Morning Prayer: Thursday 29 May 2014

May 29, 2014

Ascension Day
Morning Prayer: New Life – The Spirit

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: Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God,* and
your glory over all the earth. (Ps. 57.11)

Opening

Easter Anthems

or (from Psalm 57)

1 My heart is firmly fixed, O God, my heart is fixed;*
I will sing and make melody.
2 Wake up, my spirit; awake, lute and harp:*
I myself will waken the dawn.
3 I will confess you among the peoples, O Lord;*
I will sing praise to you among the nations.
4 For your loving-kindness is greater than the heavens,*
and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

Glory to the Father…

or a suitable hymn

Psalm 104

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul;*
O Lord my God, how excellent is your greatness!
you are clothed with majesty and splendour.

2 You wrap yourself with light as with a cloak*
and spread out the heavens like a curtain.

3 You lay the beams of your chambers in the waters above;*
you make the clouds your chariot;
you ride on the wings of the wind.

4 You make the winds your messengers*
and flames of fire your servants.

5 You have set the earth upon its foundations,*
so that it never shall move at any time.

6 You covered it with the deep as with a mantle;*
the waters stood higher than the mountains.

7 At your rebuke they fled;*
at the voice of your thunder they hastened away.

8 They went up into the hills and down to the valleys beneath,*
to the places you had appointed for them.

9 You set the limits that they should not pass;*
they shall not again cover the earth.

10 You send the springs into the valleys;*
they flow between the mountains.

11 All the beasts of the field drink their fill from them,*
and the wild asses quench their thirst.

12 Beside them the birds of the air make their nests*
and sing among the branches.

13 You water the mountains from your dwelling on high;*
the earth is fully satisfied by the fruit of your works.

14 You make grass grow for flocks and herds*
and plants to serve mankind;

15 That they may bring forth food from the earth,*
and wine to gladden our hearts,

16 Oil to make a cheerful countenance,*
and bread to strengthen the heart.

17 The trees of the Lord are full of sap,*
the cedars of Lebanon which he planted,

18 In which the birds build their nests,*
and in whose tops the stork makes his dwelling.

19 The high hills are a refuge for the mountain goats,*
and the stony cliffs for the rock badgers.

20 You appointed the moon to mark the seasons,*
and the sun knows the time of its setting.

21 You make darkness that it may be night,*
in which all the beasts of the forest prowl.

22 The lions roar after their prey*
and seek their food from God.

23 The sun rises, and they slip away*
and lay themselves down in their dens .

24 Man goes forth to his work*
and to his labour until the evening.

Conclusion (Isaiah 61/Luke 4)

1 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,*
because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor,
2 and has sent me to proclaim release to the captives;*
recovery of sight to the blind;
3 to set at liberty those who are oppressed;*
to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.
4 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;*
my soul shall exult in my God;
5 who has clothed me with the garment of salvation,*
and covered me with the robe of righteousness.
6 For as the earth brings forth its shoots,*
so the Lord will cause righteousness to spring forth before all nations.

Glory to the Father…

Antiphon: Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God,
and your glory over all the earth.

READING(S)

Daniel 7:9-14

As I watched,
thrones were set in place,
and an Ancient One took his throne;
his clothing was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames,
and its wheels were burning fire.
A stream of fire issued
and flowed out from his presence.
A thousand thousand served him,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him.
The court sat in judgement,
and the books were opened.
I watched then because of the noise of the arrogant words that the horn was speaking. And as I watched, the beast was put to death, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. As I watched in the night visions,
I saw one like a human being
coming with the clouds of heaven.
And he came to the Ancient One
and was presented before him.
To him was given dominion
and glory and kingship,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not pass away,
and his kingship is one
that shall never be destroyed.

Hebrews 2:5-18

Now God did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels. But someone has testified somewhere,
‘What are human beings that you are mindful of them,
or mortals, that you care for them?
You have made them for a little while lower than the angels;
you have crowned them with glory and honour,
subjecting all things under their feet.’
Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them,but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, saying,
‘I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.’
And again,
‘I will put my trust in him.’
And again,
‘Here am I and the children whom God has given me.’
Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham.Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.

Silence

Response (Ps. 105.1)

Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his name,
alleluia, alleluia.
Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his name,
alleluia, alleluia.
Make known his deeds among the peoples,
Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his name, alleluia, alleluia.

BENEDICTUS

Benedictus Antiphons: I will not leave you desolate, says the Lord;* I will come to you; alleluia. (John 14.18)

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)

Collect of the Day
Almighty God, your Son Jesus Christ ascended to the throne of heaven that he might rule over all things as Lord. Keep the Church in the unity of the Spirit and in the bond of peace, and bring the whole of creation to worship at his feet, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

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.