Evening Prayer 3.5.17, Wednesday of Easter 3

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Anglican, Calamity, Creation, Easter, Escape, Famine, Holocaust, Japan, Jesus Christ, Jewish State, Joy, Peace among Nations, Prayer, Prisoners, Video

The crowds were looking for Jesus; and when they reached him, they wanted to prevent him from leaving them.

Masha Leon has died, a Jewish refugee saved from the Holocaust by Chiune Sugihara, the Japanese vice-consul in Lithuania and one of the Righteous Gentiles honored by Israel. Through incredible hardships, treacherous betrayals, acts of grace and amazing escapes, she journeyed from Warsaw to the Soviet Union and eventually made her to way to New York City, where she became a fixture as the society columnist for the Yiddish newspaper The Forward. But none of the stories she wrote could match one of her own; while visiting her father in a Lithuanian prison, another prisoner’s wife confided her hope of getting a message to her husband by carving a bar of soap. Ms. Leon’s mother suggested embroidering it on a handkerchief instead. The item did make it through, and the prisoner’s cellmate, Ms. Leon’s father, was able to tell what the shaky lettering meant: the woman was escaping to pre-statehood Israel. That prisoner was Menachem Begin, one of the founders of Israel and later its prime minister. (Forward Association)

On this day the Lord has acted; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Hymn: O Gracious Light

O gracious Light,
pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing your praises, O God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds.

Psalm 119:25-48

25 My soul cleaves to the dust; *
give me life according to your word.
26 I have confessed my ways, and you answered me; *
instruct me in your statutes.
27 Make me understand the way of your commandments, *
that I may meditate on your marvelous works.
28 My soul melts away for sorrow; *
strengthen me according to your word.
29 Take from me the way of lying; *
let me find grace through your law.
30 I have chosen the way of faithfulness; *
I have set your judgments before me.
31 I hold fast to your decrees; *
O LORD, let me not be put to shame.
32 I will run the way of your commandments, *
for you have set my heart at liberty.

33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes, *
and I shall keep it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, and I shall keep your law; *
I shall keep it with all my heart.
35 Make me go in the path of your commandments, *
for that is my desire.
36 Incline my heart to your decrees *
and not to unjust gain.
37 Turn my eyes from watching what is worthless; *
give me life in your ways.
38 Fulfill your promise to your servant, *
which you make to those who fear you.
39 Turn away the reproach which I dread, *
because your judgments are good.
40 Behold, I long for your commandments; *
in your righteousness preserve my life.

41 Let your loving-kindness come to me, O LORD, *
and your salvation, according to your promise.
42 Then shall I have a word for those who taunt me, *
because I trust in your words.
43 Do not take the word of truth out of my mouth, *
for my hope is in your judgments.
44 I shall continue to keep your law; *
I shall keep it for ever and ever.
45 I will walk at liberty, *
because I study your commandments.
46 I will tell of your decrees before rulers *
and will not be ashamed.
47 I delight in your commandments, *
which I have always loved.
48 I will lift up my hands to your commandments, *
and I will meditate on your statutes.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

John Bridges: Christ Healing the Mother of Simon Peter

THE LESSON
Luke 4:38-44 (NRSV)

After leaving the synagogue Jesus entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked him about her. Then he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she got up and began to serve them.

As the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various kinds of diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on each of them and cured them. Demons also came out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Messiah.

At daybreak he departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowds were looking for him; and when they reached him, they wanted to prevent him from leaving them. But he said to them, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.” So he continued proclaiming the message in the synagogues of Judea.

Canticle: The Song of Simeon
Luke 2:29-32

Lord, you now have set your servant free *
to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *
whom you have prepared for all the world to see:
A Light to enlighten the nations, *
and the glory of your people Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord.
who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

THE PRAYERS

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen.

That this evening may be holy, good, and peaceful,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That your holy angels may lead us in paths of peace and goodwill,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be pardoned and forgiven for our sins and offenses,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That there may be peace to your Church and to the whole world,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may depart this life in your faith and fear,
and not be condemned before the great judgment seat of Christ,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be bound together by your Holy Spirit
in the communion of all your saints,
entrusting one another and all our life to Christ,
We entreat you, O Lord.

Bible-reading habits, or lack of, among Americans, according to a just-released study published by the Public Religion Research Institute in Washington, D.C.

Collect of the Day: Third Sunday of Easter

O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: Open the eyes of our faith, that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

A Collect for Protection

O God, the life of all who live, the light of the faithful, the strength of those who labor, and the repose of the dead: We thank you for the blessings of the day that is past, and humbly ask for your protection through the coming night. Bring us in safety to the morning hours; through him who died and rose again for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Rainbow lorikeet, native to the eastern seaboard of Australia, and since introduced to Western Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. (source unknown)

For the Beauty of the Earth

We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the beauty of earth and sky and sea; for the richness of mountains, plains, and rivers; for the songs of birds and the loveliness of flowers. We praise you for these good gifts, and pray that we may safeguard them for our posterity. Grant that we may continue to grow in our grateful enjoyment of your abundant creation, to the honor and glory of your Name, now and for ever. Amen.

A Collect for Peace

Most holy God, the source of all good desires, all right judgments, and all just works: Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, so that our minds may be fixed on the doing of your will, and that we, being delivered from the fear of all enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through the mercies of Christ Jesus our Savior. Amen.

Anglican Cycle of Prayer: Diocese of Nassau and the Bahamas

Wednesday Evening Prayer List

For Disaster & Terror Victims
Deadly tornadoes in the U.S. South and Midwest
Drought in Southern Africa, India and Papua New Guinea
Refugee Crisis in the Middle East and Europe
Famine in Niger, Mali, Ethiopia, Yemen and South Sudan

For Prisoners
Blake
Matthew
The Rev. Andrew Brunson, missionary in Turkey

Prisoners of ISIS & Boko Haram: #BringBackOurGirls
Victims of human trafficking, including U.S. & Australian detainees
Guantanamo; political prisoners

The innocent, the guilty, the victims of crime
Children and families of prisoners
Prison chaplains and ministries, especially Sally & Francesca
John P. Craine House, diversion and prevention programs
Sr. Helen Prejean and all prison reformers
All who are condemned to die

For those who suffer for the sake of Conscience

O God our Father, whose Son forgave his enemies while he was suffering shame and death: Strengthen those who suffer for the sake of conscience; when they are accused, save them from speaking in hate; when they are rejected, save them from bitterness; when they are imprisoned, save them from despair; and to us your servants, give grace to respect their witness and to discern the truth, that our society may be cleansed and strengthened. This we ask for the sake of Jesus Christ, our merciful and righteous Judge. Amen.

Prayer for Mission

O God and Father of all, whom the whole heavens adore: Let the whole earth also worship you, all nations obey you, all tongues confess and bless you, and men and women everywhere love you and serve you in peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplications to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfil now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.++

VIDEO: Explaining Resurrection Sunday – The Rt. Rev. Laish Boyd, Bishop of Nassau and the Bahamas, ZNS Network, 2015

Morning Prayer 1.5.17, Monday of Easter 3

Posted on April 30, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Climate Change, Copts, Creation, Easter, Egypt, England, Environment, Healing, Interfaith Relations, Jesus Christ, Joy, Labour, Mission, Music Video, National Life, Peace among Nations, Prayer, Religious Toleration, Roman Catholic Church, Science, Terrorism, UK, USA

Whoever knows God listens to us, and whoever is not from God does not listen to us. From this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

A very large crowd marched on Washington, D.C. Saturday, protesting U.S. government policy on climate change. It was the 100th day of Donald Trump’s presidency, amid record-setting heat. The most popular signs said “There is no Planet B.” (Washington Post)

Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Christ Our Passover
1 Cor. 5:7-8; Rom. 6:9-11; 1 Cor. 15:20-22

Alleluia.
Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us; *
therefore let us keep the feast,
Not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, *
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Alleluia.

Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; *
death no longer has dominion over him.
The death that he died, he died to sin, once for all; *
but the life he lives, he lives to God.
So also consider yourselves dead to sin, *
and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Alleluia.

Christ has been raised from the dead, *
the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since by a man came death, *
by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all die, *
so also in Christ shall all be made alive. Alleluia.

Psalm 25

1 To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul;
my God, I put my trust in you: *
let me not be humiliated,
nor let my enemies triumph over me.
2 Let none who look to you be put to shame; *
let the treacherous be disappointed in their schemes.
3 Show me your ways, O LORD, *
and teach me your paths.
4 Lead me in your truth and teach me, *
for you are the God of my salvation;
in you have I trusted all the day long.
5 Remember, O Lord, your compassion and love, *
for they are from everlasting.
6 Remember not the sins of my youth and my transgressions; *
remember me according to your love
and for the sake of your goodness, O LORD.
7 Gracious and upright are you, O LORD; *
therefore you teach sinners in your way.
8 You guide the humble in doing right *
and teach your way to the lowly.
9 All the paths, O LORD, are love and faithfulness *
to those who keep your covenant and your testimonies.
10 For your Name’s sake, O LORD, *
forgive my sin, for it is great.
11 Who are they who fear the LORD? *
the LORD will teach them the way that they should choose.
12 They shall dwell in prosperity, *
and their offspring shall inherit the land.
13 The LORD is a friend to the God-fearing *
and will show them the holy covenant.
14 My eyes are ever looking to the LORD; *
who shall pluck my feet out of the net.

15 Turn to me and have pity on me, *
for I am left alone and in misery.
16 The sorrows of my heart have increased; *
bring me out of my troubles.
17 Look upon my adversity and misery *
and forgive me all my sin.
18 Look upon my enemies, for they are many, *
and they bear a violent hatred against me.
19 Protect my life and deliver me: *
let me not be put to shame, for I have trusted in you.
20 Let integrity and righteousness preserve me; *
for my hope has been in you.
21 Deliver Israel, O God, *
out of all their troubles.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE LESSONS
Daniel 4:19-27 (NRSV)

Then Daniel, who was called Belteshazzar, was severely distressed for a while. His thoughts terrified him. The king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or the interpretation terrify you.” Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you, and its interpretation for your enemies! The tree that you saw, which grew great and strong, so that its top reached to heaven and was visible to the end of the whole earth, whose foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, and which provided food for all, under which animals of the field lived, and in whose branches the birds of the air had nests—it is you, O king! You have grown great and strong. Your greatness has increased and reaches to heaven, and your sovereignty to the ends of the earth. And whereas the king saw a holy watcher coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave its stump and roots in the ground, with a band of iron and bronze, in the grass of the field; and let him be bathed with the dew of heaven, and let his lot be with the animals of the field, until seven times pass over him’—this is the interpretation, O king, and it is a decree of the Most High that has come upon my lord the king: You shall be driven away from human society, and your dwelling shall be with the wild animals. You shall be made to eat grass like oxen, you shall be bathed with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, until you have learned that the Most High has sovereignty over the kingdom of mortals, and gives it to whom he will. As it was commanded to leave the stump and roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be re-established for you from the time that you learn that Heaven is sovereign. Therefore, O king, may my counsel be acceptable to you: atone for your sins with righteousness, and your iniquities with mercy to the oppressed, so that your prosperity may be prolonged.”

Canticle: A Song of Hannah
1 Samuel 2:1-8

My heart exults in you, O God; *
my triumph song is lifted in you.
My mouth derides my enemies, *
for I rejoice in your salvation.
There is none holy like you, *
nor any rock to be compared to you, our God.
Do not heap up prideful words or speak in arrogance; *
Only God is knowing and weighs all actions.
The bows of the mighty are broken, *
but the weak are clothed in strength.
Those once full now labor for bread, *
those who hungered now are well fed.
The childless woman has borne sevenfold, *
while the mother of many is forlorn.
God destroys and brings to life, casts down and raises up; *
gives wealth or takes it away, humbles and dignifies.
God raises the poor from the dust; *
and lifts the needy from the ash heap
To make them sit with the rulers *
and inherit a place of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are God’s *
on which the whole earth is founded.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Easter window at St. Thomas’s, Bath, New York. (Carl Johengen)

1 John 3:19 – 4:6 (NRSV)

And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.

And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming; and now it is already in the world. Little children, you are from God, and have conquered them; for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore what they say is from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us, and whoever is not from God does not listen to us. From this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

Canticle: A Song of Christ’s Humility
Philippians 2:6-11

Though in the form of God, *
Christ Jesus did not cling to equality with God,
But emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, *
and was born in human likeness.
Being found in human form, he humbled himself *
and became obedient to death, even death on a cross.
Therefore, God has highly exalted him *
and given him the name above every name,
That at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, *
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, *
to the glory of God the Father.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Christ reads the scroll of Isaiah. (Domini Canes)

Luke 4:14-30 (NRSV)

Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” He said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.'” And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

THE PRAYERS

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial,
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.

V. Show us your mercy, O Lord;
R. And grant us your salvation.
V. Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
R. Let your people sing with joy.
V. Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;
R. For only in you can we live in safety.
V. Lord, keep this nation under your care;
R. And guide us in the way of justice and truth.
V. Let your way be known upon earth;
R. Your saving health among all nations.
V. Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;
R. Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.
V. Create in us clean hearts, O God;
R. And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.

Pope Francis of Rome made a quick trip to Egypt last week, hoping to protect and strengthen the Coptic community and reaching out to Muslim leaders to encourage religious tolerance and peace. He’s seen above with Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II at an outdoor Mass at a soccer stadium, a relatively small crowd for Francis. Tensions have been high after the most recent bombings of Coptic churches, which killed scores and injured over 100. About 10% of Egypt’s population of 90 million is Coptic, of whom 1% follow Francis and 99% follow Tawadros. (L’Osservatore Romano)

Collect of the Day: Third Sunday of Easter

Collect for Labor

Almighty God, you have so linked our lives one with another that all we do affects, for good or ill, all other lives: So guide us in the work we do, that we may do it not for self alone, but for the common good; and, as we seek a proper return for our own labor, make us mindful of the rightful aspirations of other workers, and arouse our concern for those who are out of work; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Collect for the Renewal of Life

O God, the King eternal, whose light divides the day from the night and turns the shadow of death into the morning: Drive far from us all wrong desires, incline our heart to keep your law, and guide our feet into the way of peace; that, having done your will with cheerfulness during the day, we may, when night comes, rejoice to give you thanks; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Monday Morning Prayer List: Most Recent

Tim, bone cancer’s back
Steve Schenkenberger, severely injured in bicycle accident
Jo, mysterious blood pressure illness
Ron, Rest in Peace
Sixroute, vocational discernment
Owen, mental health
Peni & Kate, caregivers
Blake, addiction
Archbishop Terry Buckle, formerly Bishop of Yukon, departed
Ann Brewster, chemotherapy
Ashlee, assault victim, and Jason, her husband
Sr. Charity, abdominal surgery and complications
Gary Sudyam, hit by car, spinal cord injuries
Kathie Inboden, Stage II pancreatic cancer
Jeanetta MacKay, recurrence of cancer
Arthur Wilbur, advanced Parkinson’s
Kimberly, looking for work

Please add your own intercessions, supplications and thanksgivings here.

For the Mission of the Church

Everliving God, whose will it is that all should come to you through your Son Jesus Christ: Inspire our witness to him, that all may know the power of his forgiveness and the hope of his resurrection; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine; Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21++

VIDEO: Alleluia, alleluia! Hearts to heaven and voices raise (#191, Lux eoi, Arthur S. Sullivan; Christopher Wordworth, alt.) – BBC “Songs of Praise,” 2013

Morning Prayer 29.4.17, Catherine of Siena, Mystic, 1380

Posted on April 28, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Anglican Communion, Creation, Diocesan Life, Easter, Episcopal Church, Gender & Sexuality, Holy Eucharist, Jesus Christ, Joy, Monastics, Music Video, Mysticism, National Life, Ordination, Parish Life, Prayer, Resurrection, USA

We are posting several hours late today as our Vicar met privately with the Presiding Bishop. We apologize for this unavoidable delay.

