Morning Prayer: Friday 12 May 2017

May 12, 2017

Thomas Rattray, Bishop, 1743
Morning Prayer – New Life – The Lord

O Lord, open our lips:
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory 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.

PSALMODY

Antiphon: Christ has been raised from the dead:*
the first fruits of those who sleep. (1 Cor 15-20)

Opening – Easter Anthems

1 Christ our passover has been sacrificed for us;*
so let us celebrate the feast.
2 Not with the old leaven of corruption and wickedness,*
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
3 Christ once raised from the dead dies no more;*
death has no more dominion over him.
4 In dying, he died to sin once for all;*
in living, he lives to God.
5 See yourselves therefore as dead to sin,*
and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord.
6 Christ has been raised from the dead,*
the first fruits of those who sleep.
7 For as by man came death,*
by man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
8 For as in Adam all die,*
even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

Glory to the Father…

or a suitable hymn

Psalm 96

1 Sing to the Lord a new song;*
sing to the Lord, all the whole earth.
2 Sing to the Lord and bless his name;*
proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations*
and his wonders among all peoples.
4 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised;*
he is more to be feared than all gods.
5 As for all the gods of the nations, they are but idols;*
but it is the Lord who made the heavens.
6 Oh, the majesty and magnificence of his presence!*
Oh, the power and the splendour of his sanctuary!
7 Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples;*
ascribe to the Lord honour and power.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the honour due his name;*
bring offerings and come into his courts.
9 Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;*
let the whole earth tremble before him.
10 Tell it out among the nations: ‘The Lord is king!*
he has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.’
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
let the sea thunder and all that is in it;*
let the field be joyful and all that is therein.
12 Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy
before the Lord when he comes,*
when he comes to judge the earth.
13 He will judge the world with righteousness*
and the peoples with his truth.

We worship you, God of glory, in the beauty of holiness, and we joyfully proclaim your just and righteous rule, established for all, through your Son Jesus Christ the Lord.

Conclusion (from Wisdom 10)

1 Wisdom freed a holy people and a blameless race,*
from a nation of oppressors.
2 She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord,*
and withstood fearsome rulers with wonders and signs.
3 To the saints she gave the reward of their labours,*
and led them by a marvellous road.
4 She was their shelter by day,*
and a blaze of stars by night.
5 She brought them across the Red Sea;*
she led them through mighty waters.
6 She swallowed their enemies in the waves,*
and spat them out from the depths of the sea.
7 Then, Lord, the righteous sang the glories of your name,*
and praised together your protecting hand.
8 For wisdom opened the mouths of the silent.*
and gave speech to the tongues of her children.

Glory to the Father…

Antiphon: Christ has been raised from the dead: the first fruits of those who sleep.

READING(S)

Wisdom of Solomon 6:12-23

Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her,
and is found by those who seek her.
She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.
One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.
To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,
and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,
because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths,
and meets them in every thought.

The beginning of wisdom is the most sincere desire for instruction,
and concern for instruction is love of her,
and love of her is the keeping of her laws,
and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,
and immortality brings one near to God;
so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.

Therefore if you delight in thrones and sceptres, O monarchs over the peoples,
honour wisdom, so that you may reign for ever.
I will tell you what wisdom is and how she came to be,
and I will hide no secrets from you,
but I will trace her course from the beginning of creation,
and make knowledge of her clear,
and I will not pass by the truth;
nor will I travel in the company of sickly envy,
for envy does not associate with wisdom.

Colossians 3:1-11

So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.

Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed (which is idolatry). On account of these the wrath of God is coming on those who are disobedient. These are the ways you also once followed, when you were living that life. But now you must get rid of all such things—anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!

Silence

Response (PS.96.4)

Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.
Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised,
alleluia, alleluia.
He is more to be feared than all gods.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised,
alleluia, alleluia.

BENEDICTUS

Benedictus Antiphon: I am the resurrection* and the life, says the Lord; alleluia!

1 Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel,*
for he has come to his people and set them free.
2 He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,*
born of the house of his servant David.
3 Through his holy prophets he promised of old*
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us.
4 He promised to show mercy to our forebears,*
and to remember his holy covenant.
5 This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:*
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6 free to worship him without fear,*
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
7 You my child shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8 to give his people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
9 In the tender compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10 to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,*
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father… (may be said by all)

Benedictus Antiphon: I am the resurrection* and the life, says the Lord; alleluia!

PRAYERS

Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.

Our 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.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever.
Amen.

Collect of the Day
O God, the light of whose truth stretches out to those who go astray, that they may return to the path of righteousness: give your grace to all who profess themselves Christians, that they may cast out what is harmful, and pursue all that gives life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
Amen.

God most holy, we give you thanks for bringing us out of the shadow of night into the light of morning; and we ask you for the joy of spending this day in your service, so that when evening comes, we may once more give you thanks, through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!

The Lord bless us and preserve us from all evil;
and bring us to life eternal.
Amen.