I had a nice find on Ebay this week that I’d like to plug. It’s a
My Daily Psalter, by Kevin O’Sullivan, OFM, Franciscan Herald Press, 1963.
It’s all 150 Psalms arranged in the order they appear in the 1962 LOTH for each hour and day of the weekly cycle. Each Psalm has an introduction, and a personal lesson/reflection at its end, with an explanation of difficult verses after a each stanza or two. Here’s a peek at parts of Psalm 143:
VESPERS
PSALM 143 Prayer for victory and prosperity
This psalm is a mosaic of pieces taken from other psalms. It praises God for all he has already does for one so insignificant as the psalmist is. Then the psalmist prays for divine aid against enemies, he promises a public thanksgiving when victory comes and finally asks for prosperity for himself and the people.
143, 1-11
Blessed be the Lord, my rock who trains my hands for battle, my fingers for war;
My refuge and my fortress, my stronghold, my deliver,
My shield in whom I trust, who subdues peoples under me.
Lord, what is man, that you notice him;
the son of men, that you take thought of him?
man is like a breath, his days, like a passing shadow.
trains my hands for battle: My hands for the sword, my fingers for the bow. God had made him successful in battle, the ideas here and in verse 2 are taken from psalm 17 which is composted by David.
Lord what is man: In comparison with God, man is as nothing, his life passes as quickly as a breath, a shadow disappears. The psalmist wonders that God pays any heed to him.
Incline your heavens, O Lord, and come down; touch the mountains, and they shall smoke;
Flash forth lightning, and put them to flight,
shoot your arrows, and rout them;
Reach out your hand from on high, deliver me and rescue me from many waters, from the hands of aliens,
Whose mouths swear promises while their right hands are raised in perjury.
O’ God, I will sing a new song to you; with a ten-stringed lyre I will chant your praise.
You who give victory to kings, and deliver David, your servant.
From the evil sword deliver me; and rescue me from the hands of aliens,
Whose mouths swear false promises while their right hands are raised in perjury.
Incline your heavens: God dwells in the heavens, he asks him to bend towards earth and rout the enemies of the psalmist; lightnings are God’s arrows.
rescue me: From the waters of tribulation from treacherous perfidious foes.
victory to kings: Quoting from psalm 17 he mentions the victories given by God to David, asking for similar victories for himself.
PERSONAL LESSON
That the psalms helped to preserve the knowledge of God’s mercies and the trust and confidence of pious Israelites in him, down through the ages, is evidenced here. This man borrows the words and sentiments of his predecessors and makes them his own. For us too the psalms are still a store house of religion, we can and should make their words and sentiments our own. It is for this reason the Church has appointed them as part of our daily prayers. They are inspired and inspiring.
I love psalmistry and it is an ancient part of our tradition, especially of our Catholic monastic heritage. This little gem is one of the better ways I’ve seen to incorporate the full Psalter for those living a secular vocation.
Amazon.com has a couple of used copies for less than what I paid on Ebay if anyone is interested.
Best, :tiphat:
