Compline (Night Prayer)

O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
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.

This is an excellent moment for an examination of conscience. In a communal celebration of Compline, one of the penitential acts given in the Missal may be recited.

A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.

Psalm 87 (88)
The prayer of one gravely ill
Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.
Lord God, my saviour, I have cried out to you by day and by night. Let my prayer come before you: turn your ear to my request. For my soul is full of evils, my life has come close to its end. I am counted with those who go down to the pit: I am left without help. I am one of the dead, like the murdered who sleep in their tombs, who lie there forgotten, cut off from your care. You have thrust me down into the pit, to the gloom and the shadow of death. Your anger weighs heavy upon me; you have drowned me under your waves. You have taken my friends away from me: you have made me hateful in their sight, I am shut in, I may not go out. My eyes are weak from my sufferings. I have called to you, Lord, all the day; I have stretched out my hands to you. Is it for the dead that you perform your wonders? Will the ghosts rise up and proclaim you? In the tomb, will they tell of your kindness? Will they tell of your faithfulness in the place of the lost? Will your wonders be known in the darkness, or your righteousness in the land of oblivion? And so I have called out to you, Lord, and in the morning my prayer will come before you. With what purpose, Lord, do you reject my soul? Why do you hide your face from me? I am poor; from my youth I have been dying; I have borne the terrors you sent, I am lost in confusion. Your anger has overrun me, your terrors have broken me: they have flowed round me like water, they have besieged me all the day long. You have taken my friends and those close to me: all I have left is shadows. 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. Alleluia. Alleluia.

Reading	(Jeremiah 14:9)
You, Lord, are in our midst, and we are called by your name; therefore do not abandon us, Lord, our God.

Short Responsory	?
Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia. - Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia. You have redeemed us, Lord, God of faithfulness, alleluia, alleluia. - Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. - Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

Canticle	Nunc Dimittis
Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia.
Now, Master, you let your servant go in peace. You have fulfilled your promise. My own eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all peoples. A light to bring the Gentiles from darkness; the glory of your people Israel. 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.
Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia.

Prayer
Let us pray. Lord, let us be so united with your only Son that we become worthy to rise with him into new life, who lives and reigns for ever and ever, Amen.

May the almighty Lord grant us a quiet night and a perfect end.

A M E N

Final Antiphon
Queen of Heaven, be joyful, Alleluia. You who were worthy to bear him. Alleluia. He has risen, as he promised. Alleluia. Pray for us to God. Alleluia.

May 2008
Thu 8	Thursday of the 7th week of Eastertide
Fri 9
Sat 10
Sun 11	Pentecost
Mon 12	Monday of week 6 of the year or Saints Nereus and Achilleus, Martyrs or Saint Pancras, Martyr
Tue 13	Tuesday of week 6 of the year or Our Lady of Fátima
Wed 14	Saint Matthias, Apostle Feast
Thu 15
Fri 16

Calendar used: Europe - England

Site sponsored by Cardbox – "The database for real people"