Sing a New Psalm:
Communicating with God Through
the Prayers of the Church

Volume I: Lauds & Vespers

Lesson 10 Awake, My Soul!
Psalm 57, Psalm 80, and Psalm 81
Thursday Lauds (Week I)

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)*
New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE)*
Catechism of the Catholic Church
ex libris (in our library)
next lesson: God Will Ransom My Soul

This material coordinates with Lesson 10 on pages 42–45 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. Our Catholic Bible study is based on The Abbey Psalms and Canticles, an English translation of the Psalms prepared by the monks at Conception Abbey in 2010 and first published as The Revised Grail Psalms. The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is a revision of that work, finished in 2020 and published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Wording and numbering of some Psalms and verses in other translations may differ. This new translation of the Psalms in the process of being added to all English-language Liturgy of the Hours books used in the United States. The USCCB also plans a liturgical Bible based on the NABRE translation.

“Unlike other prayers in sacred Scripture, the prayers contained in the Psalms are not inserted into a narrative story that specifies their meaning and function. Instead, the Psalms are given to the believer precisely as a text of prayer. Since they are the Word of God, the believer who prays the Psalms speaks to God using the very words that God himself has given to us. Thus, in praying the Psalms we learn to pray. The Psalms are a school of prayer.”—Pope Benedict XVI

welcome to our in-depth study of the Psalms
We invite groups and individuals to check out the sample first lesson from this 28-lesson Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study. Our online study pages include additional questions, commentary, and prayers based on the Psalm texts. Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers has been granted an imprimatur. A digital version of this study can be purchased from our website shop. Volume II: Vigils, Day Prayer & Compline is scheduled for publication in 2025. If you have a Bible-related question or comment, click on one of the “ask us your question” or “what do you think” buttons on any online study page.

open with prayer
It’s always wise to begin any Bible study with prayer, whether reading the Scriptures alone or meeting with others in a discussion study group. You can pray using your own words, pray one of the Psalms in this lesson, or use one of the opening prayers on our website. We especially like the following:

Lord Jesus, you promised to send your Holy Spirit
to teach us all things.
As we read and study your word today,
allow it  to touch our hearts and change our lives. Amen.

how is wakefulness an important Christian trait?
This illustration, created by Turning to God’s Word co-founder Tami Palladino, depicts the theme from Psalm 57 that’s the basis for the lesson’s title—”Awake, My Soul!” Wakefulness is a fitting theme for Psalms prayed at Lauds (Morning Prayer). The word Lauds comes from the Latin verb laudate, which means praise, a key element found in all of the prayers in the Psalms. Biblical wakefulness, however, involves more than praise and much more than merely not falling asleep. Make a list of all the ways that you can think of in which wakefulness plays an important part in God’s plan.   What point to you think that Jesus is trying to make on the occasions when he urges his followers to remain awake? How might adhering to Jesus’ instruction help you in your own life? What can you do to be more alert to specific Christian behavior that God may be calling you to practice? Click on Tami’s illustration (right) to enlarge it. Her original illustration is on page 43 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers.

sexual immorality—you could look it up in our archives
In Psalm 81, the Psalmist bemoans the bad behavior of God’s people. The Old Testament repeatedly identifies a great many forms of bad behavior as idolatry. To learn about the somewhat surprising link between sexual immorality and idolatry, read Lost in Translation, an online column in which Turning to God’s Word author Matthew Phelps helps readers connect with ideas expressed in the original languages of the Scriptures. New Lost in Translation entries are posted on Mondays, and past entries are archived on our website. Contact us if you’d like to receive Lost in Translation by email every week.

the popes inspire us—God isn’t talking to himself
“God’s Word Is Not a Monologue” on page 45 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers, looks at the way men and women relate to God. Pope St. John Paul II explains how the Hebrew religious practices upon which Christianity is based depended upon a loving conversation in which the LORD speaks and humanity responds. What words can you express to God to indicate your love?

a related video—prayer is a dialogue
At Turning to God’s Word, we’re especially fond of lectio divina, which is built on the understanding of prayer as a dialogue with God. You can read some of our thoughts about lectio divina or watch Turning to God’s Word author Matthew Phelps’ video on the topic, The Bible as the Living Word of God. In “God’s Word Is Not a Monologue” on page 45 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers, the Holy Father Pope St. John Paul II offers his thoughts about how Psalm 81 reinforces the importance of listening to God with the obedience of faith.


read the Catechism—how well do you know your faith?
The Scriptures are replete with warnings against idolatry. Many Christians assume that concepts such as idolatry and heresy are things of the past, nothing about which anyone in our day and age need be concerned. In reality, both idolatry and heresy are alive and well, and perhaps a bigger threat to the Church than ever. Can you answer the following question without looking at the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

How many things can you name that constitute modern idols? To read some suggestions of things men and women can worship above God, refer to paragraph 2113 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

the best Catholic commentary about Scripture
To find out more about how Church teaching is supported by passages in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers, check out the Index of Citations in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Links to the primary Scripture passages in the lesson (Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition [RSVCE*]) and relevant paragraphs in the Catechism are provided here. Not every passage in the biblical text for this study is referenced in a Catechism paragraph, however, including Psalm 57, Psalm 80, and Psalm 81 in this lesson.

