O Lord, open our lips
Alland our mouth shall
proclaim your praise.
The Acclamation of Christ at the Dawning of the Day (page 108) may replace the Preparation as the start of Morning Prayer on any occasion.
One or more of the following is said or sung:
One of these prayers of thanksgiving (page 109),
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all,
to you be glory and praise for ever.
You founded the earth in the beginning
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
In the fullness of time you made us in your image,
and in these last days you have spoken to us
in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh.
As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us
let the light of your love always shine in our hearts,
your Spirit ever renew our lives
and your praises ever be on our lips.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.
(or)
Blessed are you, creator of all,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As your dawn renews the face of the earth
bringing light and life to all creation,
may we rejoice in this day you have made;
as we wake refreshed from the depths of sleep,
open our eyes to behold your presence
and strengthen our hands to do your will,
that the world may rejoice and give you praise.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.
after Lancelot Andrewes (1626)
or a suitable hymn,
or A Song of God’s Praise
1O God, you are my God;
eagerly I seek you; ♦
my soul is athirst for you.
2My flesh also faints
for you, ♦
as in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.
3So would I gaze upon
you in your holy place, ♦
that I might behold your power and your glory.
4Your loving-kindness
is better than life itself ♦
and so my lips shall praise you.
5I will bless you as
long as I live ♦
and lift up my hands in your name.
6My soul shall be satisfied,
as with marrow and fatness, ♦
and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips,
7When I remember you
upon my bed ♦
and meditate on you in the watches of the night.
8For you have been my
helper ♦
and under the shadow of your wings will I rejoice.
9My soul clings to you;
♦
your right hand shall hold me fast.
Psalm 63.1-9
AllGlory to the Father and
to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
This opening prayer may be said
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
AllAmen.
The appointed psalmody is said.
Refrain: O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
1 Sing to the Lord a new song; ♦
sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord and bless his name; ♦
tell out his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations ♦
and his wonders among all peoples. R
4 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; ♦
he is more to be feared than all gods.
5 For all the gods of the nations are but idols; ♦
it is the Lord who made the heavens.
6 Honour and majesty are before him; ♦
power and splendour are in his sanctuary. R
7 Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples; ♦
ascribe to the Lord honour and strength.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the honour due to his name; ♦
bring offerings and come into his courts.
9 O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; ♦
let the whole earth tremble before him.
10 Tell it out among the nations that the Lord is king. ♦
He has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity. R
11 Let the heavens rejoice and let the earth be glad; ♦
let the sea thunder and all that is in it;
12 Let the fields be joyful and all that is in them; ♦
let all the trees of the wood shout for joy before the Lord.
13 For he comes, he comes to judge the earth; ♦
with righteousness he will judge the world
and the peoples with his truth.
Refrain: O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
Lord God, you draw us by your beauty
and transform us by your holiness;
let our worship echo all creation’s praise
and declare your glory to the nations;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Refrain: You, Lord, are most high over all the earth.
1 The Lord is king: let the earth rejoice; ♦
let the multitude of the isles be glad.
2 Clouds and darkness are round about him; ♦
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire goes before him ♦
and burns up his enemies on every side. R
4 His lightnings lit up the world; ♦
the earth saw it and trembled.
5 The mountains melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, ♦
at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
6 The heavens declared his righteousness ♦
and all the peoples have seen his glory. R
7 Confounded be all who worship carved images
and delight in mere idols. ♦
Bow down before him, all you gods.
8 Zion heard and was glad, and the daughters of Judah rejoiced, ♦
because of your judgements, O Lord.
9 For you, Lord, are most high over all the earth; ♦
you are exalted far above all gods. R
10 The Lord loves those who hate evil; ♦
he preserves the lives of his faithful
and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light has sprung up for the righteous ♦
and joy for the true of heart.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous, ♦
and give thanks to his holy name.
Refrain: You, Lord, are most high over all the earth.
Most high and holy God,
enthroned in fire and light,
burn away the dross of our lives
and kindle in us the fire of your love,
that our lives may reveal the light and life
we find in your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Refrain: The Lord is gracious; his steadfast love is everlasting.
1 O be joyful in the Lord, all the earth; ♦
serve the Lord with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
2 Know that the Lord is God; ♦
it is he that has made us and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture. R
3 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise; ♦
give thanks to him and bless his name.
4 For the Lord is gracious; his steadfast love is everlasting, ♦
and his faithfulness endures from generation to generation.
Refrain: The Lord is gracious; his steadfast love is everlasting.
O Christ, door of the sheepfold,
may we enter your gates with praise
and go from your courts to serve you
in the poor, the lost and the wandering,
this day and all our days.
