BELLS PEAL.
The Church of Our Lady of The Assumption
and The English Martyrs,
situated in the
heart of Cambridge, welcomes you this
Christmas Eve and invites you to join with
us, wherever you may be, to celebrate the
Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Saviour, Redeemer and King of the world.
May you be filled with the grace the Holy
Mass emanates to all believers!
The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us.
Let us pray.
Bless this crib, we pray, oh Lord, and all who look upon this manger.
May it remind us of the humble birth of Jesus, and raise up our thoughts
to him, who is God with us and saviour of all, and who lives and
reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.
In the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion
of the Holy Spirit be with you.
And with your spirit.
Brothers and sisters, let us acknowledge our sins,
and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries.
I confess to Almighty God and to you,
my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts
and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault.
Therefore I ask blessed Mary, ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints, and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
# Kyrie
# Eleison
# Christe eleison
# Kyrie
# Eleison #.
# Gloria
# Gloria, gloria in excelsis
# In excelsis Deo
# Et in terra pax, pax
# Pax hominibus
# Bonae voluntatis
# Laudamus te
# Benedicimus te
# Adoramus te
# Glorificamus te
# Gratias, gratias agimus
# Agimus tibi
# Propter magnam gloriam
# Gloriam tuam
# Domine Deus pater
# Rex coelestis
# Pater omnipotens
# Domine Deus
# Domine fili
# Filius
# Agnus dei
# Qui tollis peccata mundi
# Miserere, miserere
# Miserere nobis
# Qui tollis peccata mundi
# Suscipe deprecati
# Deprecationem nostram
# Qui sedes ad dexteram
# Dexteram patris
# Miserere, miserere nobis
# Quoniam tu solus
# Solus sanctus, tu solus, solus
# Dominus, quoniam tu solus
# Tu solus sanctus
# Dominus, tu solus altissimus
# Jesu, Jesu Christe
# Cum sancto spiritu
# In gloria Dei patris
# Amen, amen
# Amen
# Amen, amen, amen, amen
# Amen, amen, amen
# Amen, amen
# Amen #.
Let us pray.
O God, who has made this most sacred night
radiant with the splendour of the true light,
grant, we pray, that we, who have known the
mysteries of his light on earth, may also delight in His
gladness in Heaven.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of
the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
A reading from the Prophet Isaiah.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.
Those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shone.
You have multiplied the nation.
You have increased its joy.
They rejoice before you as with joy at the
harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder,
the rod of the oppressor, you have broken as on the day on Midian.
For every boot of the tramping warrior in
battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood
will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given,
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name will be called
wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, everlasting
Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace,
there will be no end on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness from this time
forth and for evermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# Who is Christ the Lord
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# Who is Christ the Lord
# O sing a new song to the Lord
# Sing to the Lord all the earth
# O sing to the Lord, bless his name
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# Who is Christ the Lord
# Let the heavens rejoice
# And the earth be glad
# Let the sea and all within it thunder praise
# Let the field and all it bears rejoice
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# Who is Christ the Lord
# Then will the trees of the wood shout for joy
# At the presence of the Lord for he comes
# He comes to judge the earth
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# Who is Christ the Lord
# He will judge the world with justice
# And the peoples with faithfulness
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# Who is Christ the Lord.#
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to Titus.
Beloved, the grace of God has appeared,
bringing salvation for all people, training us
to renounce ungodliness and
world passions, and to live self-controlled,
upright and godly lives in the present age,
waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing for the glory
of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ,
who gave himself for us to redeem us from
all lawlessnes, and to purify for himself a people
for his own possession who are zealous for
good works.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# He is Christ the Lord
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# He is Christ the Lord
# Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
# I bring you news, news of great joy
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# He is Christ the Lord
# Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
# Today a Saviour has been born to us
# He is Christ the Lord
# Alleluia!
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
Glory to you, O Lord.
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that
all the world should be registered.
This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria.
And all went to be registered, each to his own town.