—

We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another.

The Rev. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, Bishop-Elect of Indianapolis, at a parish visitation last month at St. John’s, Washington, Indiana. (John Steele)

On this day the Lord has acted; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Christ Our Passover
1 Cor. 5:7-8; Rom. 6:9-11; 1 Cor. 15:20-22

Psalm 20

1 May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble, *
the Name of the God of Jacob defend you;
2 From God’s holy place may you receive help; *
may God strengthen you out of Zion.
3 May God remember all your offerings *
and accept your burnt sacrifice;
4 Grant you your heart’s desire *
and prosper all your plans.
5 We will shout for joy at your victory
and triumph in the Name of our God; *
may the LORD grant all your requests.
6 Now I know that the LORD gives victory to the anointed one; *
out of God’s holy heaven will come an answer;
the right hand of the LORD works victorious strength.
7 Some put their trust in chariots and some in horses, *
but we will call upon the Name of the LORD our God.
8 They collapse and fall down, *
but we will arise and stand upright.
9 O LORD, give victory to the king *
and answer us when we call.

Psalm 21:1-7

1 The king rejoices in your strength, O LORD; *
how greatly he exults in your victory!
2 You have given him his heart’s desire; *
you have not denied him the request of his lips.
3 For you meet him with blessings of prosperity, *
and set a crown of fine gold upon his head.
4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him: *
length of days, for ever and ever.
5 His honor is great, because of your victory; *
splendor and majesty have you bestowed upon him.
6 For you will give him everlasting felicity *
and will make him glad with the joy of your presence.
7 For the king puts his trust in the LORD; *
because of the loving-kindness of the Most High, he will not fall.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Shadrach and his companions in the furnace, as well as a strong guard who ended up with them. (Artist unknown)

THE LESSONS
Daniel 3:19-30 (NRSV)

Then Nebuchadnezzar was so filled with rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face was distorted. He ordered the furnace heated up seven times more than was customary, and ordered some of the strongest guards in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. So the men were bound, still wearing their tunics, their trousers, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire. Because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace was so overheated, the raging flames killed the men who lifted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. But the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down, bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up quickly. He said to his counselors, “Was it not three men that we threw bound into the fire?” They answered the king, “True, O king.” He replied, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the fourth has the appearance of a god.” Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and said, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men; the hair of their heads was not singed, their tunics were not harmed, and not even the smell of fire came from them. Nebuchadnezzar said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king’s command and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that utters blasphemy against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins; for there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way.” Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

Canticle: A Song of Creation
Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65

Invocation

Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
In the high vault of heaven, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

I The Cosmic Order

Glorify the Lord, you angels and all powers of the Lord, *
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, every shower of rain and fall of dew, *
all winds and fire and heat.
Winter and Summer, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O chill and cold, *
drops of dew and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold, ice and sleet, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O nights and days, *
O shining light and enfolding dark.
Storm clouds and thunderbolts, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

Indiana’s River, the Wabash, at West Lafayette, Indiana in the Diocese of Indianapolis. (Quinn Thomson)

II The Earth and its Creatures

Let the earth glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O mountains and hills,
and all that grows upon the earth, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O springs of water, seas, and streams, *
O whales and all that move in the waters.
All birds of the air, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O beasts of the wild, *
and all you flocks and herds.
O men and women everywhere, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

III The People of God

Let the people of God glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O priests and servants of the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O spirits and souls of the righteous, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
You that are holy and humble of heart, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

Doxology

Let us glorify the Lord: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
In the high vault of heaven, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

1 John 3:11-18 (NRSV)

For this is the message you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. We must not be like Cain who was from the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. Do not be astonished, brothers and sisters, that the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life because we love one another. Whoever does not love abides in death. All who hate a brother or sister are murderers, and you know that murderers do not have eternal life abiding in them. We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another. How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?

Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.

Canticle: Song of the Redeemed
Revelation 15:3-4

O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done, *
surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth, *
O King of all the ages.

Who can fail to do you homage, Lord
and sing the praises of your Name? *
for you only are the Holy One.
All nations will draw near and fall down before you *
because your just and holy works have been revealed.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Luke 4:1-13 (NRSV)

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.'” Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'” Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'” Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'” When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

Show us your mercy, O Lord;
And grant us your salvation.
Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
Let your people sing with joy.
Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;
For only in you can we live in safety.
Lord, keep this nation under your care;
And guide us in the way of justice and truth.
Let your way be known upon earth;
Your saving health among all nations.
Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;
Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.
Create in us clean hearts, O God;
And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.

Pompeo Batoni, 1743: The Ecstasy of St. Catherine of Siena. She was a Dominican nun and theologian – author of 400 letters still in existence – who received her first mystical vision at age six. In time she reportedly levitated, much to the consternation of the other nuns present, who couldn’t understand that this showing wasn’t meant to glorify her, but to teach them – and us.

Collect of the Day: Catherine of Siena, 1380

Everlasting God, you so kindled the flame of holy love in the heart of blessed Catherine of Siena, as she meditated on the passion of your Son our Savior, that she devoted her life to the poor and the sick, and to the peace and unity of the Church: Grant that we also may share in the mystery of Christ’s death, and rejoice in the revelation of his glory, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

A Collect for Saturdays

Almighty God, who after the creation of the world rested from all your works and sanctified a day of rest for all your creatures: Grant that we, putting away all earthly anxieties, may be duly prepared for the service of your sanctuary, and that our rest here upon earth may be a preparation for the eternal rest promised to your people in heaven; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Saturday Morning Prayer List
• Consecration of Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows as XI Bishop of Indianapolis

The Rev. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows is to be consecrated the XI Bishop of Indianapolis in a few hours. She is a graduate of Smith College, Cornell University and the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, with degrees in architecture and historic preservation. She will be consecrated at Clowes Hall of Butler University; Friday the mayor of Indianapolis called on her at Trinity Church to welcome her to the city, and Friday night the Episcopal News Service had this headline as its lead story: “Episcopal Church Ready to Make History with Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows.” Twenty-eight years after Barbara Harris became the first African-American woman to be elected a suffrgagan bishop, he becomes the first black woman to assume full power over a diocese. (diocesan photo)

For Those Seeking God’s Will
Sixroute, David, Tom, Brad & Danny, vocation
Dinah, religious life
Scotty, direction
Shirley & Maureen, discernment
Diocesan Commissions on Ministry

For Religious Orders & Communities
Community of St. Mary at the Cross, UK
Community of St. Mary the Virgin, UK
Community of the Blessed Lady Mary, Zimbabwe
Community of the Gifts of the Holy Fire, Zimbabwe
Community of the Gospel, USA

Please add your own prayers here.

