St. Nicholas Wednesdays
This liturgy for Wednesdays is from the Basilica di San Nicola, Bari, Italy.
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Invocation
Almighty and eternal God, who have willed to give us the glorious Saint Nicholas as our protector, from that seat of light where he enjoys your divine presence, turn your merciful eyes upon us.
Grant us the help and graces appropriate to our present needs, both spiritual and temporal.
Remember your Church, in its people and in its pastors, that it may be enlightened by your truth and inflamed by your charity.
Convert, through the intercession of our holy Patron, to firm intentions of good those who live wrapped in the darkness of ignorance and error.
Console the afflicted, provide for the needy, comfort the faint-hearted, defend the oppressed, assist the sick, and let us all experience the effects of Saint Nicholas worthy patronage before you, the supreme giver of all good. Amen.
Responsory
If you ask for miracles,
the blind see,
the lame walk
and the bones of Nicholas
sweat manna.
The dangers cease,
the storms calm,
say the sailors.
Return to Father Adeodatus
and the Hagarenes are amazed,
and three virgins are saved,
say the people of Patara.
You, O beloved land, guard
the sacred bones received as a pledge
for all peoples,
which come to you from afar,
O happy Bari.
To the sailors who call upon you,
quickly offer your help
and the sea is calm.
Praying to you, Mary,
you intercede with God
in the pains of childbirth
for the mothers who invoke you.
May your holy manna
be health and a pledge;
May all be freed
from the dangers of life,
from wars, from hunger,
O glorious Saint Nicholas,
great Father. Amen
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit
The dangers cease,
the storms calm down,
say the sailors.
After a short pause
Pray for us, Holy Father Nicholas.
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray.
O God, who hast worked and continues to work miracles every day through Saint Nicholas, your glorious confessor and bishop, grant, we beseech you, that through his merits and intercession we may be freed from the pains of hell and from every danger. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayer for Christian Unity
Lord Jesus Christ,
on the eve of your passion
you prayed that all your disciples
might be perfectly united as you are in the Father and the Father in you,
grant that we may painfully feel the pain of our divisions
and that we may honestly discover within ourselves and eradicate
every feeling of indifference, distrust and mutual hatred.
Grant us the grace to encounter everyone in you,
so that from our hearts and our lips
your prayer for the Christian unity may rise unceasingly,
as you desire and by the means you desire.
In you, who are perfect charity,
grant that we may find the path that leads to unity
in obedience to your love and your truth. Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
May Almighty God bless you, Father and Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Go in peace.
Let us give thanks to God.
Hymn to Saint Nicholas
or
Come, O mighty Shepherd of Myra!
Come, O mighty Shepherd of Myra!
A ray of holy goodness inspires us.
Light our hearts with celestial love:
protect and defend our city.
A divine ray shines In your eyes:
on the harsh path you are a faithful guide.
For how many dying people you are a blossoming hope!
Your welcome manna can save everything.
You come, and you call from remote lands
foreign people are devoted to Bari.
O sun of Lycia, decorum of Bari,
lord of the seas, comfort and virtue.
Mercoledi di San Nicola, from the Basilica Pontificia San Nicola, Bari, Italy. Used by permission