Short Responsory
It is he who will free me from the snare of the hunters.
– It is he who will free me from the snare of the hunters.
And from the evil word.
– It is he who will free me from the snare of the hunters.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– It is he who will free me from the snare of the hunters.
CanticleBenedictus

The Messiah and his forerunner

The tax collector stood afar off and did not dare to raise his eyes to heaven. He beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
  for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption.
He has raised up the sign of salvation
  in the house of his servant David,
as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones,
  his prophets through the ages:
to rescue us from our enemies
  and all who hate us,
to take pity on our fathers,
  to remember his holy covenant
and the oath he swore to Abraham our father,
  that he would give himself to us,
that we could serve him without fear
  – freed from the hands of our enemies –
in uprightness and holiness before him,
  for all of our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High:
  for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path,
to let his people know their salvation,
  so that their sins may be forgiven.
Through the bottomless mercy of our God,
  one born on high will visit us
to give light to those who walk in darkness,
  who live in the shadow of death;
  to lead our feet in the path of peace.
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.
The tax collector stood afar off and did not dare to raise his eyes to heaven. He beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’
Prayers and intercessions
Christ the Lord has made men into a new creation. He gives them a new birth in the waters of baptism and nourishes them with his word and his body. Let us glorify him in our prayer.
– Renew us, Lord, by your grace.
Jesus, you are gentle and humble in spirit;
  grant us something of your pity, something of your kindness and something of your patience towards all men.
– Renew us, Lord, by your grace.
Teach us to be neighbours to the sad and the needy;
  let us imitate you, the good Samaritan.
– Renew us, Lord, by your grace.
May the Blessed Virgin, your Mother, intercede for religious women;
  through her prayers may they serve you in the Church ever more perfectly.
– Renew us, Lord, by your grace.
Grant us the gift of your mercy,
  pardon our sins and save us from punishment.
– Renew us, Lord, by your grace.
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.
As we rejoice in this yearly season of grace,
  and ponder the mysteries of Easter,
grant, Lord, that our joy may be completed
  by seeing them fulfilled in our lives.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
The Lord bless us, and keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
  Amen.

The psalms and canticles here are our own translation from the Latin. The Grail translation of the psalms, which is used liturgically in most of the English-speaking world, cannot be displayed on the Web for copyright reasons. The Universalis apps and programs do contain the Grail translation of the psalms.

Universalis podcast: The week ahead – from 15 to 21 March

St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland: his life and his breastplate. Sin: what makes a sin a sin? The Seven Deadly Sins and the Divine Comedy. The other story of the healing of a blind man. (27 minutes)
Episode notes.

You can also view this page in Latin and English.

Local calendars

General Calendar

Australia

Rockhampton

Copyright © 1996-2026 Universalis Publishing Limited: see universalis.com. Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible are published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Hodder & Stoughton and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers.
 		 This web site © Copyright 1996-2026 Universalis Publishing Ltd · Contact us · Cookies/privacy
(top)