For Mission

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen. 2 Corinthians 13:14++

The Temple Church, London; you’ve heard of the Inner Temple, the Middle Temple and the Temple Bar, a ceremonial arch; this is the place, built by the Knights Templar as their London headquarters and dedicated in 1185. (John Salmon)

VIDEO: Love’s redeeming work is done (#188, Savannah, from Harmonia Sacra, c. 1760; Charles Wesley) – Choir of the Temple Church, London, 2015

Evening Prayer 26.4.17, Robert Hunt, 1st Chaplain at Jamestown, 1607

Posted on April 26, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Anglican, Creation, Daily Office, Diocesan Life, Easter, England, Episcopal Church, Fun, India, Jesus Christ, Joy, Kenya, Mission, Music Video, National Life, Ordination, Peace among Nations, Prayer, Prisoners, UK, USA

Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

It’s Consecration Week in Indianapolis, with bishops flying in from all over the world, including Mauricio Andrade (2nd from left) and his wife Sandra of Brasilia, with whom DioIndy has a longterm relationship (that even extends to The Daily Office). Four dozen purple shirts are expected to help set apart the Rev. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, 2nd from right, who will make history Saturday as the first woman to succeed a woman as Bishop Ordinary. The Rev. Jeffrey Bower, right, head of foreign missions for Indianapolis, joined the party for breakfast yesterday at a popular eatery. Please lift up Jennifer in prayer this week; she will be consecrated Saturday at the biggest auditorium in town. (diocesan photo)

On this day the Lord has acted; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Hymn: O Gracious Light

Psalm 12

1 Help me, LORD, for there is no godly one left; *
the faithful have vanished from among us.
2 All speak falsely with their neighbor; *
with a smooth tongue they speak from a double heart.
3 Oh, that the LORD would cut off all smooth tongues, *
and close the lips that utter proud boasts!
4 Those who say, “With our tongue will we prevail; *
our lips are our own; who is lord over us?”
5 “Because the needy are oppressed,
and the poor cry out in misery, *
I will rise up,” says the LORD,
“and give them the help they long for.”
6 The words of the LORD are pure words, *
like silver refined from ore
and purified seven times in the fire.
7 O LORD, watch over us *
and save us from this generation for ever.
8 The wicked prowl on every side, *
and that which is worthless is highly prized by everyone.

Psalm 13

1 How long, O LORD?
will you forget me for ever? *
how long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long shall I have perplexity in my mind,
and grief in my heart, day after day? *
how long shall my enemy triumph over me?
3 Look upon me and answer me, O LORD my God; *
give light to my eyes, lest I sleep in death;
4 Lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed,” *
and my foes rejoice that I have fallen.
5 But I put my trust in your mercy; *
my heart is joyful because of your saving help.
6 I will sing to you, O LORD,
for you have dealt with me richly; *
I will praise the Name of the Lord Most High.

Psalm 14

1 Fools say in their heart, “There is no God.” *
All are corrupt and commit abominable acts;
there is none who does any good.
2 The LORD looks down from heaven upon us all, *
to see if there is any who is wise,
if there is one who seeks after God.
3 Every one has proved faithless;
all alike have turned bad; *
there is none who does good; no, not one.
4 Have they no knowledge, all those evildoers *
who eat up my people like bread
and do not call upon the LORD?
5 See how they tremble with fear, *
because God is in the company of the righteous.
6 Their aim is to confound the plans of the afflicted, *
but the LORD is their refuge.
7 Oh, that Israel’s deliverance would come out of Zion! *
when the LORD restores the fortunes of the chosen people,
Jacob will rejoice and Israel be glad.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE LESSON
John 17:20-26 (NRSV)

Jesus prayed, “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

“Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

Canticle: The Song of Simeon
Luke 2:29-32

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

Here’s an important development: the World Health Organization has announced that it will soon begin testing a vaccine against malaria in three nations in Africa: Ghana, Kenya and Malawi. All have high incidences of the disease, which kills half a million people a year, and those nations also have strong prevention programs already in place. The vaccine, which will be free, is not expected to work so well as to eradicate the malady; scientists are hoping for a positive enough response that it can be added to existing prevention methods until that miracle drug is found. Malaria is spread by the world’s most dangerous animals, mosquitoes, which, doctors say, may be turning resistant to the insecticide of today’s malaria nets protecting people as they sleep. (Associated Press)

Collect of the Day: Robert Hunt, Priest and First Chaplain at Jamestown, 1807

Almighty God, we bless your Name for the life and witness of Robert Hunt, first chaplain to the Jamestown colony, who sought to unite your people in your love amid great hardship: Help us, like him to work for reconciliation wherever we may be placed; through Jesus Christ your Son, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Collect for Protection

For the beauty of the Earth: Red Rock Crossing, Sedona, Arizona. (Justin Dodson)

For the Beauty of the Earth

A Collect for Peace

Anglican Cycle of Prayer: Diocese of Nappur, North India

Wednesday Evening Prayer List

For Disaster & Terror Victims
Drought in Southern Africa, India and Papua New Guinea
Refugee Crisis in the Middle East and Europe
Famine in Niger, Mali, Ethiopia, Yemen and South Sudan

For Prisoners
Blake
Matthew
The Rev. Andrew Brunson, missionary in Turkey

Prisoners of ISIS & Boko Haram: #BringBackOurGirls
Victims of human trafficking, including U.S. & Australian detainees
Guantanamo; political prisoners

For those who suffer for the sake of Conscience

Prayer for Mission

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.++

VIDEO: Hark the sound of holy voices (#275, Moultrie, Gerard Francis Cobb; Christopher Wordsworth) – All Saints’, Margaret Street, London, 2003

Morning Prayer 26.4.17, Robert Hunt, 1st Chaplain at Jamestown, Virginia, 1607

Posted on April 25, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Creation, Episcopal Church, Healing, Jesus Christ, Music Video, Prayer, USA

The world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.

Crucifixion tapestry at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York City. (Karsten Moran/The New York Times)

Alleluia! Christ is risen.
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Christ Our Passover
1 Cor. 5:7-8; Rom. 6:9-11; 1 Cor. 15:20-22

Psalm 119:1-24

1 Happy are they whose way is blameless, *
who walk in the law of the LORD!
2 Happy are they who observe your decrees *
and seek you with all their hearts!
3 Who never do any wrong, *
but always walk in your ways.
4 You laid down your commandments, *
that we should fully keep them.
5 Oh, that my ways were made so direct *
that I might keep your statutes!
6 Then I should not be put to shame, *
when I regard all your commandments.
7 I will thank you with an unfeigned heart, *
when I have learned your righteous judgments.
8 I will keep your statutes; *
do not utterly forsake me.

9 How shall the young cleanse their way? *
By keeping to your words.
10 With my whole heart I seek you; *
let me not stray from your commandments.
11 I treasure your promise in my heart, *
that I may not sin against you.
12 Blessed are you, O LORD; *
instruct me in your statutes.
13 With my lips will I recite *
all the judgments of your mouth.
14 I have taken greater delight in the way of your decrees *
than in all manner of riches.
15 I will meditate on your commandments *
and give attention to your ways.
16 My delight is in your statutes; *
I will not forget your word.

17 Deal bountifully with your servant, *
that I may live and keep your word.
18 Open my eyes, that I may see *
the wonders of your law.
19 I am a stranger here on earth; *
do not hide your commandments from me.
20 My soul is consumed at all times *
with longing for your judgments.
21 You have rebuked the insolent; *
cursed are they who stray from your commandments!
22 Turn from me shame and rebuke, *
for I have kept your decrees.
23 Even though rulers sit and plot against me, *
I will meditate on your statutes.
24 For your decrees are my delight, *
and they are my counselors.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE LESSONS
Daniel 2:17-30 (NRSV)

(King Nebuchadnezzar has had a troubling dream, and demanded that his magicians, enchanters and sorcerers tell him both what the dream contained, and what it means, or be put to death.)

Then Daniel went to his home and informed his companions, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions with the rest of the wise men of Babylon might not perish. Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

Daniel said:

“Blessed be the name of God from age to age,
for wisdom and power are his.
He changes times and seasons,
deposes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding.
He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and light dwells with him.
To you, O God of my ancestors,
I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and power,
and have now revealed to me what we asked of you,
for you have revealed to us what the king ordered.”

Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will give the king the interpretation.”

Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king and said to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who can tell the king the interpretation.” The king said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to tell me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” Daniel answered the king, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or diviners can show to the king the mystery that the king is asking, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has disclosed to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen at the end of days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed were these: To you, O king, as you lay in bed, came thoughts of what would be hereafter, and the revealer of mysteries disclosed to you what is to be. But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me because of any wisdom that I have more than any other living being, but in order that the interpretation may be known to the king and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.”

