O Lord, open our lips
Alland our mouth shall
proclaim your praise.
In your resurrection, O Christ,
Alllet heaven and earth
rejoice. Alleluia.
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 praise and glory for ever.
As once you ransomed your people from Egypt
and led them to freedom in the promised land,
so now you have delivered us from the dominion of darkness
and brought us into the kingdom of your risen Son.
May we, the first fruits of your new creation,
rejoice in this new day you have made,
and praise you for your mighty acts.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.
a suitable hymn, or the Easter Anthems
1Christ our passover
has been sacrificed for us: •
so let us celebrate the feast,
2not with the old leaven
of corruption and wickedness: •
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
1 Corinthians 5.7b, 8
3Christ once raised from
the dead dies no more: •
death has no more dominion over him.
4In dying he died to
sin once for all: •
in living he lives to God.
5See yourselves therefore
as dead to sin: •
and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 6.9-11
6Christ has been raised
from the dead: •
the first fruits of those who sleep.
7For as by man came death:
•
by man has come also the resurrection of the dead;
8for as in Adam all die:
•
even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1 Corinthians 15.20-22
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: The righteous will be held in everlasting remembrance.
1 Alleluia.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord •
and have great delight in his commandments.
2 Their descendants will be mighty in the land, •
a generation of the faithful that will be blest.
3 Wealth and riches will be in their house, •
and their righteousness endures for ever.
4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright; •
gracious and full of compassion are the righteous. R
5 It goes well with those who are generous in lending •
and order their affairs with justice,
6 For they will never be shaken; •
the righteous will be held in everlasting remembrance.
7 They will not be afraid of any evil tidings; •
their heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. R
8 Their heart is sustained and will not fear, •
until they see the downfall of their foes.
9 They have given freely to the poor;
their righteousness stands fast for ever; •
their head will be exalted with honour.
10 The wicked shall see it and be angry;
they shall gnash their teeth in despair; •
the desire of the wicked shall perish.
Refrain: The righteous will be held in everlasting remembrance.
Generous God,
save us from the meanness
that calculates its interest and hoards its earthly gain;
as we have freely received,
so may we freely give;
in the grace of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Refrain: Great is our Lord and mighty in power.
1 Alleluia.
How good it is to make music for our God, •
how joyful to honour him with praise.
2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem •
and gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted •
and binds up all their wounds. R
4 He counts the number of the stars •
and calls them all by their names.
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; •
his wisdom is beyond all telling.
6 The Lord lifts up the poor, •
but casts down the wicked to the ground. R
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; •
make music to our God upon the lyre;
8 Who covers the heavens with clouds •
and prepares rain for the earth;
9 Who makes grass to grow upon the mountains •
and green plants to serve our needs. R
10 He gives the beasts their food •
and the young ravens when they cry.
11 He takes no pleasure in the power of a horse, •
no delight in human strength;
12 But the Lord delights in those who fear him, •
who put their trust in his steadfast love. R
Refrain: Great is our Lord and mighty in power.
Compassionate God,
as you know each star you have created,
so you know the secrets of every heart;
in your loving mercy bring to your table
all who are fearful and broken,
all who are wounded and needy,
that our hungers may be satisfied
in the city of your peace;
through Christ who is our peace.
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.
This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses, for whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day you shall hold a solemn assembly, and on the seventh day a solemn assembly; no work shall be done on those days; only what everyone must eat, that alone may be prepared by you. You shall observe the festival of unleavened bread, for on this very day I brought your companies out of the land of Egypt: you shall observe this day throughout your generations as a perpetual ordinance. In the first month, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day, you shall eat unleavened bread. For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses; for whoever eats what is leavened shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether an alien or a native of the land. You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your settlements you shall eat unleavened bread.
Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, ‘Go, select lambs for your families, and slaughter the passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood in the basin. None of you shall go outside the door of your house until morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike down the Egyptians; when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over that door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you down. You shall observe this rite as a perpetual ordinance for you and your children. When you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this observance. And when your children ask you, “What do you mean by this observance?” you shall say, “It is the passover sacrifice to the Lord, for he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, when he struck down the Egyptians but spared our houses.” ’ And the people bowed down and worshipped.
The Israelites went and did just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.
At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. Pharaoh arose in the night, he and all his officials and all the Egyptians; and there was a loud cry in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead. Then he summoned Moses and Aaron in the night, and said, ‘Rise up, go away from my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, worship the Lord, as you said. Take your flocks and your herds, as you said, and be gone. And bring a blessing on me too!’
The Egyptians urged the people to hasten their departure from the land, for they said, ‘We shall all be dead.’ So the people took their dough before it was leavened, with their kneading-bowls wrapped up in their cloaks on their shoulders. The Israelites had done as Moses told them; they had asked the Egyptians for jewellery of silver and gold, and for clothing, and the Lord had given the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. And so they plundered the Egyptians.
The Song of Moses and Miriam, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 23 (page 574) or number 32 (page 583), may be said
Refrain:
AllIn your unfailing love,
O Lord,
you lead the people whom you have redeemed. Alleluia.
1I will sing to the Lord,
who has triumphed gloriously, •
the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.
2The Lord is my strength
and my song •
and has become my salvation.
3This is my God whom
I will praise, •
the God of my forebears whom I will exalt.
4The Lord is a warrior,
•
the Lord is his name.
5Your right hand, O Lord,
is glorious in power: •
your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy.
6At the blast of your
nostrils, the sea covered them; •
they sank as lead in the mighty waters.
7In your unfailing love,
O Lord, •
you lead the people whom you have redeemed.
8And by your invincible
strength •
you will guide them to your holy dwelling.
9You will bring them
in and plant them, O Lord, •
in the sanctuary which your hands have established.
Exodus 15.1b-3, 6, 10, 13, 17
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.
AllIn your unfailing love,
O Lord,
you lead the people whom you have redeemed. Alleluia.
One or more readings appointed for the day are read.
The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.
Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ—whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have died in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow
Death is swallowed up in victory.
AllWhere, O death, is your
sting?
Christ is risen from the dead,
the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
AllDeath is swallowed up
in victory.
The trumpet will sound
and the dead shall be raised.
AllWhere, O death, is your
sting?
We shall not all sleep,
but we shall be changed.
AllDeath is swallowed up
in victory.
Where, O death, is your sting?
from 1 Corinthians 15
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah) is normally said,
or The Song of Christ’s Glory
(page 619) may be said
Refrain:
AllThe Lord is risen from the
tomb
who for our sakes hung upon the tree. 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:
AllThe Lord is risen from the
tomb
who for our sakes hung upon the tree. Alleluia.
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
Lord of all life and power,
who through the mighty resurrection of your Son
overcame the old order of sin and death
to make all things new in him:
grant that we, being dead to sin
and alive to you in Jesus Christ,
may reign with him in glory;
to whom with you and the Holy Spirit
be praise and honour, glory and might,
now and in all eternity.
AllAmen.
The Lord’s Prayer is said
Rejoicing in God’s new creation,
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)
Rejoicing in God’s new creation,
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 the risen Christ grant us the joys of 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.