don’t forget about our indexes & extra online material
If you’re trying to locate information about a specific Scripture passage, you can look it up in the index at the back of the study book or sample lesson. If you want to find a particular commentary, you can look up its title in the topics index. To learn more about another book of the Bible for which there’s a Turning to God’s Word study, visit the online study directories to read the commentaries and watch any accompanying videos. Finally, if you have a question or would like to make a comment about any of our studies, you can use one of the “ask us your question” or “what do you think” buttons to email our authors.

ex libris—Church documents & books about religious topics
Link to magisterial documents referred to in our Bible studies at ex libris—magisterial documents. This listing includes significant recent encyclicals as well as a number of historical Church documents. Recommended books related to Scripture study can be found at ex libris—main bookshelf.

wondering how to pronounce some of these words?
The following links are to readings from the New International Version (NIV) Bible. To listen, open one of the links and click on the audio icon above the printed text. Although not taken from the translations used in our study materials, the NIV readings provide an audio guide to pronunciation of words in this lesson’s primary biblical texts. A close online version of the translation of the Bible used in Catholic liturgy in the United States as well as an audio guide for daily Mass readings for the current month can be found on the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

Psalm 57 (NIV)
Psalm 80 (NIV)
Psalm 81 (NIV)

round black doveclose with a Psalms-based prayer for Thursday Lauds (Week I)
Many of our Catholic study groups like to conclude their discussions with a prayer based on the scriptural focus of their lesson. If you’re uncomfortable composing your own Bible-based prayers, you can follow our four easy steps. If you prefer, you can pray any of the Psalms in this lesson, or you can use the following short prayer.

O God, you are ever-watchful over your faithful people.
Help us to remain alert and vigilant in our spiritual lives
so that we may be ready to heed your voice
and unreservedly follow you whenever you call.
We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ,
who never wavered from doing your will. Amen.

Lesson 11 God Will Ransom My Soul, Thursday Vespers (Week I)—Psalm 49 and Psalm 72
Lesson 9 An Overflowing Heart, Wednesday Vespers (Week I)—Psalm 32, Psalm 45, and Psalm 62

you also may like our study of the Gospel According to John
The Gospel According to John: An Encounter with Grace & Truth, a 25-lesson Catholic Bible study with an imprimatur, examines the Fourth Gospel’s view of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, with special emphasis on the institution of the sacraments of the Church as the means by which Christians are purified and made holy. This recently revised study includes maps and additional commentary, and takes a closer look at the way in which Jesus relates to individual men and women. Click on the book’s cover to view a sample lesson.

start a Turning to God’s Word Bible study
Thank you for your interest in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. More information about beginning a Turning to God’s Word Bible study can be found on this website at start a Bible study, and Tami, Matthew, and I are available to answer questions or discuss concerns. Contact us to start this or one of our other studies or to have your schedule listed with other TtGW study groups on our website. —Jennifer

*There are seven deuterocanonical books in the Old Testament—the Books of Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and First and Second Maccabees, as well as some passages in the Books of Esther and Daniel. Protestants usually refer to these works as “apocryphal,” a word that means “outside the (Protestant) canon” because they’re excluded from most Protestant Bibles. The word “deuterocanonical” means “second canon”; Catholics use that word to refer to any section of the Catholic Old Testament for which there are no extant, or existing, Hebrew manuscripts. All of the deuterocanonical books appear in the Septuagint, the earliest remaining versions of which date to the 1st century B.C. This Greek translation of the Old Testament was in common use by Jews at the time of Jesus. Learn more by reading How Do Catholic & Protestant Bibles Differ?

Turning to God’s Word printed Bible studies use the 2006 Revised Standard Version Second Catholic Edition (RSV2CE) translation for all Scripture references except the Psalms, which are taken from The Abbey Psalms and Canticles, prepared by the monks of Conception Abbey and published in 2020 by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). All Scripture links for the online study pages for Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers are to the 1966 Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE) translation. The New International Version (NIV) audio recordings follow the same chapter and verse numbering as the RSV Catholic translations, but the NIV doesn’t include the deuterocanonical passages.

The 1966 RSVCE uses archaic pronouns and verb forms such as “thee,” “thou,” “didst” in the Psalms and in direct quotations attributed to God. The 2006 RSV2CE replaces these with more accessible English. The few significant translation changes in the RSV2CE include rendering almah as “virgin” in the Book of Isaiah 7:14 and restoring the term “begotten” in the Gospel According to John 3:16.

The Psalms in this Bible study reflect numbering used in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles; Psalms numbering may vary in other translations. Numbering also may vary for a few other passages in this Bible study. Turning to God’s Word studies follow the numbering in the Revised Standard Version Catholic translations (RSVCE and RSV2CE). Discrepancies in the New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE) are noted in the Index of Scripture Citations in the study book and the online sample.

The companion to this Catholic Bible study from Turning to God’s Word, Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume II: Vigils, Day Prayer & Compline, will cover Psalms not included in Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. Volume II: Vigils, Day Prayer & Compline is scheduled for publication in 2025.