Canticle: A Song of Ezekiel
Ezekiel 36:24-28

I will take you from among all nations; *
and gather you from all lands to bring you home.
I will sprinkle clean water upon you; *
and purify you from false gods and uncleanness.
A new heart I will give you *
and a new spirit put within you.
I will take the stone heart from your chest *
and give you a heart of flesh.
I will help you walk in my laws *
and cherish my commandments and do them.
You shall be my people, *
and I will be your God.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

(Nadeem Shami photo)

1 John 2:12-17 (NRSV)

I am writing to you, little children,
because your sins are forgiven on account of his name.
I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young people,
because you have conquered the evil one.
I write to you, children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young people,
because you are strong
and the word of God abides in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.

Canticle: A Song of the Spirit
Revelation 22:12-17

“Behold, I am coming soon,” says the Lord,
“and bringing my reward with me, *
to give to everyone according to their deeds.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, *
the beginning and the end.”
Blessed are those who do God’s commandments,
that they may have the right to the tree of life, *
and may enter the city through the gates.
“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to you, *
with this testimony for all the churches.
“I am the root and the offspring of David, *
I am the bright morning star.”
“Come!” say the Spirit and the Bride; *
“Come!” let each hearer reply!
Come forward, you who are thirsty, *
let those who desire take the water of life as a gift.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

John 17:20-26 (NRSV)

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.

V. Help us, O God our Savior;
R. Deliver us and forgive us our sins.
V. Look upon your congregation;
R. Give to your people the blessing of peace.
V. Declare your glory among the nations;
R. And your wonders among all peoples.
V. Do not let the oppressed be shamed and turned away;
R. Never forget the lives of your poor.
V. Continue your loving-kindness to those who know you;
R. And your favor to those who are true of heart.
V. Satisfy us by your loving-kindness in the morning;
R. So shall we rejoice and be glad all the days of our life.

Robert Hunt Memorial, Historic Jamestown, Virginia; the town was Virginia’s first settlement and capital. Hunt, a courageous and well-loved priest, celebrated the first Eucharist in North America (though Canadians also claim the first, offshore) at the English colony. The town lasted about a century, until a disastrous fire caused the town to be dissolved and the capital to be moved to nearby Williamsburg. Jamestown, now an island, is still populated but no longer a town. (National Park Service)

Collect of the Day: Robert Hunt, Priest and First Chaplain at Jamestown, 1607

Almighty God, we bless your Name for the life and witness of Robert Hunt, first chaplain to the Jamestown colony, whose community knew him as an honest, religious and courageous divine who, in his short life, endured great hardships without complaint. Help us, like him, to work for reconciliation and healing wherever we may be placed; through Jesus Christ your Son, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Collect for Grace

Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power; that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For joy in God’s creation: Mist over a stream in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee and North Carolina, 2014. (Renick Taylor)

For Joy in God’s Creation

O heavenly Father, you have filled the world with beauty: Open our eyes to behold your gracious hand in all your works; that, rejoicing in your whole creation, we may learn to serve you with gladness; for the sake of him through whom all things were made, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Wednesday Morning Prayer List: Healing of Body, Mind & Soul
• Octave of Prayer for the retiring and rising Bishops of Indianapolis

Jo, mysterious blood pressure illness
Blake, addiction and jail
Ann Brewster, chemotherapy
Ashlee, assault victim, and Jason, her husband
Sr. Charity, abdominal surgery and complications
Gary Sudyam, hit by car, spinal cord injuries
Kathie Inboden, Stage II pancreatic cancer
Julie, RSD, suicide attempt
Jeanetta MacKay, recurrence of cancer
Jon, diabetic macular edema
Arthur Wilbur, advanced Parkinson’s
Marjorie, ovarian cancer
Nick, myeloma
Katherine, early Alzheimer’s, and her son Robert, early dementia
Fr. Doug Yarbrough, multiple sclerosis
Sr. Judy, breast cancer
Gayle, age 80, will to live
Cameron Lacy, acute leukemia
Rayell Segerstrom, melanoma
Baylin, child with cancer, back in hospital
Martha’s brother Lewis
Fr. Robert Hughes, Parkinson’s
Treese, cancer recovery
Joan, chemo
Debbie, lupus
Honorary Deacon Clint, cancer
Clint’s daughter Julia Butcher, breast cancer recovery

For Caregivers & Families
Peni
Kate
Linda
Teresa

Please add your own intercessions, supplications and thanksgivings here.

Prayer for Mission

Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.

May the blessing of the God of Abraham and Sarah, and of Jesus Christ born of our sister Mary, and of the Holy Spirit, who broods over the world as a mother over her children, be upon us and remain with us always. Amen.++

VIDEO: Jesus! Name of wondrous love (#252, Wilbur Held; William Walsham How, alt.) – Choir of Trinity Church, Columbus, Ohio, 2014

Morning Prayer 22.4.17, Easter Saturday; [Earth Day]

Posted on April 21, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Creation, Daily Office, Easter, Environment, Jesus Christ, Joy, Justice, Mission, Monastics, Music Video, Prayer, Religious Communities, Resurrection, USA

I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Buffalo Jump artwork, Rosebud Episcopal Mission, South Dakota, a mission partner of ours. The four directions (N, S, E, W) form a cross in holy colors, as the sacred animals jump and dance around it. (Danny D. Gangone)

On this day the Lord has acted; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Christ Our Passover
1 Cor. 5:7-8; Rom. 6:9-11; 1 Cor. 15:20-22

Psalm 145

1 I will exalt you, O God my Sovereign, *
and bless your Name for ever and ever.
2 Every day will I bless you *
and praise your Name for ever and ever.
3 Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised; *
there is no end to your greatness.
4 One generation shall praise your works to another *
and shall declare your power.
5 I will ponder the glorious splendor of your majesty *
and all your marvelous works.
6 They shall speak of the might of your wondrous acts, *
and I will tell of your greatness.
7 They shall publish the remembrance of your great goodness; *
they shall sing of your righteous deeds.
8 The LORD is gracious and full of compassion, *
slow to anger and of great kindness.
9 O LORD, you are loving to everyone *
and your compassion is over all your works.
10 All your works praise you, O LORD, *
and your faithful servants bless you.
11 They make known the glory of your reign *
and speak of your power;
12 That the peoples may know of your power *
and the glorious splendor of your reign.
13 Your reign is an everlasting reign; *
your dominion endures throughout all ages.
14 O LORD, you are faithful in all your words *
and merciful in all your deeds.
15 The LORD upholds all those who fall *
and lifts up those who are bowed down.
16 The eyes of all wait upon you, O LORD, *
and you give them their food in due season.
17 You open wide your hand *
and satisfy the needs of every living creature.
18 O LORD, you are righteous in all your ways *
and loving in all your works.
19 O LORD, you are near to those who call upon you, *
to all who call upon you faithfully.
20 You fulfill the desire of those who fear you; *
you hear their cry and help them.
21 O LORD, you preserve all those who love you, *
but you destroy all the wicked.
22 My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD; *
let all flesh bless your holy Name for ever and ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Buffalo jumps, scattered throughout the western USA and Canada, are cliff formations where Native American hunters gathered, prayed, and then descended on their horses into the valley below for community hunts of the sacred animals. This one is within Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota. Buffalo jumps remain sacred places today. (National Park Service)

THE LESSONS
Isaiah 25:1-9 (NRSV)

O LORD, you are my God;
I will exalt you, I will praise your name;
for you have done wonderful things,
plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
For you have made the city a heap,
the fortified city a ruin;
the palace of aliens is a city no more,
it will never be rebuilt.
Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
For you have been a refuge to the poor,
a refuge to the needy in their distress,
a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.
When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm,
the noise of aliens like heat in a dry place,
you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds;
the song of the ruthless was stilled.

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,
of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.
And he will destroy on this mountain
the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
the sheet that is spread over all nations;
he will swallow up death forever.
Then the Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces,
and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
This is the LORD for whom we have waited;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

Canticle: A Song of Creation
Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65

Invocation

Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
In the high vault of heaven, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

I The Cosmic Order

Goldfinches and house finches, praise ye the Lord. (allaboutbirds.org)

II The Earth and its Creatures

III The People of God

Doxology

Let us glorify the Lord: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
In the high vault of heaven, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

Acts 4:13-21 (NRSV)

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were amazed and recognized them as companions of Jesus. When they saw the man who had been cured standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. So they ordered them to leave the council while they discussed the matter with one another. They said, “What will we do with them? For it is obvious to all who live in Jerusalem that a notable sign has been done through them; we cannot deny it. But to keep it from spreading further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.” So they called them and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge; for we cannot keep from speaking about what we have seen and heard.” After threatening them again, they let them go, finding no way to punish them because of the people, for all of them praised God for what had happened.

