O Lord, open our lips
Alland our mouth shall
proclaim your praise.
One or more of the following is said
or sung:
a prayer of thanksgiving (page
109),
a suitable hymn,
or A Song of God’s Compassion
1The Lord is full of
compassion and mercy, •
slow to anger and of great kindness.
2He will not always accuse
us, •
neither will he keep his anger for ever.
3He has not dealt with
us according to our sins, •
nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
4For as the heavens are
high above the earth, •
so great is his mercy upon those who fear him.
5As far as the east is
from the west, •
so far has he set our sins from us.
6As a father has compassion
on his children, •
so is the Lord merciful towards those who fear him.
7For he knows of what
we are made; •
he remembers that we are but dust.
8Our days are but as
grass; •
we flourish as a flower of the field;
9For as soon as the wind
goes over it, it is gone, •
and its place shall know it no more.
10But the merciful goodness
of the Lord is from of old
and endures for ever on those who fear him, •
and his righteousness on children’s children;
11On those who keep his
covenant •
and remember his commandments to do them.
Psalm 103.8-18
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: Our eyes wait upon the Lord our God.
1 To you I lift up my eyes, •
to you that are enthroned in the heavens.
2 As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, •
or the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
3 So our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, •
until he have mercy upon us. R
4 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us, •
for we have had more than enough of contempt.
5 Our soul has had more than enough of the scorn of the arrogant, •
and of the contempt of the proud.
Refrain: Our eyes wait upon the Lord our God.
Sovereign God, enthroned in the heavens,
look upon us with your eyes of mercy,
as we look on you with humility and love,
and fill our souls with your peace
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Refrain: Our help is in the name of the Lord.
1 If the Lord himself had not been on our side, •
now may Israel say;
2 If the Lord had not been on our side, •
when enemies rose up against us;
3 Then would they have swallowed us alive •
when their anger burned against us;
4 Then would the waters have overwhelmed us
and the torrent gone over our soul; •
over our soul would have swept the raging waters. R
5 But blessed be the Lord •
who has not given us over to be a prey for their teeth.
6 Our soul has escaped
as a bird from the snare of the fowler; •
the snare is broken and we are delivered.
7 Our help is in the name of the Lord, •
who has made heaven and earth.
Refrain: Our help is in the name of the Lord.
O God, maker of heaven and earth,
you save us in the water of baptism
and by the suffering of your Son you set us free;
help us to put our trust in his victory
and to know the salvation won for us
by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Refrain: Glorious
things are spoken of you,
Zion, city of our God.
1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, •
which cannot be moved, but stands fast for ever.
2 As the hills stand about Jerusalem, •
so the Lord stands round about his people,
from this time forth for evermore.
3 The sceptre of wickedness shall not hold sway
over the land allotted to the righteous, •
lest the righteous turn their hands to evil.
4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good, •
and to those who are true of heart.
5 Those who turn aside to crooked ways
the Lord shall take away with the evildoers; •
but let there be peace upon Israel.
Refrain: Glorious
things are spoken of you,
Zion, city of our God.
God of power,
you are strong to save
and you never fail those who trust in you;
keep us under your protection
and spread abroad your reign of peace
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Refrain: The Lord has indeed done great things for us.
1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, •
then were we like those who dream.
2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter •
and our tongue with songs of joy.
3 Then said they among the nations, •
‘The Lord has done great things for them.’
4 The Lord has indeed done great things for us, •
and therefore we rejoiced. R
5 Restore again our fortunes, O Lord, •
as the river beds of the desert.
6 Those who sow in tears •
shall reap with songs of joy.
7 Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed, •
will come back with shouts of joy,
bearing their sheaves with them.
Refrain: The Lord has indeed done great things for us.
Lord, as you send rain and flowers
even to the wilderness,
renew us by your Holy Spirit,
help us to sow good seed in time of adversity
and to live to rejoice in your good harvest of all creation;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
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.
When the Philistines captured the ark of God, they brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod; then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon and placed it beside Dagon. When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and put him back in his place. But when they rose early on the next morning, Dagon had fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord, and the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying cut off upon the threshold; only the trunk of Dagon was left to him. This is why the priests of Dagon and all who enter the house of Dagon do not step on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.
The hand of the Lord was heavy upon the people of Ashdod, and he terrified and struck them with tumours, both in Ashdod and in its territory. And when the inhabitants of Ashdod saw how things were, they said, ‘The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us; for his hand is heavy on us and on our god Dagon.’ So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, ‘What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?’ The inhabitants of Gath replied, ‘Let the ark of God be moved on to us.’ So they moved the ark of the God of Israel to Gath. But after they had brought it to Gath, the hand of the Lord was against the city, causing a very great panic; he struck the inhabitants of the city, both young and old, so that tumours broke out on them. So they sent the ark of the God of Israel to Ekron. But when the ark of God came to Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, ‘Why have they brought across to us the ark of the God of Israel to kill us and our people?’ They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, ‘Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it return to its own place, that it may not kill us and our people.’ For there was a deathly panic throughout the whole city. The hand of God was very heavy there; those who did not die were stricken with tumours, and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
A Song of Deliverance, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 40 (page 591), may be said
Refrain:
AllAll the earth, shout and
sing for joy,
for great in your midst is the Holy One. Alleluia.
1‘Behold, God is my salvation;
•
I will trust and will not be afraid;
2‘For the Lord
God is my strength and my song, •
and has become my salvation.’
3With joy you will draw
water •
from the wells of salvation.
4On that day you will
say, •
‘Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name;
5‘Make known his deeds
among the nations, •
proclaim that his name is exalted.
6‘Sing God’s praises,
who has triumphed gloriously; •
let this be known in all the world.
7‘Shout and sing for
joy, you that dwell in Zion, •
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.‘
Isaiah 12.2-6
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.
AllAll the earth, shout and
sing for joy,
for great in your midst is the Holy One. Alleluia.
One or more readings appointed for the day are read.
The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.
Then he said to them, ‘How can they say that the Messiah is David’s son?
For David himself says in the book of Psalms,
“The Lord said to my Lord,
‘Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool.’ ”
David thus calls him Lord; so how can he be his son?’
In the hearing of all the people he said to the disciples, ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love to be greeted with respect in the market-places, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honour at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.’
He looked up and saw rich people putting their gifts into the treasury; he also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.’
A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow
Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
and be not wise in your own sight.
AllTrust in the Lord with
all your heart;
and be not wise in your own sight.
In all your ways acknowledge him
and he will make straight your paths.
AllTrust in the Lord with
all your heart.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
AllTrust in the Lord with
all your heart;
and be not wise in your own sight.
from Proverbs 3
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:
AllYou have set us free to
worship you without fear,
holy and righteous in your sight.
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:
AllYou have set us free to
worship you without fear,
holy and righteous in your sight.
Intercessions are offered
¶ for the day and its tasks
¶ for the world and its needs
¶ for the Church and her life
The cycle on pages 364–365 and the prayer on page 377 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
Merciful God,
you have prepared for those who love you
such good things as pass our understanding:
pour into our hearts such love toward you
that we, loving you in all things and above all things,
may obtain your promises,
which exceed all that we can desire;
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.
Implemented by Simon Kershaw at
Crucix.
Implementation copyright © Simon Kershaw, 2002-2011.