And Joseph all went up from Galilee, from
the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of
David, which is called Bethlehem, because
he was of the house and lineage of David, to
be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who
was with child.
And while they were there, the time came for
her to give birth.
And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling
clothes and laid him in a manger, because
there was no place for them in the inn.
And in the same region there were shepherds
in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord
shone around them, and they were filled with
great fear.
And the angel said unto them, "Fear not, for
behold, I bring you good news of great joy
that will be for all the people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of
David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.
And this will be a sign for you -
you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling
cloths and lying in a manger."
And suddenly there was with the angel
a multitude of the heavenly host praising
God and saying,
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace among those with whom he is pleased!"
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
What it means to dwell in the land of darkness is hard
for us to understand in our contemporary world.
Even at this time of the year, our lives are flooded
by artificial light, our curtains are closed
against the darkness, we can cocoon ourselves
in a way our ancestors could not.
Something of the force of those
words addressed to us by Isaiah in our First Reading is lost to us.
We cannot hear fully the threat of darkness,
and the fear it brings.
We might even think of the fear of the dark as mere childishness -
something that we eventually grow out of.
But we can get a sense of Isaiah's forceful words
with a more serious examination of our lives.
That might reveal to us that there is still darkness which we fear.
Perhaps the darkness in our hearts, problems in friendships
or families, hardships.
Look to our world, too, and it's not all that
different from the darkness of Isaiah's own times.
There are wars and rumours of wars, the rod of oppression holds
many under its sway.
It is to this darkness which the light of Christ has come.
The Christ-child born in the manger is the light
to which shepherds and wise men trod, and it is the light
we make our way to as well, in order to dispel the darkness
of our minds and hearts.
This child comes with healing and grace to bring wholeness
to our sometimes shattered lives.
Tonight we celebrate the mystery that God has taken
to himself our frail human nature to heal it from within.
God did not come in the flesh to make us feel good.
This child has come to save us, to set us free, to dispel our
darkness with his healing light.
In time, this child will grow into the man who takes our darkness
to the wood of the Cross, and in his battle with death makes
death itself die for ever.
The light which Isaiah sees dimly
from a distance has now shed its light abroad.
At Easter, we will celebrate the truth that this light has shone
even in the darkness of the grave, dispelling the darkness
we perhaps fear most, the darkness of death.
We might ask, though, given the power of Christ's light,
how is our world as dark as it was for Isaiah?
A fair question.
The message of peace which rang across the sky with the song
of the angels has not made much progress in our fallen world.
That this is so shows us that what we celebrate tonight
is not a fairy tale, but an invitation
to a new way of life.
God does not replace the yoke of the oppressor with another yoke.
He comes peaceably, as a child, to win over our cold hearts.
God does not impose himself on us.
He invites us to return his love with our love,
to express that love in the transformation which St Paul
speaks of in his Letter to Titus in our Second Reading,
to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions,
to be made new.
This is not done with the click of the fingers,
or the wave of a magic wand, but in a free cooperation with
the newness which Christ brings.
A 14th-century priest and theologian called Meister Eckhart,
a member of my own religious order, the Dominicans, known
for his beautiful homilies, asked quite boldly in one
of his sermons,
"What good is it to me if Christ is born in Bethlehem
but is not born in me?
What use is it to me to call Mary full of grace,
if I am not full of grace also?"
Tonight is an invitation for Christ
to be born in us - to show mercy, to pardon wrongs done to us,
to be peaceable, to become holy, just as our Father
in heaven is holy.
Tonight, Christ comes to us to dispel our darkness,
and invites us to be bearers of his own light.
# Et incarnatus est
# De Spiritu Sancte
# Ex Maria Virgine
# Et homo factus est
Brothers and sisters, on this blessed night, we rejoice,
because our Saviour has been born.
Glorify the Father by offering him our Christmas petitions.
For all Christians gathered
for prayer in the radiance of this holy night.
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
For all people living in places of war and conflict, that the Prince of
peace may grant them lasting freedom.
