O gladdening light,
of the holy glory of the immortal Father
heavenly, holy, blessed,
O Jesus Christ.
Now that we have come to the setting of the sun
and see the evening light
we give praise to God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Worthy are you at all times
to be worshipped with holy voices,
O Son of God and giver of life:
therefore all the world glorifies you.
For an alternative version, see page 110.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
1We praise you, O God,
we acclaim you as the Lord;
2all creation worships
you,
the Father everlasting.
3To you all angels, all
the powers of heaven,
the cherubim and seraphim, sing in endless praise:
4Holy,
holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
5The glorious company
of apostles praise you.
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.
6The white-robed army
of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you:
7Father,
of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all praise,
the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
8You, Christ, are the
King of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.
9When you took our flesh
to set us free
you humbly chose the Virgin’s womb.
10You overcame the sting
of death
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
11You are seated at God’s
right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come and be our judge.
12Come
then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints
to glory everlasting.
The canticle may end here.
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.
All Govern and uphold them now and always.
Day by day we bless you.
AllWe praise your name
for ever.
Keep us today, Lord, from all sin.
AllHave mercy on us, Lord,
have mercy.
Lord, show us your love and mercy,
Allfor we have put our
trust in you.
In you, Lord, is our hope:
Alllet us never be put
to shame.
1Behold: Fire and Spirit
in the womb that bore you: •
Behold: Fire and Spirit in the river where you were baptized.
2Fire and Spirit in our
baptism: •
In the Bread and the Cup, Fire and Holy Spirit.
3In your Bread is hidden
a Spirit not to be eaten, •
In your Wine dwells a Fire not to be drunk.
4Spirit in your Bread,
Fire in your Wine, •
A wonder set apart, yet received by our lips.
5How wonderful your footsteps,
walking on the waters! •
You subdued the great sea beneath your feet.
6Yet to a little stream
you subjected your head, •
Bending down to be baptized in it.
7The stream was like
John who performed the baptism in it, •
In their smallness each an image of the other.
8To the stream so little,
to the servant so weak, •
The Lord of them both subjected himself.
Saviour eternal,
life of the world unfailing,
light everlasting
and our true redemption.
Taking our humanity
in your loving freedom,
you rescued our lost earth
and filled the world with joy.
By your first advent justify us,
by your second, set us free:
that when the great light dawns
and you come as judge of all,
we may be robed in immortality
and ready, Lord, to follow
in your footsteps blest, wherever they may lead.
after the Advent Sequence
1Jesus, like a mother
you gather your people to you; •
you are gentle with us as a mother with her children.
2Often you weep over
our sins and our pride, •
tenderly you draw us from hatred and judgement.
3You comfort us in sorrow
and bind up our wounds, •
in sickness you nurse us, and with pure milk you feed us.
4Jesus, by your dying
we are born to new life; •
by your anguish and labour we come forth in joy.
5Despair turns to hope
through your sweet goodness; •
through your gentleness we find comfort in fear.
6Your warmth gives life
to the dead, •
your touch makes sinners righteous.
7Lord Jesus, in your
mercy heal us; •
in your love and tenderness remake us.
8In your compassion bring
grace and forgiveness, •
for the beauty of heaven may your love prepare us.
from Anselm of Canterbury
Come, Christians, bring your sacrifice of praise
to Jesus Christ, our conquering victim and our Easter king.
Jesus, the sinless lamb, has saved the sinful flock
and reconciled us to the Father.
AllDeath and life have wrestled
in a wondrous fight,
the leader of the living
fell to the powers of night
dead, yet he reigns in power
his strange victory to share.
Speak, Mary, friend of Christ,
what did you see on sorrow’s road?
Tell us your story.
All‘I saw the tomb of
the living Christ.
I saw his resurrection glory.
I saw the witnessing angels.
I saw the head-cloth and the shroud.
Christ my hope has risen,
and goes before his own to Galilee.’
Trust Mary, believers,
for only she has truth to tell,
unlike the falsifying crowd
of rumour-makers and deceivers.
AllWe know that Christ is truly
risen,
defeating death and hell’s dark thrall,
so conquering king, have mercy on us all.
Alleluia.
after the Easter Sequence
1Most High, all powerful,
good Lord, •
to you be praise, glory, honour and all blessing.
2Only to you, Most High,
do they belong •
and no one is worthy to call upon your name.
3May you be praised,
my Lord, with all your creatures,
especially brother sun, •
through whom you lighten the day for us.
4He is beautiful and
radiant with great splendour; •
he signifies you, O Most High.
5Be praised, my Lord,
for sister moon and the stars: •
clear and precious and lovely, they are formed in heaven.
6Be praised, my Lord,
for brother wind; •
for air and clouds, clear skies and all weathers,
by which you give sustenance to your creatures.
7Be praised, my Lord,
for sister water, •
who is very useful and humble and precious and pure.
8Be praised, my Lord,
for brother fire,
by whom the night is illumined for us: •
he is beautiful and cheerful, full of power and strength.
9Be praised, my Lord,
for our sister, mother earth,
who sustains and governs us •
and produces diverse fruits
and coloured flowers and grass.
10Be praised, my Lord,
by all those who forgive for love of you •
and who bear weakness and tribulation.
11Blessed are those who
bear them in peace: •
for you, Most High, they will be crowned.
12Be praised, my Lord,
for our sister, the death of the body, •
from which no one living is able to flee;
woe to those who are dying in mortal sin.
13Blessed are those who
are found doing your most holy will, •
for the second death will do them no harm.
14Praise and bless my
Lord and give him thanks •
and serve him with great humility.
Come, Holy Spirit;
send down from heaven’s height
your radiant light.
Come, lamp of every heart,
come, parent of the poor;
all gifts are yours.
Comforter beyond all comforting,
sweet unexpected guest,
sweetly refresh.
Rest in hard labour,
coolness in heavy heat,
hurt souls’ relief.
Refill the secret hearts
of your faithful,
O most blessed light.
Without your holy power
nothing can bear your light,
nothing is free from sin.
Wash all that is filthy,
water all that is parched,
heal what is hurt within.
Bend all that is rigid,
warm all that has frozen hard,
lead back the lost.
Give to your faithful ones,
who come in simple trust,
your sevenfold mystery.
Give virtue its reward,
give, in the end, salvation
and joy that has no end.
after the Golden Sequence
1God chose to be our
mother in all things •
and so made the foundation of his work,
most humble and most pure,
in the Virgin’s womb.
2God, the perfect wisdom
of all, •
arrayed himself in this humble place.
3Christ came in our poor
flesh •
to share a mother’s care.
4Our mothers bear us
for pain and for death; •
our true mother, Jesus,
bears us for joy and endless life.
5Christ carried us within
him in love and travail, •
until the full time of his passion.
6And when all was completed
and he had carried us so for joy, •
still all this could not satisfy
the power of his wonderful love.
7All that we owe is redeemed
in truly loving God, •
for the love of Christ works in us;
Christ is the one whom we love.
1Jesus, Saviour of the
world,
come to us in your mercy: •
we look to you to save and help us.
2By your cross and your
life laid down,
you set your people free: •
we look to you to save and help us.
3When they were ready
to perish, you saved your disciples: •
we look to you to come to our help.
4In the greatness of
your mercy, loose us from our chains, •
forgive the sins of all your people.
5Make yourself known
as our Saviour and mighty deliverer; •
save and help us that we may praise you.
6Come now and dwell with
us, Lord Christ Jesus: •
hear our prayer and be with us always.
7And when you come in
your glory: •
make us to be one with you
and to share the life of your kingdom.