Universalis
Thursday 16 July 2026    (other days)
Our Lady of Mount Carmel 
 on Thursday of week 15 in Ordinary Time

Using calendar: England - Southwark. You can change this.

Morning Prayer (Lauds)

If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.
Based on the liturgy for the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

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
Mary Immaculate, star of the morning,
  Chosen before the creation began,
Chosen to bring in the light of thy dawning,
  Woe to the serpent and rescue to man.
Here, in this world of both shadow and sadness
  Veiling thy splendour, thy course hast thou run:
Now thou art throned in all glory and gladness,
  Crowned by the hand of thy Saviour and Son.
Sinners, we worship thy sinless perfection;
  Fallen and weak, for thy pity we plead:
Grant us the shield of thy sov’reign protection,
  Measure thine aid by the depth of our need.
Bend from thy throne at the voice of our crying,
  Bend to this earth which thy footsteps have trod:
Stretch out thine arms to us, living and dying,
  Mary Immaculate, Mother of God.

Psalm 86 (87)
Jerusalem, mother of all nations

Glorious things are told of you, O city of God.
Its foundations are set on the sacred mountains –
  the Lord loves the gates of Zion
  more than all the tents of Jacob.
Glorious things are said of you, city of God!
I shall count Rahab and Babylon among those who acknowledge me.
  The Philistines, Tyrians, Ethiopians –
  all have their birthplace here.
Of Zion it will be said “Here is the birthplace of all people:
  the Most High himself has set it firm.”
The Lord shall write in the book of the nations:
  “Here is their birthplace.”
They will sing as in joyful processions:
  “All my being springs from you.”
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.
Glorious things are told of you, O city of God.

CanticleIsaiah 40

The good shepherd is God, the Most High

The Lord is coming in power: the prize of his victory is with him.
Behold, the Lord God comes in strength, and his right arm triumphs.
Behold, his reward is with him, his prize is before him.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock,
  he gathers the lambs in his arms and lifts them to his breast;
  he carries the pregnant ewes.
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
  and arranged the heavens with his palms?
Who has measured the dust of the earth,
  weighed out the mountains,
  weighed the hills on the balance?
Who directed the spirit of the Lord?
Who gave him advice in his task?
With whom did he consult? Who taught him?
Who led him in the paths of justice,
  gave him knowledge,
  showed him the way of understanding?
Behold, the Gentiles are like a drop in a bucket,
  a piece of fluff on the scales.
All the islands are a handful of dust.
What burnt-offering could be worthy of the Lord?
  The forests of Lebanon could not feed that fire;
  all the animals of Lebanon would not be enough for that sacrifice.
All the nations count for nothing before him:
  for him, they are nothingness and emptiness.
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 Lord is coming in power: the prize of his victory is with him.

Psalm 98 (99)
The Lord our God is holy

Exalt the Lord our God; bow down before his holy mountain.
The Lord reigns! let the peoples tremble.
  He is enthroned on the cherubim: let the earth shake.
The Lord is great in Zion,
  he is high above all the peoples.
Let them proclaim his name – great and terrible it is,
  let them proclaim his holy name,
  the powerful king, who loves justice.
The laws you establish are just:
  you have given Jacob uprightness and right judgement.
Praise the Lord, our God,
  worship at his footstool,
  for he is holy.
Moses and Aaron were among his prophets,
  Samuel one of those who called on him.
They called on the Lord and he listened,
  and from the pillar of cloud he spoke to them.
They kept his decrees
  and the commands he gave them.
Lord our God, you listened to them;
  O God, you were gracious to them,
  but you punished their wrongdoing.
Praise the Lord, our God,
  worship on his holy mountain,
  for the Lord our God is holy.
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.
Exalt the Lord our God; bow down before his holy mountain.

Scripture Reading(Isaiah 61:10)
I exult for joy in the Lord,
my soul rejoices in my God,
for he has clothed me in the garments of salvation,
he has wrapped me in the cloak of integrity,
like a bride adorned in her jewels.

Short Responsory
The Lord chose her. He chose her before she was born.
The Lord chose her. He chose her before she was born.
He made her live in his own dwelling-place.
The Lord chose her. He chose her before she was born.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
The Lord chose her. He chose her before she was born.

CanticleBenedictus

The Messiah and his forerunner

I sought wisdom openly in my prayer; it has come to flower like early grapes.
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.
I sought wisdom openly in my prayer; it has come to flower like early grapes.

Prayers and intercessions
Let us proclaim the greatness of our Saviour who chose to be born of the Virgin Mary. Confident that he will hear us, we ask:
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Sun of justice, you showed your day was dawning in the immaculate Virgin Mary;
  help us to walk in the daylight of your presence.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Eternal Word, in the living flesh of Mary you found a dwelling place on earth;
  remain with us for ever in hearts free from sin.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Christ, our Saviour, you willed that your mother should be there when you died;
  through her intercession may we rejoice to share your suffering.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Loving Saviour, while hanging on the cross, you gave your mother Mary to be the mother of John;
  let us be known as her children by our way of living.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.

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 Lord and God,
  let the gracious intercession of our Lady of Mount Carmel help us.
Under her protection,
  may we come to the mountain of God, Christ the Lord,
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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