Canticle: Song of the Redeemed
Revelation 15:3-4

O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done, *
surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth, *
O King of all the ages.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

John 16:16-33 (NRSV)

Jesus said, “A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.” Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’? Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. When a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

“I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.” His disciples said, “Yes, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech! Now we know that you know all things, and do not need to have anyone question you; by this we believe that you came from God.” Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!”

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

A mariachi band played for Easter 2014 at All Saints’/Cristo Rey in Watsonville, California. The rector of this parish is also the Vicar of our sister site in Spanish, Oficio Diario. (The Rev. Michael Dresbach)

Collect of the Day: Saturday in Easter Week

We thank you, heavenly Father, that you have delivered us from the dominion of sin and death and brought us into the kingdom of your Son; and we pray that, as by his death he has recalled us to life, so by his love he may raise us to eternal joys; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

A Collect for Saturdays

Saturday Morning Prayer List

• Octave of Prayer begins for the retiring and rising Bishops of Indianapolis

Bishop Cate Waynick, left, our Episcopal Visitor, and her Bishop Coadjutor-Elect Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, who will be consecrated a week from today. (diocesan photos)

For Those Seeking God’s Will
Sixroute, David, Tom, Brad & Danny, vocation
Scotty, direction
Dinah, religious life
Shirley & Maureen, discernment
Diocesan Commissions on Ministry

For Religious Orders & Communities
Community of Divine Compassion, Zimbabwe
Community of St. Clare, UK
Community of St. Francis (women), California; Korea; UK
Community of St. John Baptist, New Jersey & UK
Community of St. Mary – Northern, Southern & Western U.S. provinces

Please add your own prayers here.

For Mission

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen. 2 Corinthians 13:14++

VIDEO: Honour the Earth (Sarah Hopkins) – Montclair State University Singers, 2012

Evening Prayer 19.4.17, Easter Wednesday

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Calamity, Children, Church Crime, Creation, Easter, Episcopal Church, Jesus Christ, Joy, Justice, Mission, Music Video, Pakistan, Parish Life, Peace among Nations, Prayer, Prisoners, Resurrection, USA, Youth

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.

The altar at St. John’s, Huntington, West Virginia, was hit by an arsonist Monday night; police have taken a 12-year-old girl into custody. A community meal had to be canceled, but no one was hurt, and the congregation was back the next night to pray for her and give thanks the damage wasn’t worse. (parish photo)

On this day the Lord has acted; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Hymn: O Gracious Light

Psalm 115

1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us,
but to your Name give glory; *
because of your love and because of your faithfulness.
2 Why should the heathen say, *
“Where then is their God?”
3 Our God is in heaven; *
whatever God wills to do, God does.
4 Their idols are silver and gold, *
the work of human hands.
5 They have mouths, but they cannot speak; *
eyes have they, but they cannot see;
6 They have ears, but they cannot hear; *
noses, but they cannot smell;
7 They have hands, but they cannot feel;
feet, but they cannot walk; *
they make no sound with their throat.
8 Those who make them are like them, *
and so are all who put their trust in them.
9 O Israel, trust in the LORD; *
who is your help and your shield.
10 O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD; *
who is your help and your shield.
11 You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD; *
who is your help and your shield.
12 The LORD has been mindful of us and will bless us; *
the LORD will bless the house of Israel
and will bless the house of Aaron;
13 The LORD will bless the God-fearing, *
both small and great together.
14 May the LORD increase you more and more, *
you and your children after you.
15 May you be blessed by the LORD, *
the maker of heaven and earth.
16 The heaven of heavens is the LORD’s, *
but the LORD entrusted the earth to its peoples.
17 The dead do not praise the LORD, *
nor all those who go down into silence;
18 But we will bless the LORD, *
from this time forth for evermore.
Hallelujah!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Sadao Watanabe, 1979: The True Vine

THE LESSON
John 15:1-11 (NRSV)

Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.”

Canticle: The Song of Simeon
Luke 2:29-32

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

St. Mary Magdalene at the tomb of Christ, detail of a larger Resurrection painting we showed yesterday by Giotto di Bondone. To modern eyes this is a much more compelling image than the work overall; she reaches for him, the first person to see his rising from the dead.

Collect of the Day: Wednesday in Easter Week

A Collect for Protection

Time-lapse photo, found on Facebook, of a magnificent but unidentified bird.

For the Beauty of the Earth

A Collect for Peace

Anglican Cycle of Prayer: Diocese of Multan, Pakistan

Wednesday Evening Prayer List

For Disaster & Terror Victims
3 men dead in Fresno shooting
Drought in Southern Africa, India and Papua New Guinea
Refugee Crisis in the Middle East and Europe
Famine in Niger, Mali, Ethiopia, Yemen and South Sudan

For Prisoners
Blake
Matthew
The Rev. Andrew Brunson, missionary in Turkey

Prisoners of ISIS & Boko Haram: #BringBackOurGirls
Victims of human trafficking, including U.S. & Australian detainees
Guantanamo; political prisoners

For those who suffer for the sake of Conscience

Prayer for Mission

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, Alleluia.

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.++

VIDEO: Over the chaos of the empty waters (#176, Mighty Savior, Dvid Hurd; A Monastic Breviary, 1976, and The Hymnal 1982) – Church of the Redeemer, Morristown, New Jersey, 2009

Morning Prayer 15.4.17, Holy Saturday

Posted on April 14, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Creation, England, Holy Week, Jesus Christ, Lent, Monastics, Music Video, Prayer, Religious Communities, Scotland, UK, Vocation

Let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.

Marco Basaiti: Lamentation

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6

CONFESSION OF SIN

Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm 95
Venite

Come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before God’s presence with thanksgiving;
and raise to the Lord a shout with psalms.
For you are a great God;
you are great above all gods.
In your hand are the caverns of the earth;
and the heights of the hills are yours also.
The sea is yours, for you made it,
and your hands have molded the dry land.
Come, let us bow down and bend the knee,
and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For you are our God,
and we are the people of your pasture, and the sheep of your hand.
Oh, that today we would hearken to your voice!

Harden not your hearts,
as your forebears did in the wilderness, *
at Meribah, and on that day at Massah,
when they tempted me.
They put me to the test, *
though they had seen my works.
Forty years long I detested that generation and said, *
“This people are wayward in their hearts;
they do not know my ways.”
So I swore in my wrath, *
“They shall not enter into my rest.”

Psalm 88

1     O LORD, my God, my Savior, *
by day and night I cry to you.
2     Let my prayer enter into your presence; *
incline your ear to my lamentation.
3     For I am full of trouble; *
my life is at the brink of the grave.
4     I am counted among those who go down to the Pit; *
I have become like one who has no strength;
5     Lost among the dead, *
like the slain who lie in the grave,
6     Whom you remember no more, *
for they are cut off from your hand.
7     You have laid me in the depths of the Pit, *
in dark places, and in the abyss.
8     Your anger weighs upon me heavily, *
and all your great waves overwhelm me.
9     You have put my friends far from me;
you have made me to be abhorred by them; *
I am in prison and cannot get free.
10     My sight has failed me because of trouble; *
LORD, I have called upon you daily;
I have stretched out my hands to you.
11     Do you work wonders for the dead? *
will those who have died stand up and give you thanks?
12     Will your loving-kindness be declared in the grave? *
your faithfulness in the land of destruction?
13     Will your wonders be known in the dark? *
or your righteousness in the country where all is forgotten?
14     But as for me, O LORD, I cry to you for help; *
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
15     LORD, why have you rejected me? *
why have you hidden your face from me?
16     Ever since my youth, I have been wretched and at the point of death; *
I have borne your terrors with a troubled mind.
17     Your blazing anger has swept over me; *
your terrors have destroyed me;
18     They surround me all day long like a flood; *
they encompass me on every side.
19     My friend and my neighbor you have put away from me, *
and darkness is my only companion.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE LESSONS
Job 19:21-27a (NRSV)

Have pity on me, have pity on me,
O you my friends,
for the hand of God has touched me!
Why do you, like God, pursue me,
never satisfied with my flesh?

