8 December, The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

This seventeenth century Spanish painting is remarkable in that it depicts Saint Joachim and Saint Anne together with the Immaculate Conception, their daughter full of grace. It is likely that this painting was made for a Carthusian monastery. It is now in the National Gallery of Scotland.

ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
MR
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
and my soul shall be joyful in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garment of salvation,
and with the robe of justice he has covered me,
as a bride adorned with her jewels (Is 61:10).

COLLECT
O God, who by the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin
prepared a worthy dwelling for your Son
and, foreseeing his death on the Cross,
preserved her from all stain;
grant that we too, by her intercession,
may come into your presence with pure hearts.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.

GENERAL INTERCESSIONS
For the holy Church of God, the Bride of the Lamb;
that she may fill this earthly exile with a heavenly joy
and be, for all men and women, a place where beauty is at home,
let us pray in silence, for the Lord is near. Pause for silent prayer.

For all who desire peace;
that, by means of the humble prayer of the Rosary,
they may learn the secret of peace and bear witness, in every situation,
to Christ “who is our peace” (Eph 2:14),
let us pray in silence, for the Lord is near. Pause for silent prayer.

For the leaders of nations;
that they may foster reverence for the gift of life
in the unborn, the unwanted, the sick, and the dying,
let us pray in silence, for the Lord is near. Pause for silent prayer.

For all who suffer;
that the intercession of the Immaculate Virgin Mary
may bring them comfort, hope, and a joy that no one will take way,
let us pray in silence, for the Lord is near. Pause for silent prayer.

For ourselves;
that, together with the New Eve,
we may adhere to the response of the New Adam,
uttered from the Tree of the Cross
and made present in this and in every Eucharist,
let us pray in silence, for the Lord is near. Pause for silent prayer.

COLLECT AT THE GENERAL INTERCESSIONS
Almighty and ever-living God
who, walking in the paradise you had created,
called out in search of Adam;
deliver us, we beseech you,
from the fear and shame that cause us to hide from your face,
and, in the voice of your Son from the Cross,
hear the response that you await
from all who are born of water and of the Spirit,
that, together with the immaculate Virgin Mary
we may glory in your gifts
and, in praising you here, taste already of the joys of heaven.
Through Christ our Lord.

PRAYER OVER THE OFFERINGS
Accept, O Lord,
the saving victim which we offer you
on this solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
and grant that, as we proclaim her free of all stain
by your prevenient grace,
we too may be freed from all our faults by her intercession.
Through Christ our Lord.

PREFACE
Truly it is right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God.
You kept the Blessed Virgin Mary
free from the mark of original sin;
you endowed her with the fullness of your grace
so as to make her a worthy mother of your Son.
In Mary, you mark the beginning of your Church,
which is to be presented to Christ
as his fair and spotless bride.
Purest of virgins, she was to bear your Son,
the innocent Lamb who takes away our sins.
You chose her before all other women
to be for your people an advocate of grace
and a pattern of holiness.
And therefore, united with the choirs of angels,
we praise you, as we joyfully proclaim:

COMMUNION ANTIPHON
Glorious things are said of you, O Mary,
for from you has arisen the Sun of Justice,
Christ our God.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Lord our God,
may the sacrament that we have received heal within us
the wounds of that fault from which you preserved
the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
in so wonderful a way.
Through Christ our Lord.

SOLEMN BLESSING
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
accomplish in you
all things according to the counsel of his will
for the praise of his glory (cf. Eph 1:11).
R. Amen.

May Christ, the Son of the Virgin Mary,
by his glorious grace,
make you victorious over sin and evil
for the day of his coming.
R. Amen.

May the Holy Spirit
who overshadowed the immaculate Virgin Mary,
enlighten the eyes of your heart today
and reveal to you the surpassing beauty of holiness.
R. Amen.