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
For the sick, the poor, the bereaved and the lonely, that they may
be blessed with the gifts of companionship, comfort and hope.
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
For our families and friends, especially those who are far
from us, that God's undying light may always guard and protect them.
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
For our beloved dead, that
they may receive the reward of eternal glory.
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
Rejoicing under the protection of St Joseph, we seek the loving
intercession of Mary, heir of the eternal Word. -- bearer of the
eternal Word.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee,
blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit
of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now
and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
Hear our humble petitions, O Lord, as we welcome the coming
of your Son, that we may recognise him in our midst and find
joy in his saving presence.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
# For unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# For unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# For unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# And the government shall be upon his shoulder
# And his name shall be called
# Wonderful, Counsellor
# The Mighty God, the Everlasting Father
# The Prince of Peace
# Unto us a child is born
# For unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# Unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# And the government shall be upon his shoulder
# And his name shall be called
# Wonderful, Counsellor
# The Mighty God, the Everlasting Father
# The Prince of Peace
# Unto us a child is born
# For unto us a child is born
# For unto us a child is...
# For unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# And the government shall be
# Shall be upon his shoulder
# And the government shall be
# Shall be upon his shoulder
# And the government shall be upon his shoulder
# And his name shall be called
# Wonderful, Counsellor
# The Mighty God, the Everlasting Father
# Prince of Peace
# Unto us a child is born
# For unto us a child is born
# Unto us a son is given
# And the government
# The government shall be upon his shoulder
# And the government
# The government shall be upon his shoulder
# And his name shall be called
# Wonderful, Counsellor
# The Mighty God, the Everlasting Father
# The Prince of Peace
# The Everlasting Father
# The Prince of Peace #.
Pray my brothers and sisters that my sacrifice and
yours may be acceptable to
God, the almighty Father.
May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your
hands for the praise and glory of his name,
for our good, and the good of all his holy Church.
May the oblation of this day's feast be pleasing to you, O Lord, we pray,
that through this most holy exchange we may be found
on the likeness of Christ in whom our nature is united to you.
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right and just.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God.
For in the mystery of the Word made flesh,
a new light of your glory has shone upon the
eyes of our mind, so that, as we recognise in him God made
visible, we may be caught up through him in love of
things invisible.
And so, with Angels and Archangels, with Thrones and Dominions,
and with all the hosts and Powers of heaven,
we sing the hymn of your glory, as without end we acclaim...
# Sanctus
# Dominus Deus
# Deus Sabaoth
# Pleni sunt coeli et terra
# Gloria tua
# Hosanna in excelsis
# In excelsis
# Hosanna in excelsis
# In excelsis
# in excelsis #.
# Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini
# Hosanna in excelsis #.
You are indeed Holy, O Lord, and all you have created
rightly gives you praise, for through your Son
our Lord Jesus Christ, by the power and working
of the Holy Spirit, you give life to all things and make them holy,
and you never cease to gather a people to yourself,
so that from the rising of the sun to its setting a pure sacrifice may
be offered to your name.
Therefore, O Lord, we humbly implore you, by the same Spirit,
graciously make holy these gifts we have brought to you for
consecration, that they may become the Body and Blood of your Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ, at whose command we
celebrate these mysteries.
For on the night he was betrayed he himself took bread,
and, giving you thanks, he said the blessing,
broke the bread and gave it to his disciples,
saying, "Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body,
which will be given up for you."
In a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the chalice
and giving you thanks, he said the blessing
and gave the chalice to his disciples, saying,
"Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this
is the chalice of my Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal
covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this in memory of me."
The mystery of faith.
We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection,
until you come again.
Therefore, O Lord, as we celebrate the memorial of the saving
Passion of your Son, his wondrous Resurrection
and Ascension into heaven and as we look forward to his second
coming, we offer you in thanksgiving this holy and living sacrifice.
Look, we pray, upon the oblation of your Church, and,
recognising the sacrificial Victim by whose death you willed us
to reconcile us to yourself, grant that we, who are nourished
by the Body and Blood of your Son and filled with his Holy Spirit,
may become one body, one spirit in Christ.
