EVERYDAY PRAYER

Memory of the Poor
Word of god every day
Libretto DEL GIORNO
Memory of the Poor
Monday, May 25

Psalmody

Psalm 34

Antiphon

I will rejoice in the salvation of the Lord.

O Lord, plead my case against my foes;
fight those who fight me.

Take u your buckler and shield;
arise to help me.

Take up the javelin and the spear
against those who pursue me.

O Lord say to my soul :
'I am your salvation'.

Let those who seek my life
be shamed and disgraced.

Lost those who plan evil against me
be routed in confusion.

Let them be like chaff before the wind;
let God's angel scatter them.

Let their path be slippery and dark;
let God's angel pursue them.

They have hidden a net for me wantonly;
they have dug a pit.

Let ruin fall upon them
and take them by surprise.

Let them be caught in the net they have hidden;
let them fall into their pit.

But my soul shall be joyful in the Lord
and rejoice in his salvation.

My whole being will say :
'Lord, who is like you

who rescue the weak from the strong
and the poor from the oppressor?'

Lying witnesses arise
and accuse me unjustly

They repay me evil for good :
my soul is forlorn.

When they were sick I went into mourning,
afflicted with fasting.

My prayer was ever on my lips,
as for a brother, a friend.

I went as though mourning a mother,
bowed down with grief.

Now that I am in trouble they gather,
they gather and mock me.

They take me by surprise and strike me
and tear me to pieces.

The provoke me with mockery
and gnash their teeth.

O Lord, how long will you look on?
Come to my rescue!

Save my life from these raging beasts,
my soul from these lions.

I will thank you in the great assemble
Amid the throng I will praise you.

Do not let my lying foes
rejoice over me.

Do not let those who hate me unjustly
wink eyes at each other.

They wish no peace to the peaceful
who live in the land.

They make deceitful plots
and with mouths wide open

their cry against me is :'Yes!
We say you do it!'

O Lord, you have seen, do not be silent,
do not stand afar off!

Awake, stir to my defence,
to my cause O' God!

Vindicate me, Lord in your justice,
do not let them rejoice.

Do not let them think :'Yes! We have won,
we have brought him to an end!'

Let them be shamed and brought to disgrace
who rejoice at my misfortune.

Let them be covered with shame and confusion
who raise themselves against me.

Let there be joy for those who love my cause,
Let them say without end:

'Great is the Lord who delights
in the peace of his servant'.

Then my tongue shall speak of your justice,
all day long of your praise.

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR

Prayer is the heart of the life of the Community of Sant'Egidio and is its absolute priority. At the end of the day, every the Community of Sant'Egidio, large or small, gathers around the Lord to listen to his Word. The Word of God and the prayer are, in fact, the very basis of the whole life of the Community. The disciples cannot do other than remain at the feet of Jesus, as did Mary of Bethany, to receive his love and learn his ways (Phil. 2:5).
So every evening, when the Community returns to the feet of the Lord, it repeats the words of the anonymous disciple: " Lord, teach us how to pray". Jesus, Master of prayer, continues to answer: "When you pray, say: Abba, Father". It is not a simple exhortation, it is much more. With these words Jesus lets the disciples participate in his own relationship with the Father. Therefore in prayer, the fact of being children of the Father who is in heaven, comes before the words we may say. So praying is above all a way of being! That is to say we are children who turn with faith to the Father, certain that they will be heard.
Jesus teaches us to call God "Our Father". And not simply "Father" or "My Father". Disciples, even when they pray on their own, are never isolated nor they are orphans; they are always members of the Lord's family.
In praying together, beside the mystery of being children of God, there is also the mystery of brotherhood, as the Father of the Church said: "You cannot have God as father without having the church as mother". When praying together, the Holy Spirit assembles the disciples in the upper room together with Mary, the Lord's mother, so that they may direct their gaze towards the Lord's face and learn from Him the secret of his Heart.
 The Communities of Sant'Egidio all over the world gather in the various places of prayer and lay before the Lord the hopes and the sufferings of the tired, exhausted crowds of which the Gospel speaks ( Mat. 9: 3-7 ), In these ancient crowds we can see the huge masses of the modern cities, the millions of refugees who continue to flee their countries, the poor, relegated to the very fringe of life and all those who are waiting for someone to take care of them. Praying together includes the cry, the invocation, the aspiration, the desire for peace, the healing and salvation of the men and women of this world. Prayer is never in vain; it rises ceaselessly to the Lord so that anguish is turned into hope, tears into joy, despair into happiness, and solitude into communion. May the Kingdom of God come soon among people!

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR