Universalis
Friday 7 August 2026    (other days)
Saints Sixtus II, Pope, and his Companions, Martyrs 
 or Friday of week 18 in Ordinary Time 
 or Saint Cajetan, Priest 

Using calendar: Denmark - Greenland. You can change this.

Vespers (Evening Prayer)

Based on the liturgy for the Common of Martyrs.

INTRODUCTION
O God, come to our aid.
  O Lord, make haste to help us.
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. Alleluia.

Hymn
All hail the power of Jesus’ name;
  Let Angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem
  To crown him Lord of all.
Crown him, ye Martyrs of your God,
  Who from his altar call;
Praise him whose way of pain ye trod,
  And crown him Lord of all.
Hail him, ye heirs of David’s line,
  Whom David Lord did call;
The God Incarnate, Man Divine,
  And crown him Lord of all.
Let every tribe and every tongue
  To him their hearts enthral,
Lift high the universal song,
  And crown him Lord of all.

Psalm 114 (116A)
Thanksgiving

Lord, keep my soul from death, my feet from stumbling.
I love the Lord, for he has heard
  the cry of my appeal;
because he has turned his ear to me as I call on him,
  day by day.
The ropes of death surrounded me,
  Hell held me tight,
I had found pain and tribulation –
  but I called on the Lord’s name:
  “O Lord, free my soul.”
The Lord is compassionate and just;
  our God takes pity on us.
The Lord cares for the simple –
  I was brought low, but he saved me.
Return, my soul, to your rest,
  for the Lord has looked after you;
he has rescued my spirit from death, my eyes from tears,
  he has saved my feet from stumbling.
I shall walk in the presence of the Lord
  in the land of the living.
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, keep my soul from death, my feet from stumbling.

Psalm 120 (121)
The guardian of the people

My help shall come from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
I shall lift my eyes to the hills:
  where is my help to come from?
My help will come from the Lord,
  who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip:
  he will not doze, your guardian.
Behold, he will not doze or sleep,
  the guardian of Israel.
The Lord is your guardian, the Lord is your shade;
  he is at your right hand.
By day the sun will not strike you;
  nor the moon by night.
The Lord will guard you from all harm;
  the Lord will guard your life.
The Lord will guard your coming and your going
  both now and 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.
My help shall come from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

CanticleApocalypse 15

A hymn of adoration

Your ways are just and true, King of all the ages.
Great and wonderful are your deeds,
  O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
  O King of the ages!
Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord?
  For you alone are holy.
All nations shall come and worship you,
  for your judgements have been revealed.
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.
Your ways are just and true, King of all the ages.

Scripture Reading1 Peter 4:13-14
Beloved, if you can have some share in the sufferings of Christ, be glad, because you will enjoy a much greater gladness when his glory is revealed. It is a blessing for you when they insult you for bearing the name of Christ, because it means that you have the Spirit of glory, the Spirit of God resting on you.

Short Responsory
Rejoice in the Lord. Let the just shout for joy.
Rejoice in the Lord. Let the just shout for joy.
Let the upright sing praise.
Rejoice in the Lord. Let the just shout for joy.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Rejoice in the Lord. Let the just shout for joy.

CanticleMagnificat

My soul rejoices in the Lord

The saints, who followed in the footsteps of Christ, rejoice in heaven. They gave their life for love of Christ: therefore, they will reign with him for ever.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
  and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation.
For he has shown me such favour –
  me, his lowly handmaiden.
Now all generations will call me blessed,
  because the mighty one has done great things for me.
His name is holy,
  his mercy lasts for generation after generation
  for those who revere him.
He has put forth his strength:
  he has scattered the proud and conceited,
  torn princes from their thrones;
  but lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
  the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel,
  he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers,
  to Abraham and his children 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 saints, who followed in the footsteps of Christ, rejoice in heaven. They gave their life for love of Christ: therefore, they will reign with him for ever.

Prayers and intercessions
Let us give thanks to the king of martyrs, for this is the hour when he offered himself in the last supper and laid down his life on the cross.
We praise you, Christ the Lord.
We praise you, Christ our Saviour, example and strength of the martyrs, because you have loved us to the end;
We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because you have promised repentant sinners the reward of eternal life,
We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because you have called the Church to offer the blood of the new and eternal covenant, the blood shed for the remission of sins,
We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because you have brought us to this day with the gift of faith intact,
We praise you, Christ the Lord.
Because of the many brothers who today have come to share in your saving death,
We praise you, Christ the Lord.

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.

Almighty God,
  by the power of the Holy Spirit you enabled Saint Sixtus and his companions
  to lay down their lives for your word,
  and to bear witness to Jesus.
Give us a ready faith
  and the courage to profess it.
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.

You can also view this page in Latin and English.


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