O God, make speed to save us.
AllO Lord, make haste to help us.
Hear our voice, O Lord, according to your faithful love,
Allaccording to your judgement
give us life.
One or more of the following is said or sung:
this or another prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation,
to you be glory and praise for ever.
In the darkness of our sin you have shone in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
Open our eyes to acknowledge your presence,
that freed from the misery of sin and shame
we may grow into your likeness from glory to glory.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.
A Song of Entreaty (page 568), the following or another suitable hymn
Lord Jesus, think on me,
and purge away my sin;
from earthborn passions set me free,
and make me pure within.
Lord Jesus, think on me
with many a care opprest;
let me thy loving servant be,
and taste thy promised rest.
Lord Jesus, think on me,
nor let me go astray;
through darkness and perplexity
point thou the heavenly way.
Lord Jesus, think on me,
that, when the flood is past,
I may the eternal brightness see,
and share thy joy at last.
George the Sinner, tr: A W Chatfield
(Tune: SM)
This opening prayer may be said
That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,
so may your mercy come down upon us
to cleanse our hearts
and set us free to sing your praise
now and for ever.
AllAmen.
The appointed psalmody is said.
Refrain: You, O Lord, will watch over us.
1 Help me, Lord, for no one godly is left; ♦
the faithful have vanished from the whole human race.
2 They all speak falsely with their neighbour; ♦
they flatter with their lips, but speak from a double heart.
3 O that the Lord would cut off all flattering lips ♦
and the tongue that speaks proud boasts!
4 Those who say, ‘With our tongue will we prevail; ♦
our lips we will use; who is lord over us?’ R
5 ‘Because of the oppression of the needy,
and the groaning of the poor, ♦
I will rise up now,’ says the Lord,
‘and set them in the safety that they long for.’
6 The words of the Lord are pure words, ♦
like silver refined in the furnace
and purified seven times in the fire.
7 You, O Lord, will watch over us ♦
and guard us from this generation for ever.
8 The wicked strut on every side, ♦
when what is vile is exalted by the whole human race.
Refrain: You, O Lord, will watch over us.
Lord, when faith is faint
and speech veils our intentions,
restore us by your word of power and purity,
both now and for ever.
Refrain: I love the Lord, for he has heard the voice of my supplication.
1 How long will you forget me, O Lord; for ever? ♦
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long shall I have anguish in my soul
and grief in my heart, day after day? ♦
How long shall my enemy triumph over me? R
3 Look upon me and answer, O Lord my God; ♦
lighten my eyes, lest I sleep in death;
4 Lest my enemy say, ‘I have prevailed against him,’ ♦
and my foes rejoice that I have fallen. R
5 But I put my trust in your steadfast love; ♦
my heart will rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord, ♦
for he has dealt so bountifully with me.
Refrain: I love the Lord, for he has heard the voice of my supplication.
Jesus Christ, Son of God,
who passed through the dark sleep of death,
remember those who cry to you
in shame and silence and defeat
and raise them to your risen life,
for you are alive and reign for ever.
Refrain: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
1 The fool has said in his heart,‘There is no God.’ ♦
Corrupt are they, and abominable in their wickedness;
there is no one that does good.
2 The Lord has looked down from heaven
upon the children of earth, ♦
to see if there is anyone who is wise
and seeks after God.
3 But every one has turned back;
all alike have become corrupt: ♦
there is none that does good; no, not one. R
4 Have they no knowledge, those evildoers, ♦
who eat up my people as if they ate bread
and do not call upon the Lord?
5 There shall they be in great fear; ♦
for God is in the company of the righteous.
6 Though they would confound the counsel of the poor, ♦
yet the Lord shall be their refuge.
7 O that Israel’s salvation would come out of Zion! ♦
When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
then will Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.
Refrain: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
God of heaven,
look with mercy on all who are consumed
by ignorance and greed,
and let the children of earth know
that you are God for ever.
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.
My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!
Oh, the walls of my heart!
My heart is beating wildly;
I cannot keep silent;
for I hear the sound of the trumpet,
the alarm of war.
Disaster overtakes disaster,
the whole land is laid waste.
Suddenly my tents are destroyed,
my curtains in a moment.
How long must I see the standard,
and hear the sound of the trumpet?
‘For my people are foolish,
they do not know me;
they are stupid children,
they have no understanding.
They are skilled in doing evil,
but do not know how to do good.’
I looked on the earth, and lo, it was waste and void;
and to the heavens, and they had no light.
I looked on the mountains, and lo, they were quaking,
and all the hills moved to and fro.
