Chesterton Radio Morning Prayer
Sunday, March 15, 2026 Fourth Sunday of Lent (Laetare Sunday)
Sunday March 15, 2026, is the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Laetare Sunday) in Sunday Year A. For Morning Prayer, the office uses Psalm 117 (118), the Daniel 3 canticle, Psalm 150, and the short reading from Nehemiah 8:9–10.
Invitatory
Antiphon: Christ the Light of the world has opened our eyes; come, let us adore him.
Come let us praise the Lord with joy:
let us joyfully sing to God our saviour.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving;
and make a joyful noise to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods:
for in his hand are all the ends of the earth:
and the heights of the mountains are his.
For the sea is his, and he made it:
and his hands formed the dry land.
Come let us adore and fall down:
and weep before the Lord that made us.
For he is the Lord our God:
and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
Today if you shall hear his voice, harden not your hearts:
as in the provocation, according to the day of temptation in the wilderness:
where your fathers tempted me, they proved me, and saw my works.
Forty years long was I offended with that generation, and I said:
These always err in heart.
And these men have not known my ways:
so I swore in my wrath that they shall not enter into my rest.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Antiphon: Christ the Light of the world has opened our eyes; come, let us adore him.
Public-Domain Hymn
The King of Love My Shepherd Is
The King of love my Shepherd is,
Whose goodness faileth never;
I nothing lack if I am his,
And he is mine for ever.
Where streams of living water flow
My ransomed soul he leadeth,
And where the verdant pastures grow
With food celestial feedeth.
Perverse and foolish oft I strayed,
But yet in love he sought me,
And on his shoulder gently laid,
And home, rejoicing, brought me.
In death’s dark vale I fear no ill
With thee, dear Lord, beside me;
Thy rod and staff my comfort still,
Thy cross before to guide me.
And so through all the length of days
Thy goodness faileth never;
Good Shepherd, may I sing thy praise
Within thy house for ever.
Morning Prayer (Lauds)
Psalm 117 (118)
Antiphon: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Give praise to the Lord, for he is good:
for his mercy endureth for ever.
Let Israel now say, that he is good:
that his mercy endureth for ever.
Let the house of Aaron now say,
that his mercy endureth for ever.
Let them that fear the Lord now say,
that his mercy endureth for ever.
In my trouble I called upon the Lord:
and the Lord heard me, and enlarged me.
The Lord is my helper:
I will not fear what man can do unto me.
The Lord is my helper:
and I will look over my enemies.
It is good to confide in the Lord,
rather than to have confidence in man.
It is good to trust in the Lord,
rather than to trust in princes.
All nations compassed me about;
and, in the name of the Lord, I have been revenged on them.
Surrounding me they compassed me about:
and in the name of the Lord I have been revenged on them.
They surrounded me like bees,
and they burned like fire among thorns:
and in the name of the Lord I was revenged on them.
Being pushed I was overturned that I might fall:
but the Lord supported me.
The Lord is my strength and my praise:
and he is become my salvation.
The voice of rejoicing and of salvation
is in the tabernacles of the just.
The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength:
the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me:
the right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength.
I shall not die, but live:
and shall declare the works of the Lord.
The Lord chastising hath chastised me:
but he hath not delivered me over to death.
Open ye to me the gates of justice:
I will go into them, and give praise to the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord, the just shall enter into it.
I will give glory to thee because thou hast heard me:
and art become my salvation.
The stone which the builders rejected;
the same is become the head of the corner.
This is the Lord’s doing,
and it is wonderful in our eyes.
This is the day which the Lord hath made:
let us be glad and rejoice therein.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Antiphon: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Canticle — Daniel 3
Antiphon: Bless the Lord, all ye works of the Lord: praise and exalt him above all for ever.
Blessed art thou, O Lord, the God of our fathers:
and worthy to be praised, and glorified, and exalted above all for ever:
and blessed is the holy name of thy glory:
and worthy to be praised and glorified and exalted above all in all ages.
Blessed art thou in the holy temple of thy glory:
and exceedingly to be praised and exalted above all for ever.
Blessed art thou on the throne of thy kingdom:
and exceedingly to be praised and exalted above all for ever.
Blessed art thou who beholdest the depths, and sittest upon the cherubims:
and worthy to be praised and exalted above all for ever.
Blessed art thou in the firmament of heaven:
and worthy of praise and glorious for ever.
O all ye works of the Lord, bless the Lord:
praise and exalt him above all for ever.
O ye angels of the Lord, bless the Lord:
O ye heavens, bless the Lord.
O all ye waters that are above the heavens, bless the Lord:
O all ye powers of the Lord, bless the Lord.
O ye sun and moon, bless the Lord:
O ye stars of heaven, bless the Lord.
O every shower and dew, bless ye the Lord:
O all ye spirits of God, bless the Lord.
O ye fire and heat, bless the Lord:
O ye cold and heat, bless the Lord.
O ye dews and hoar frost, bless the Lord:
O ye frost and cold, bless the Lord.
O ye ice and snow, bless the Lord:
O ye nights and days, bless the Lord.
O ye light and darkness, bless the Lord:
O ye lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord.
O let the earth bless the Lord:
let it praise and exalt him above all for ever.
O ye mountains and hills, bless the Lord:
O all ye things that spring up in the earth, bless the Lord.
O ye fountains, bless the Lord:
O ye seas and rivers, bless the Lord.