“O that my words were written down!
O that they were inscribed in a book!
O that with an iron pen and with lead
they were engraved on a rock forever!
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that at the last he will stand upon the earth;
and after my skin has been thus destroyed,
then in my flesh I shall see God,
whom I shall see on my side,
and my eyes shall behold, and not another.
My heart faints within me!”

Canticle: A Song of Creation
Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65

Invocation

Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
In the high vault of heaven, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

I The Cosmic Order

Mountain hare of Scotland performing a last inspection before tomorrow arrives. (Andrew Easton)

II The Earth and its Creatures

III The People of God

Doxology

Let us glorify the Lord: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *
sing praise and give honor for ever.
In the high vault of heaven, glorify the Lord, *
sing praise and give honor for ever.

Hebrews 4:1-16 (NRSV)

Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest is still open, let us take care that none of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For indeed the good news came to us just as to them; but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, “As in my anger I swore, ‘They shall not enter my rest,’” though his works were finished at the foundation of the world. For in one place it speaks about the seventh day as follows, “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” And again in this place it says, “They shall not enter my rest.” Since therefore it remains open for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he sets a certain day—“today”—saying through David much later, in the words already quoted, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not speak later about another day. So then, a sabbath rest still remains for the people of God; for those who enter God’s rest also cease from their labors as God did from his.

Let us therefore make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fall through such disobedience as theirs. Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account. Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Canticle: Song of the Redeemed
Revelation 15:3-4

O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done, *
surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth, *
O King of all the ages.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

Christ’s Descent into Hell (thesacredpage.com)

Collect of the Day: Holy Saturday

O God, Creator of heaven and earth: Grant that, as the crucified body of your dear Son was laid in the tomb and rested on this holy Sabbath, so may we await with him the coming of the third day, and rise with him to newness of life; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Collect for Saturdays

Saturday Morning Prayer List

For Those Seeking God’s Will
Sixroute, David, Tom, Brad & Danny, vocation
Dinah, religious life
Shirley & Maureen, discernment
Diocesan Commissions on Ministry

For Religious Orders & Communities
All Saints Sisters of the Poor, UK
Alton Abbey, UK
Benedictine Sisters of Bethany, Cameroon
Community of All Hallows, UK
Community of Christ the King, Australia

Please add your own prayers here.

For Mission

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen. 2 Corinthians 13:14++

VIDEO: The Crown of Roses (P.I. Tchaikovsky; Charles Lewis Hutchins) – Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, 2011

Evening Prayer 12.4.17, Wednesday in Holy Week

Posted on April 12, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Children, Copts, Creation, Education, Egypt, Holy Week, Jesus Christ, Justice, Kenya, Lent, Mission, Music Video, Peace among Nations, Prayer, Students, Terrorism, UK, USA, Youth

Jesus said, “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.”

Eugene M. Lang has died, an accidental educational philanthropist in New York City. In 1985 he was asked to speak about business at P.S. 121, a middle school with a lot of students in poverty. He encouraged them to stay in school, but none of them thought they could do it – so he promised that if they’d finish high school and go to college, he’d pay for it. These are the kids in that first class who did – but many more students came to follow. (Chester Higgins, Jr./The New York Times)

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6

GENERAL CONFESSION

God of all mercy,
we confess that we have sinned against you,
opposing your will in our lives.
We have denied your goodness in each other,
in ourselves, and in the world you have created.
We repent of the evil that enslaves us,
the evil we have done,
and the evil done on our behalf.
Forgive, restore, and strengthen us
through our Savior Jesus Christ,
that we may abide in your love
and serve only your will. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through the grace of Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Hymn: O Gracious Light

Psalm 74

1 O God, why have you utterly cast us off? *
why is your wrath so hot against the sheep of your pasture?
2 Remember your congregation that you purchased long ago, *
the tribe you redeemed to be your inheritance,
and Mount Zion where you dwell.
3 Turn your steps toward the endless ruins; *
the enemy has laid waste everything in your sanctuary.
4 Your adversaries roared in your holy place; *
they set up their banners as tokens of victory.
5 Like those who come with axes to a grove of trees; *
they broke down all your carved work with hatchets and hammers.
6 They set fire to your holy place; *
they defiled the dwelling-place of your Name
and razed it to the ground.
7 They said to themselves, “Let us destroy them altogether.” *
They burned down all the meeting-places of God in the land.
8 There are no signs for us to see;
there is no prophet left; *
there is not one among us who knows how long.
9 How long, O God, will the adversary scoff? *
will the enemy blaspheme your Name for ever?
10 Why do you draw back your hand? *
why is your right hand hidden in your bosom?
11 Yet God is my Sovereign from ancient times, *
victorious in the midst of the earth.
12 You divided the sea by your might *
and shattered the heads of the dragons upon the waters;
13 You crushed the heads of Leviathan *
and gave it to the people of the desert for food.
14 You split open spring and torrent; *
you dried up ever-flowing rivers.
15 Yours is the day, yours also the night; *
you established the moon and the sun.
16 You fixed all the boundaries of the earth; *
you made both summer and winter.
17 Remember, O LORD, how the enemy scoffed, *
how a foolish people despised your Name.
18 Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts; *
never forget the lives of your poor.
19 Look upon your covenant; *
the dark places of the earth are haunts of violence.
20 Let not the oppressed turn away ashamed; *
let the poor and needy praise your Name.
21 Arise, O God, maintain your cause; *
remember how fools revile you all day long.
22 Forget not the clamor of your adversaries, *
the unending tumult of those who rise up against you.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Christ the light of the world. (theroadtofaith.com)

THE LESSON
John 12:27-36 (NRSV)

Jesus said, “Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. The crowd answered him, “We have heard from the law that the Messiah remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” Jesus said to them, “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. If you walk in the darkness, you do not know where you are going. While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.”

After Jesus had said this, he departed and hid from them.

Canticle: The Song of Simeon
Luke 2:29-32

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

Biblical Station 6: Jesus scourged. (artist unknown)

Collect of the Day: Wednesday in Holy Week

Lord God, whose blessed Son our Savior gave his body to be whipped and his face to be spit upon: Give us grace to accept joyfully the sufferings of the present time, confident of the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Collect for Protection

For the beauty of the Earth: sunset in Guatemala City last November. (Waseem Ayed)

For the Beauty of the Earth

A Collect for Peace

Anglican Cycle of Prayer: Diocese of Mount Kenya South, Kenya

Wednesday Evening Prayer List

For Disaster & Terror Victims
Hundreds of victims in Palm Sunday bombings in Tanta & Alexandria, Egypt
3 dead in San Bernardino school shooting
Hundreds of victims of gas attack in Syria
12 Killed in St. Petersburg, Russia terror attack
Flooding in the U.S. West
Drought in Southern Africa, India and Papua New Guinea
Refugee Crisis in the Middle East and Europe
Famine in Niger, Mali, Ethiopia, Yemen and South Sudan

For Prisoners
Blake
Matthew
The Rev. Andrew Brunson, missionary in Turkey

For those who suffer for the sake of Conscience

Prayer for Mission

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.++

VIDEO: Love bade me welcome (David Hurd; George Herbert) – Georgia Boys Choir at Christ Church, Oxford, 2011

Morning Prayer 12.4.17, Wednesday in Holy Week

Posted on April 11, 2017 by Josh Thomas under Creation, Egypt, England, Healing, Holy Week, Japan, Jesus Christ, Mission, Music Video, Prayer, Terrorism, UK

Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Weeping over the dead after the Palm Sunday terror attacks in Tanta and Alexandria, Egypt. (Reuters)

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6

CONFESSION OF SIN

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.