Each psalm or group of psalms may end with
AllGlory to the Father and
to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
If there are two Scripture readings, the first may be read here, or both may be read after the canticle.
Then Job answered the Lord:
‘I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
“Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?”
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
“Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you declare to me.”
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.’
After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite: ‘My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt-offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has done.’ So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the Lord had told them; and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer.
And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he had prayed for his friends; and the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then there came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and they ate bread with him in his house; they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him; and each of them gave him a piece of money and a gold ring. The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; and he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. He named the first Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. In all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters; and their father gave them an inheritance along with their brothers. After this Job lived for one hundred and forty years, and saw his children, and his children’s children, four generations. And Job died, old and full of days.
A Song of Jerusalem our Mother, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 48 (page 600), may be said
Refrain:
AllThus says our God, I will
comfort you,
you shall see and your heart shall rejoice. Alleluia.
1‘Rejoice with
Jerusalem and be glad for her, ♦
all you who love her,’ says the Lord.
2 ‘Rejoice with
her in joy, ♦
all you who mourn over her,
3‘That you may
drink deeply with delight ♦
from her consoling breast.’
4For thus says our God,
♦
‘You shall be nursed and carried on her arm.
5‘As a mother comforts
her children, ♦
so I will comfort you;
6‘You shall see
and your heart shall rejoice; ♦
you shall flourish like the grass of the fields.’
Isaiah 66.10, 11a, 12a, 12c, 13a, 14a, b
AllGlory to the Father and
to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
AllThus says our God, I will
comfort you,
you shall see and your heart shall rejoice. Alleluia.
One or more readings appointed for the day are read.
The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.
I urge you, brothers and sisters, to keep an eye on those who cause dissensions and offences, in opposition to the teaching that you have learned; avoid them. For such people do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the simple-minded. For while your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, I want you to be wise in what is good, and guileless in what is evil. The God of peace will shortly crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
Timothy, my co-worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my relatives.
I Tertius, the writer of this letter, greet you in the Lord.
Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus, greet you.
Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever! Amen.
A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow
Your salvation is near to those who fear you;
that glory may dwell in our land.
AllYour salvation is near
to those who fear you;
that glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together;
righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
AllThat glory may dwell
in our land.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit.
AllYour salvation is near
to those who fear you;
that glory may dwell in our land.
from Psalm 85
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah) is normally said,
or the Te Deum Laudamus (A Song
of the Church) (page 636) may be said
Refrain:
All
Those who are wise will shine as brightly as the heavens,
and those who have instructed many in virtue will shine like stars
for all eternity. Alleluia.
1Blessed be the Lord
the God of Israel, ♦
who has come to his people and set them free.
2He has raised up for
us a mighty Saviour, ♦
born of the house of his servant David.
3Through his holy prophets
God promised of old ♦
to save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us,
4To show mercy to our
ancestors, ♦
and to remember his holy covenant.
5This was the oath God
swore to our father Abraham: ♦
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6Free to worship him
without fear, ♦
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
7And you, child, shall
be called the prophet of the Most High, ♦
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8To give his people knowledge
of salvation ♦
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
9In the tender compassion
of our God ♦
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10To shine on those who
dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, ♦
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Luke 1.68-79
AllGlory to the Father and
to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
Refrain:
All
Those who are wise will shine as brightly as the heavens,
and those who have instructed many in virtue will shine like stars
for all eternity. Alleluia.
Intercessions are offered
¶ for the day and its tasks
¶ for the world and its needs
¶ for the Church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns from the cycle on pages 362–363
¶ Our homes, families, friends and all whom
we love
¶ Those whose time is spent caring for others
¶ Those who are close to death
¶ Those who have lost hope
¶ The worship of the Church
One of the forms of prayer found on pages 362–371 may be used.
These responses may be used
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer
(or)
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
Silence may be kept.
The Collect of the day is said
Lord of eternity, creator of all things,
in your Son Jesus Christ you open for us the way to resurrection
that we may enjoy your bountiful goodness:
may we who celebrate your servants Gregory and Macrina
press onwards in faith to your boundless love
and ever wonder at the miracle of your presence among us;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
AllAmen.
The Lord’s Prayer is said
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
AllOur 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.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
(or)
Let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us
AllOur Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
AllAmen.
Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
AllThanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.
©
The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England, 2000–2005
Official Common Worship apps, books and eBooks are available from
Church House Publishing.
The Bible readings (other than the psalms) are from The New Revised Standard Version Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Implemented by Simon Kershaw at
Crucix.
Implementation copyright © Simon Kershaw, 2002–2021.