is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? V. Glory.

COLLECT. Perfice. Grant us, O Lord, we beseech thee, thy assistance, whereby we may go through the observance of this holy fast, that what we have undertaken by thy appointment, we may accomplish by thy grace. Thro'.

LESSON. 3 Kings. xvii. 8. 16.

'N those days: The word of the Lord came to Elias the Thesbite, saying: Arise, go to Sarephta in the territory of the Sidonians, and abide there: for I have commanded the widow woman to give thee food. He arose, and went to Sarephta. And when he came to the gate of the city, he saw the widow woman gathering sticks and calling her, he said: Give me a little water in a vessel to drink. And as she went to fetch it, he called after her, saying: Bring me likewise, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thy hand. And she answered: As the Lord thy God liveth, I have no bread, but only a handful of meal in a vessel, and a little oil in a pot; and behold I am gathering two sticks, that I may go home, and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. Elias said to her: fear not, but go and do what thou hast said: but first make for me of that little meal a small cake on the embers, and bring it to me and afterwards thou shalt make some for thyself and thy son. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel : The vessel of meal shall not waste, nor the pot of oil be diminished, till the day, in which the Lord shall send rain upon the earth. She went, and did as Elias had bid her; and he, and she, and her family did eat; and from that day the vessel of meal wasted not, neither was the pot of oil diminished, according to the word of the Lord spoken by Elias.

GRAD. Ps. 54. Cast thy solicitude on the Lord, and he will feed thee. V. When I cried out to the Lord, he heard my voice against those who were coming upon me.

Α

GOSPEL. Matt. xxiii. 1. 12.

T that time; Jesus spoke to the multitude and to his disciples, saying; The Scribes and Pharisees sit in the chair of Moses; and therefore, whatever they say to you, observe and do it; but do not according to

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their works; for they say, and do not. For they bind heavy and insupportable burdens, and they lay them on men's shoulders; but they will not move them with a finger of their own. And they do all their works to be seen by men; for they wear broad philacteries, and long fringes. And they love the highest places at feasts, and the first chairs in the synagogues, and to be saluted in the market-place, and to be called by men, Rabbi. But be not you called Rabbi, for you have only one Master, and you are all brethren. And call no man your father on earth, for you have only one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be you called masters, for you have only one Master, who is the Christ. He that is the greatest among you, shall be your servant ; and whosoever exalteth himself shall be humbled; and he that humbleth himself, shall be exalted.

OFFERT. Ps. 50. Have mercy on me, O Lord, according to thy great mercy; O Lord, blot out my iniquity.

SECRET. Mercifully sanctify us, O Lord, by these mysteries; and let them cleanse us from all earthly vice, and bring us to the enjoyment of thy heavenly gifts.

Thro'.

COMM. Ps. 9. I will publish all thy wonders; I will rejoice in thee, and be transported with joy; I will sing to the glory of thy name, O thou the Most High.

POSTCOMM. Ut sacris. Make us always, we beseech thee, O Lord, obedient to thy commandments, that we may be worthy of thy gifts, which we have partaken of. Thro'.

Let us pray. Bow down your heads to God.

PRAYER. Propitiare. Be appeased, O Lord, by our prayers, and heal the infirmities of our souls; that our sins being forgiven, we may ever rejoice in thy blessings. Thro'.

WEDNESDAY.

MASS. INTROIT. Psalm 37.

ORSAKE me not, O Lord my God, depart not from me; come to my assistance, O Lord the God of my salvation. Ps. Lord rebuke me not in thy fury; nor chastise me in thy wrath. V. Glory.

COLLECT. Populum tuum. Mercifully regard thy people, O Lord, we beseech thee, and grant that those whom thou commandest to abstain from flesh, may likewise cease from all sin. Thro'.

LESSON. Esther xiii. 8. 17.

N those days: Mardocheus prayed to the Lord, say

under thy power; and there is none that can withstand thy will, if thou determine to save Israel. Thou didst make heaven aud earth, and whatsoever is under the cope of the heavens. Thou art the Lord of all, neither can any resist thy Majesty. And now Lord, King of Kings, God of Abraham, take pity on thy people, for our enemies design our destruction, and the ruin of thy inheritance. Despise not thy lot which thou didst purchase for thyself out of Egypt. Hear my prayer, and be merciful to thy lot and possession, and turn our mourning into joy, that we may live and praise thy name, O Lord, and shut not the mouths of those that sing thy praises, O Lord our God.