I looked, and lo, there was no one at all,
and all the birds of the air had fled.
I looked, and lo, the fruitful land was a desert,
and all its cities were laid in ruins
before the Lord, before his fierce anger.
For thus says the Lord: The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end.
Because of this the earth shall mourn,
and the heavens above grow black;
for I have spoken, I have purposed;
I have not relented nor will I turn back.
At the noise of horseman and archer
every town takes to flight;
they enter thickets; they climb among rocks;
all the towns are forsaken,
and no one lives in them.
And you, O desolate one,
what do you mean that you dress in crimson,
that you deck yourself with ornaments of gold,
that you enlarge your eyes with paint?
In vain you beautify yourself.
Your lovers despise you;
they seek your life.
For I heard a cry as of a woman in labour,
anguish as of one bringing forth her first child,
the cry of daughter Zion gasping for breath,
stretching out her hands,
‘Woe is me! I am fainting before killers!’
A Song of Christ the Servant, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 61 (page 619) or number 67 (page 625), may be said
Refrain:
AllChrist committed no sin,
no guile was found on his lips. Alleluia.
1Christ suffered for
you, leaving you an example, ♦
that you should follow in his steps.
2He committed no sin,
no guile was found on his lips, ♦
when he was reviled, he did not revile in turn.
3When he suffered, he
did not threaten, ♦
but he trusted himself to God who judges justly.
4Christ himself bore
our sins in his body on the tree, ♦
that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.
5By his wounds, you have
been healed,
for you were straying like sheep, ♦
but have now returned
to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.
1 Peter 2.21b-25
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.
AllChrist committed no sin,
no guile was found on his lips. Alleluia.
One or more readings appointed for the day are read.
The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.
After this there was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool, called in Hebrew Beth-zatha, which has five porticoes. In these lay many invalids—blind, lame, and paralysed. One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been there a long time, he said to him, ‘Do you want to be made well?’ The sick man answered him, ‘Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; and while I am making my way, someone else steps down ahead of me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Stand up, take your mat and walk.’ At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk.
Now that day was a sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who had been cured, ‘It is the sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.’ But he answered them, ‘The man who made me well said to me, “Take up your mat and walk.” ’ They asked him, ‘Who is the man who said to you, “Take it up and walk”?’ Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had disappeared in the crowd that was there. Later Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, ‘See, you have been made well! Do not sin any more, so that nothing worse happens to you.’ The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. Therefore the Jews started persecuting Jesus, because he was doing such things on the sabbath. But Jesus answered them, ‘My Father is still working, and I also am working.’ For this reason the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because he was not only breaking the sabbath, but was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself equal to God.
A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow
Forsake me not, O Lord;
be not far from me, O my God.
AllForsake me not, O Lord;
be not far from me, O my God.
Make haste to help me,
O Lord of my salvation.
AllBe not far from me,
O my God.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit.
AllForsake me not, O Lord;
be not far from me, O my God.
from Psalm 38
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary) is normally said,
or A Song of Praise (page 627)
may be said
Refrain:
All
Those who gave up their lives for Christ and followed in the Way
rejoice with God now and for ever. Alleluia.
1My soul proclaims the
greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour; ♦
he has looked with favour on his lowly servant.
2From this day all generations
will call me blessed; ♦
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his name.
3He has mercy on those
who fear him, ♦
from generation to generation.
4He has shown strength
with his arm ♦
and has scattered the proud in their conceit,
5Casting down the mighty
from their thrones ♦
and lifting up the lowly.
6He has filled the hungry
with good things ♦
and sent the rich away empty.
7He has come to the aid
of his servant Israel, ♦
to remember his promise of mercy,
8The promise made to our
ancestors, ♦
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Luke 1.46-55
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 gave up their lives for Christ and followed in the Way
rejoice with God now and for ever. Alleluia.
Thanksgiving may be made for the day.
Intercessions are offered
¶ for peace
¶ for individuals and their needs
Prayers may include the following concerns from the cycle on pages 364–365
¶ Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
¶ Those serving through leadership
¶ Those looking for forgiveness
¶ Those misled by the false gods of this present age
¶ All who are hungry
A form of prayer found on page 380 may be used.
The Litany on pages 400-403 may be said instead of the Prayers.
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
Almighty God,
who gave to your servant Polycarp
boldness to confess the name of our Saviour Jesus Christ
before the rulers of this world
and courage to die for his faith:
grant that we also may be ready
to give an answer for the faith that is in us
and to suffer gladly for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ,
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
Trusting in the compassion of God,
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)
Trusting in the compassion of God,
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.
May God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
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.