May he make of us and eternal offering to you, so that we may
obtain an inheritance with your elect, especially
with the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, with blessed Joseph,
her Spouse, with your blessed Apostles and glorious Martyrs
and with all the Saints on whose constant intercession
we rely for unfailing help.
May this sacrifice of our reconciliation, we pray, O Lord,
advance the peace and salvation of all the world.
Be pleased to confirm in faith and charity your pilgrim Church
on earth, with your servant Leo our Pope and Peter our Bishop,
the Order of Bishops, all the clergy, and the entire
people you have gained for your own.
Listen graciously to the prayers of this family, whom you have
summoned before you.
In your compassion, O merciful Father, gather to yourself
all your children scattered throughout the world.
To our departed brothers and sisters and to all who were pleasing
to you at their passing from this life, give kind admittance
into your kingdom.
There we hope to enjoy for ever the fullness of your glory
through Christ our Lord, through whom you bestow
on the world all that is good.
Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honour
is yours, for ever and ever.
Amen, Amen, Amen!
At the Saviour's command and formed by
divine teaching, we dare to say...
# Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name
Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil
graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy,
we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress,
as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our
Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Lord, Jesus Christ, who said to your Apostles,
"Peace I leave you, my peace I give you.
Look not on your sins but on the faith of your Church,
and graciously grant her peace and unity
in accordance with your will, who live and reign for ever and ever."
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And with your spirit.
# Agnus Dei, agnus Dei
# Qui tollis peccata
# Peccata mundi
# Miserere, miserere nobis
# Miserere nobis
# Agnus Dei, agnus Dei
# Qui tollis peccata
# Peccata mundi
# Agnus Dei
# Qui tollis peccata
# Dona nobis pacem
# Dona nobis, nobis pacem
# Dona nobis pacem
# Dona, dona, dona nobis pacem
# Dona nobis pacem
# Dona, dona, dona pacem, pacem
# Dona nobis pacem
# Dona, dona, dona pacem, pacem
# Dona pacem
# Dona, dona nobis pacem
# Dona, dona
# Nobis pacem
# Dona, dona nobis pacem
# Dona, dona
# Nobis pacem
# Dona nobis pacem
# Dona, dona
# Dona nobis pacem
# Dona nobis pacem #.
Behold, the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away
the sins of the world.
Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.
Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof,
but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.
# O magnum mysterium
# Et admirabile sacramentum
# O magnum mysterium
# Et admirabile sacramentum
# Ut animalia viderent Dominum natum
# Jacentem in praesepio
# O magnum mysterium
# Et admirabile sacramentum
# Ut animalia viderent
# Dominum natum
# Jacentem in praesepio
# Beata virgo
# Cujus viscera meruerunt
# Portare Dominum Christum
# Beata
# Virgo
# O magnum mysterium
# Et admirabile sacramentum
# Ut animalia viderent
# Dominum natum
# Jacentem
# Jacentem praesepio #.
Let us pray.
Grant us, we pray, O Lord our God, that we,
who are gladdened by participation in the feast
of our Redeemer's Nativity, may through an honourable way of life
become worthy of union with him.
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Bow down for the blessing.
May the God of infinite goodness,
who by the Incarnation of his Son has driven darkness from the world,
and by that glorious Birth
has illumined this most holy night, drive far
from you the darkness of vice and illumine your hearts
with the light of virtue.
Amen.
May God who willed that the great joy
of his Son's saving Birth be announced to shepherds by the Angel,
fill your minds with the gladness he gives
and make you heralds of his Gospel.
Amen.
And may God who by the incarnation brought together the earthly and
heavenly rail, fill you with the gift of his piece and favour, and
make you sharers with the Church in heaven.
Amen.
May Almighty God bless you,
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit come down on you
and remain with you forever.
Amen.
Go forth, the Mass is ended.
Thanks be to God.
MUSIC: Scherzo "Alleluia" by Raymond Weidner.