GRAD. Ps. 27. Save thy people, O Lord, and bless thy inheritance. V. To thee, O Lord, have 1 cried out; answer me, O my God, lest I become like those that go down into the pit.

A

TRACT. Deal not with us, O Lord, p. 212.

GOSPEL. Matt. xx. 17. 28.

T that time: Jesus going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside, and said to them; Bebold we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, and deliver him up to the Gentiles to be insulted, scourged, and crucified; and the third day he shall rise again. Then came to him the mother of the sons of Zebedee, with her sons, worshipping him, desiring something of him: Who said to her: What dost thou desire? She saith to him: Appoint that these my two sons may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left, in thy kingdom. And Jesus answering, said: You know not what you ask. Can you drink the cup which I am to drink? They say to him, we can: He saith to them: My cup indeed you shall drink; but to sit on my right hand, or on my left, is not mine to give you; but it is for those, for whom it is prepared by my Father. And the other ten disciples hearing this, were moved with

indignation against the two brothers. But Jesus calling them to him, said: You know that the princes of the Gentiles lord it over them, and that the great ones exer⚫ cise over them their power. It shall not be so among you; but whosoever would be a great one among you, let him wait on you; and whosoever would be a great one among you, let him wait on you; and whosoever would be a chief among you, shall be your servant : even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life for the redemption of many.

OFFERT. Ps. 24. To thee, O Lord, have I raised up my soul; in thee, O my God, I put my trust; let me not be put to shame; neither let my enemies scoff at me; for none that wait for thee shall be put to shame.

SECRET. Mercifully look down, O Lord, on the offerings we make thee, and by the entercourse of these sacred mysteries,' release us from the bonds of our sins.

Thro.'

COMM.

Ps. 10. The Lord is just, and loveth

justice; he hath regard to what is right.

POSTCOMM. Sumptis. We beseech thee, O Lord, that the receiving this sacrament may forward our eternal redemption. Thro,

Let us pray. Bow down your heads to God.

PRAYER. Deus innocentia. O God, the restorer and lover of innocence, draw to thyself the hearts of thy servants, that being inflamed by thy Holy Spirit, they may be constant in faith, and zealous in good works.

Thro'.

THURSDAY.

MASS. INTROIT. Ps. 69.

GOD, come thou to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me; let my enemies, who seek my life, be put to confusion and shame. Ps. May they be put to flight, and ashamed, who seek me harm. V. Glory.

COLLECT.

Prasta nobis. Grant us, we beseech thee, O Lord, the asistance of thy grace; that whilst we duly apply ourselves to fasting and prayer, we may be delivered from all enemies both of soul and body. Thro'.

TH

LESSON. Jer. xvii. 5. 10.

HUS saith the Lord God; Cursed is he, that putteth his trust in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be as a tamerisk in the desert, and not see when good cometh; but shall dwell in dryness in the desert, in a salt-land, and not inhabitable. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose only confidence is in God. And he shall be as a tree that is planted by the water-side, that sendeth out its roots towards the moisture and it shall not fear, when the heat cometh. And the leaf thereof shall be green, and in the time of drought it shall not be uneasy, neither shall it cease at any time to bring forth fruit. The heart of man is perverse and unsearchable, who can know it? I am the Lord that search the heart, and try the reins: who reward every one according to his way, and according to the fruit of his devices: saith the Lord Almighty.

v.

GRAD. Ps. 78. Forgive us, O Lord, our offences, lest the Gentiles say: Where is now their God? Help us, O God our Saviour, and for the glory of thy name deliver us, O Lord.

A

GOSPEL. Luke xvi. 19. 31.

T that time: Jesus said to the Pharisees: There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen, and feasted sumptuously every day. And there was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who lay at his gate full of sores, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table; but no one would give them to him; but even the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by the Angels into Abraham's bosom. And the rich man also died, and was buried in hell. And lifting up his eyes, when he was in torments, he saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And crying out, he said: Father Abraham, take pity on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water, that he may cool my tongue, for I suffer extreme torments in this flame. And Abraham said to him: Son, remember in thy life-time thou didst receive good things, and Lazarus evil; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. Moreover, there is a great chaos

Expl. Relies on the strength of man.