INVITATORY AND PSALTER

Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm 95 (EOW I)
Venite

Psalm 55

1 Hear my prayer, O God; *
do not hide yourself from my petition.
2 Listen to me and answer me; *
I have no peace, because of my cares.
3 I am shaken by the noise of the enemy *
and by the pressure of the wicked;
4 For they have cast an evil spell upon me *
and are set against me in fury.
5 My heart quakes within me, *
and the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
6 Fear and trembling have come over me, *
and horror overwhelms me.
7 And I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! *
I would fly away and be at rest.
8 I would flee to a far-off place *
and make my lodging in the wilderness.
9 I would hasten to escape *
from the stormy wind and tempest.”
10 Swallow them up, O Lord;
confound their speech; *
for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
11 Day and night the watchmen make their rounds upon its walls, *
but trouble and misery are in the midst of it.
12 There is corruption at its heart; *
its streets are never free of oppression and deceit.
13 For had it been an adversary who taunted me,
then I could have borne it; *
or had it been enemies who vaunted themselves against me,
then I could have hidden from them.
14 But it was you, my companion, *
my own familiar friend, dear to my own heart.
15 We took sweet counsel together, *
and walked with the throng in the house of God.
16 Let death come upon them suddenly;
let them go down alive into the grave; *
for wickedness is in their dwellings, in their very midst.
17 But I will call upon God, *
and the LORD will deliver me.
18 In the evening, in the morning, and at noonday,
I will complain and lament, *
and the LORD will hear my voice.
19 God will bring me safely back from the battle waged against me; *
for there are many who fight me.
20 God, who is enthroned of old, will hear me and bring them down; *
they never change; they do not fear God.
21 My companion stretched forth a hand against a comrade; *
and broke a covenant.
22 The speech of my companion is softer than butter, *
but with war at heart.
23 The words of my comrade are smoother than oil, *
but they are drawn swords.
24 Cast your burden upon the LORD,
who will sustain you; *
the LORD will never let the righteous stumble.
25 For you will bring the bloodthirsty and deceitful *
down to the pit of destruction, O God.
26 They shall not live out half their days, *
but I will put my trust in you.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

THE LESSONS
Jeremiah 17:5-10, 14-17 (NRSV)

Thus says the LORD:
Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals
and make mere flesh their strength,
whose hearts turn away from the LORD.
They shall be like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see when relief comes.
They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.

Blessed are those who trust in the LORD,
whose trust is the LORD.
They shall be like a tree planted by water,
sending out its roots by the stream.
It shall not fear when heat comes,
and its leaves shall stay green;
in the year of drought it is not anxious,
and it does not cease to bear fruit.

The heart is devious above all else;
it is perverse—
who can understand it?
I the LORD test the mind
and search the heart,
to give to all according to their ways,
according to the fruit of their doings.

Heal me, O LORD,
and I shall be healed;
save me, and I shall be saved;
for you are my praise.
See how they say to me,
“Where is the word of the LORD?
Let it come!”
But I have not run away from being a shepherd in your service,
nor have I desired the fatal day.
You know what came from my lips;
it was before your face.
Do not become a terror to me;
you are my refuge in the day of disaster.

Canticle: A Song of Penitence
Prayer of Manasseh, 1-2, 4, 6-7, 11-15

O Lord and Ruler of the hosts of heaven, *
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
and of all their righteous offspring:
You made the heavens and the earth, *
with all their vast array.
All things quake with fear at your presence; *
they tremble because of your power.
But your merciful promise is beyond all measure; *
it surpasses all that our minds can fathom.
O Lord, you are full of compassion, *
long-suffering, and abounding in mercy.
You hold back your hand; *
you do not punish as we deserve.
In your great goodness, Lord,
you have promised forgiveness to sinners, *
that they may repent of their sin and be saved.
And now, O Lord, I bend the knee of my heart, *
and make my appeal, sure of your gracious goodness.
I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, *
and I know my wickedness only too well.
Therefore I make this prayer to you: *
Forgive me, Lord, forgive me.
Do not let me perish in my sin, *
nor condemn me to the depths of the earth.
For you, O Lord, are the God of those who repent, *
and in me you will show forth your goodness.
Unworthy as I am, you will save me,
in accordance with your great mercy, *
and I will praise you without ceasing all the days of my life.
For all the powers of heaven sing your praises, *
and yours is the glory to ages of ages. Amen.

Philippians 4:1-13 (NRSV)

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Canticle: Song of Zechariah
Luke 1:68-79

Blessed are you, Lord, the God of Israel; *
you have come to your people and set them free.
You have raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of the house of your servant David.
Through your holy prophets you promised of old
to save us from our enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate us.
To show mercy to our forebears, *
and to remember your holy covenant.
This was the oath you swore to our father Abraham, *
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
Free to worship you without fear, *
holy and righteous before you
all the days of our life.
And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
To give God’s people knowledge of salvation *
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

John 12:27-36 (NRSV)

After Jesus had said this, he departed and hid from them.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

THE PRAYERS

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.

Stations of the Cross 5: St. Simon of Cyrene carries Christ’s cross. (Duende)

Collect of the Day: Wednesday in Holy Week

A Collect for Grace

For joy in God’s creation: swans on Lake Kawaguchi, near Mt. Fuji, Japan. (getintravel.com)

For Joy in God’s Creation

Wednesday Morning Prayer List

Healing of Body, Mind & Soul
Erin, hip surgery; Rachel, recent surgery
Blake, addiction
Archbishop Terry Buckle, lymphoma
Ann Brewster, chemotherapy
Ashlee, assault victim, and Jason, her husband
Sr. Charity, abdominal surgery and complications
Gary Sudyam, hit by car, spinal cord injuries
Kathie Inboden, Stage II pancreatic cancer
Julie, RSD, suicide attempt
Jeanetta MacKay, recurrence of cancer
Jon, diabetic macular edema
Arthur Wilbur, advanced Parkinson’s
Marjorie, ovarian cancer
Nick, myeloma
Katherine, early Alzheimer’s, and her son Robert, early dementia
Fr. Doug Yarbrough, multiple sclerosis
Sr. Judy, breast cancer
Gayle, age 80, will to live
Cameron Lacy, acute leukemia
Rayell Segerstrom, melanoma
Baylin, child with cancer, back in hospital
Martha’s brother Lewis
Fr. Robert Hughes, Parkinson’s
Treese, cancer recovery
Joan, chemo
Debbie, lupus
Honorary Deacon Clint, cancer
Clint’s daughter Julia Butcher, breast cancer recovery

For Caregivers & Families
Peni
Kate
Linda
Teresa

Please add your own intercessions, supplications and thanksgivings here.

Prayer for Mission

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

VIDEO: O sacred head, sore wounded (#168, Herzlich tut mich verlangen [Passion Chorale], Hans Leo Hassler, adapt. J.S. Bach; Paul Gerhardt, tr. Robert S. Bridges & James W. Alexander, alt.) – Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, 2011

Daily Office Asia-Pacific

Be Joyful in the Lord, All Ye Lands

Category Archives: Creation

Evening Prayer 3.5.17, Wednesday of Easter 3

Morning Prayer 1.5.17, Monday of Easter 3

Morning Prayer 29.4.17, Catherine of Siena, Mystic, 1380

Evening Prayer 26.4.17, Robert Hunt, 1st Chaplain at Jamestown, 1607

Morning Prayer 26.4.17, Robert Hunt, 1st Chaplain at Jamestown, Virginia, 1607

Morning Prayer 22.4.17, Easter Saturday; [Earth Day]

Evening Prayer 19.4.17, Easter Wednesday

Morning Prayer 15.4.17, Holy Saturday

Evening Prayer 12.4.17, Wednesday in Holy Week

Morning Prayer 12.4.17, Wednesday in Holy Week