Confitemini Domino. A thanksgiving to God for his benefits to his people Israel. Alleluia.
“Bless the Lord, O my soul: O Lord my God, thou art exceedingly great. Thou hast put on praise and beauty: And art clothed with light as with a garment. Who stretchest out the heaven like a pavilion: Who coverest the higher rooms thereof with water. Who makest the clouds thy chariot: who walkest upon the wings of the winds. Who makest thy angels spirits: and thy ministers a burning fire.” (Psalms 104:1-4)
Let us praise and bless God in one accord being all made one in Christ. As God has willed; his Church is a light to the world and the scriptures have been spread to all the ends of the earth.
“Bless the Lord, O my soul.” Let the soul of us all, made one in Christ, say this. “O Lord my God, Thou art magnified exceedingly!” (ver. 1). Where art Thou magnified? “Confession and beauty Thou hast put on.” Confess ye, that ye may be beautified, that He may put you on. “Clothed with light as a garment” (ver. 2). Clothed with His Church, because she is made “light” in Him, who before was darkness in herself, as the apostle saith: “Ye were sometime darkness, but now light in the Lord.” “Stretching out the heaven like a skin:” either as easily as thou dost a skin, if it be “as easily,” so that thou mayest take it after the letter; or let us understand the authority of the Scriptures, spread out over the whole world, under the name of a skin; because mortality is signified in a skin, but all the authority of the Divine Scriptures was dispensed unto us through mortal men, whose fame is still spreading abroad now they are dead.”(4) -St. Augustine
Heaven is reflected in the Divine Scripture which teaches us the law of love above all else. One who knows God and love will pour forth the living waters that proceed from the Holy Spirit.
“‘Who covereth with waters the upper parts thereof’” (ver. 3). The upper parts of what? Of Heaven. What is Heaven? Figuratively only we said, the Divine Scripture. What are the upper parts of the Divine Scripture? The commandment of love, than which there is none more exalted. But wherefore is love compared to waters? Because ‘the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who is given unto us.’ Whence is the Spirit Himself water? because ‘Jesus stood and cried, He that believeth on Me, out of his bosom shall flow rivers of living water.’ Whence do we prove that it was said of the Spirit? Let the Evangelist himself declare, who followeth it up, and saith, ‘But this spake He of the Spirit, which they were to receive, who should believe on Him.’ ‘Who walketh above the wings of the winds;’ that is, above the virtues of souls. What is the virtue of a soul? Love itself. But how doth He walk above it? Because the love of God toward us is greater than ours toward God.(4) -St. Augustine
Unless one is on fire for the faith, he can not inflame the hearts of others.
“‘Who maketh spirits His angels, and flaming fire His ministers’ (ver. 4): that is, those who are already spirits, who are spiritual, not carnal, He maketh His Angels, by sending them to preach His gospel. ‘And flaming fire His ministers.’ For unless the minister that preacheth be on fire, he enflameth not him to whom he preacheth.”(4) -St. Augustine
Through the working of the Holy Spirit and grace, we are made righteous and our works through Him.
“And see what followeth: ‘Thou shalt send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be made’ (ver. 30). Thou shalt take away their spirit, and send forth Thine own: Thou shalt take away their spirit: they shall have no spirit of their own. Are they then forsaken? ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit:’ but they are not forsaken. They refused to have a spirit of their own: they shall have the Spirit of God. Such were our Lord’s words to the future martyrs: ‘It is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.’ Attribute not your courage to yourselves. If it is yours, He saith, and not Mine, it is obstinacy, not courage. ‘For we are His workmanship,’ saith the Apostle, ‘created unto good works.’ From His Spirit we have received grace, that we may live unto righteousness: for it is He that justifieth the ungodly. ‘Thou shalt take away their spirit, and they shall fail; Thou shalt send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be made: and Thou shalt renew the face of the earth:’ that is, with new men, confessing themselves to have been justified, not righteous of their own power, so that the grace of God is in them. What then? When He hath taken away our spirit, we shall be turned again to our dust, beholding to our edification our weakness, that when we receive His Spirit we may be refreshed. See what followeth: ‘Be the glory of the Lord forever’ (ver. 31). Not thine, not mine, not his, or his; not for a season, but ‘forever.’ ‘The Lord shall rejoice in His works.’ Not in thine, as if they were thine: because if thy works are evil, it is through thy iniquity; if good, it is through the grace of God. ‘The Lord shall rejoice in His works.’”(4) -St. Augustine
The praise of God will come naturally from our whole being through our love for Him.
“‘I will sing unto the Lord in my life’ (ver. 33). What will sing? Everything that is willing. Let us sing unto the Lord in our life. Our life at present is only hope; our life will be eternity hereafter: the life of mortal life, is the hope of an everlasting life. ‘I will praise my God while I have my being.’ Since I am in Him for ever and ever, while I have my being, I will praise my God. Let us not imagine that, when we have commenced praising God in that state, we shall have any other work: our whole life will be for the praises of God. If we become weary of Him whom we praise, we may also become weary of praising. If He is ever loved, He is ever praised by us.”(4) -St. Augustine
Women's Prayer Group In Christ 