O ye whales, and all that move in the waters, bless the Lord:
O all ye fowls of the air, bless the Lord.
O all ye beasts and cattle, bless the Lord:
O ye sons of men, bless the Lord.
O let Israel bless the Lord:
let them praise and exalt him above all for ever.
O ye priests of the Lord, bless the Lord:
O ye servants of the Lord, bless the Lord.
O ye spirits and souls of the just, bless the Lord:
O ye holy and humble of heart, bless the Lord.
O Ananias, Azarias, Misael, bless ye the Lord:
praise and exalt him above all for ever.
Let us bless the Father and the Son with the Holy Ghost:
let us praise and exalt him above all for ever.
Blessed art thou, O Lord, in the firmament of heaven:
and worthy of praise, and glorious, and exalted above all for ever.
Antiphon: Bless the Lord, all ye works of the Lord: praise and exalt him above all for ever.
Psalm 150
Antiphon: Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord.
Praise ye the Lord in his holy places:
praise ye him in the firmament of his power.
Praise ye him for his mighty acts:
praise ye him according to the multitude of his greatness.
Praise him with sound of trumpet:
praise him with psaltery and harp.
Praise him with timbrel and choir:
praise him with strings and organs.
Praise him on high sounding cymbals:
praise him on cymbals of joy:
let every spirit praise the Lord.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Antiphon: Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord.
Short Reading
Nehemiah 8:9–10
This day is holy to the Lord our God: mourn not, and weep not. Go your way, eat fat meats, and drink sweet wine, and send portions to them that have not prepared for themselves: because it is the holy day of the Lord, and be not sad; for the joy of the Lord is our strength. (Universalis)
Short Responsory
Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on us.
Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on us.
Thou wast wounded for our sins.
Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on us.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on us.
Benedictus
Antiphon: The man called Jesus anointed mine eyes; I washed, and now I see.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel;
because he hath visited and wrought the redemption of his people:
And hath raised up an horn of salvation to us,
in the house of David his servant:
As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets,
who are from the beginning:
Salvation from our enemies,
and from the hand of all that hate us:
To perform mercy to our fathers,
and to remember his holy testament,
The oath, which he swore to Abraham our father,
that he would grant to us,
That being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
we may serve him without fear,
In holiness and justice before him,
all our days.
And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest:
for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways:
To give knowledge of salvation to his people,
unto the remission of their sins:
Through the bowels of the mercy of our God,
in which the Orient from on high hath visited us:
To enlighten them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death:
to direct our feet into the way of peace.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Antiphon: The man called Jesus anointed mine eyes; I washed, and now I see.
The Gospel for this Sunday in Year A is the healing of the man born blind, which grounds the light-and-sight theme of this antiphon. (USCCB)
Intercessions
Let us bless our Redeemer, who is the light of the world and the joy of all who seek him.
R. Lord, open our eyes, that we may see.
Thou didst call light out of darkness,
— shine this day upon thy Church and upon all who seek thy face.
R. Lord, open our eyes, that we may see.
Thou didst give sight to the blind man,
— heal the blindness of our pride, our fear, and our self-deceit.
R. Lord, open our eyes, that we may see.
Teach us to rejoice even in penance,
— that holy gladness may strengthen the weak, the weary, and the wandering.
R. Lord, open our eyes, that we may see.
Remember the poor, the lonely, the tempted, and all who dwell in grief,
— and let the brightness of thy mercy visit them.
R. Lord, open our eyes, that we may see.
Guide all candidates for the Sacraments, and all who are returning to thee this Lent,
— that they may walk steadily toward the waters of life.
R. Lord, open our eyes, that we may see.
Our Father
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Concluding Prayer
O Lord Jesus Christ,
who art the true light that enlighteneth every man that cometh into this world,
grant that on this Laetare Sunday we may rejoice in thy mercy
without forgetting the price of our redemption.
Open the eyes of our hearts,
that seeing our sin we may not despair,
and seeing thy glory we may not grow proud,
but may walk humbly and gladly in thy service,
who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost,
God, world without end. Amen.
Paradox of the Day
The Church tells us to rejoice before Lent is over, because Christian joy does not come after the battle only; it appears in the battle, like a lamp carried through the dark.
Chesterton Quote
“The men signed of the cross of Christ go gaily in the dark.”
— G. K. Chesterton, The Ballad of the White Horse
Reflection
Laetare Sunday is one of the gentlest paradoxes in the whole Christian year. The Church has not forgotten that we are sinners; she has merely remembered, in the middle of our repentance, that we are also loved. We are like the blind man in the Gospel, not yet philosophers, not yet saints, but suddenly and stubbornly able to say one thing with certainty: whereas I was blind, now I see. The world always imagines that religion begins by darkening things. Christianity begins by lighting a candle.
And yet it is precisely in Lent that this strange brightness appears. The fast is not interrupted because sacrifice has failed, but because sacrifice is succeeding. The soul, having been a little emptied of noise, is more able to hear music. A man who has been stumbling through his own vanity may at last see a doorway. A woman burdened by many small griefs may suddenly discover that grace has been carrying half the load all along. God does not merely pardon us at the end of the road; he gives us signs of home while we are still walking.
That is why holy joy is so serious a thing. It is not cheerfulness pasted on sadness; it is the confidence that Christ has already entered the darkness before us. Lent is not a tunnel at the end of which there is light. Lent is a road on which the Light has already met us.
Chesterton Radio
Listener-supported reflections for the long road home.